Sanctioning bodies
The national, regional, and state-level organizations that sanction competitive cooking. Each sanction sets its own rules, judging criteria, and qualification paths.
KCBS
Kansas City Barbeque Society
SCA
Steak Cookoff Association
IBCA
International Barbecue Cookers Association
CASI
Chili Appreciation Society International
ICS
International Chili Society
MBN
Memphis Barbecue Network
LSBS
Lone Star Barbecue Society
Tracked but not yet seeded
3 bodiesSanctioning bodies we cover in principle but haven't loaded events for yet. Most are regional or state-level circuits where the central calendar lives behind a member portal or hasn't published 2026 dates. Submissions from organizers in these circuits are welcome.
regional · bbq
CBA
Championship BBQ Alliance
Regional BBQ sanction. We can't find an accessible website at the common domain variants. Status uncertain — possibly defunct. Email us if you're a CBA contact.
state · bbq
FBA
Florida BBQ Association
Florida state-level BBQ sanction. The flbbq.org domain has been taken over by a content farm; the body's current canonical URL is unknown. Email us if you can confirm whether FBA is still active.
national · bbq
RCOA
Rib Cookoff Association
Rib-focused national sanction. Calendar lives in a Wix SPA at ribcookoffassociation.com that doesn't expose events in static HTML; the body's blog hasn't been updated since April 2025. Reach out if you're an RCOA contact.
Don't see a sanctioning body you compete under? Let us know — adding a new sanction is a one-line change once we confirm the body exists.