Smokers are firing up on a brand-new stretch of land in Kansas City, Kansas this week, as the American Royal World Series of Barbecue leaves its longtime home at Kansas Speedway for the organization's own campus near State Avenue and 118th Street. More than 350 teams are competing, including 22 from outside the United States, in what organizers call the world's biggest barbecue competition.
The event, running Wednesday through Sunday, marks the first time in the American Royal's 127-year history that it will host competitions in a facility it actually owns, according to bizjournals.com. The World Series of Barbecue is slated for September 30 through October 4, per a report from a barbecue-industry newsletter, capping off a move that spanned more than a decade of planning and construction hurdles.
The new grounds sit on about 80 acres east of 118th Street, just northwest of the old Kansas Speedway site, according to the American Royal. Five livestock barns and an exhibition hall make up roughly 390,000 square feet of the campus, and the American Royal says the total project cost is estimated at $375 million, per the same organization's account of its new home.
Construction Still Underway, So Don't Expect a Stage This Year
Because building is still in progress, the 2026 edition will look different from years past. The American Royal says this year's event will offer only a limited onsite experience for invited guests, and there will not be a main stage or public activities, according to the organization. Construction on the barns and exhibition hall was approximately 80% complete and on track for a September opening, the American Royal reports, with the full campus not expected to be finished until March 2029.
Judging will happen inside the barns this year, with one centralized turn-in location for all categories, the American Royal notes. Turkey smoke won't be part of the lineup in 2026, and the overall schedule includes the Invitational, Sides and Kids Que on Saturday.
Team Counts Vary, But the Crowd Is Still Massive
Exactly how many teams showed up depends on who's counting. The American Royal itself said it was planning for roughly 350 to 400 teams depending on the final site layout, while kansascity.com reported that 360 teams had signed up as of Tuesday. American Royal CEO Pat Macy told KCTV5, “About 350, 360. Slightly scaled back from years past,” and that station separately reported more than 350 teams taking part, including 22 from outside the U.S.
Kansascity.com also reported that organizers expect the contest to stay smaller for the next few years while construction continues nearby. Some competitors are treating the move as a milestone regardless of the exact headcount. Brad and Brie Colter of Smokin' Magic BBQ are competing at the American Royal for the fifth year, but this is their first time setting up on the new campus, per the KCTV5 report. Joe Pierce of Slaps BBQ, meanwhile, is marking his tenth year competing at the Royal, the station notes.
Fox4 Kansas City reported that 360 teams have Wednesday and Thursday to move into their spots and get situated before the competition kicks off Friday, with teams coming from more than a dozen countries.
A Longer-Term Plan for the Campus
The American Royal is framing this year's scaled-back event as a first step rather than the finished product. The organization plans to move the World Series of Barbecue back to the first week of October and hold it at the same time every year going forward, according to the barbecue-industry newsletter's report. It also intends to expand the number and types of barbecue events held at the new campus beyond just the World Series, per the same source.
The first phase of the campus is expected to open in fall 2026 and serve as a hub for livestock, equine and other events, the American Royal says, with the broader site being developed as a year-round destination for agriculture, education and events, according to Fox4. For now, though, the focus is on the smokers, the judges and the hundreds of teams settling into their new competition grounds for the first time.
