2026 Kickoff Weekend
Host Site Requirements

Host Site Requirements

Host Sites - Indoor vs Outdoor

Host sites will be required to distinguish themselves as indoor or outdoor sites prior to the draft. 

Indoor Sites

Matches at a site that submits itself as an indoor site prior to the draft will be played indoors, regardless of the weather during that event. Indoor facilities must have a minimum of 3 courts. 

Outdoor Sites

An outdoor site may play indoors in case of inclement weather, and backup indoor courts are available per ITA Rule I.J (pages 15-17 of the 2025-26 ITA Rulebook). Outdoor sites with institutionally owned/operated/managed indoor tennis facilities containing a minimum of 3 indoor courts must secure those facilities as indoor backup. Outdoor sites without institutionally owned/operated/managed indoor facilities are strongly encouraged to secure public or privately owned indoor facilities (minimum of 3 courts) within a 60-mile radius of their campus that meet ITA guidelines for indoor facilities prior to submitting their host site application.

Waiver Process (adopted April 2023; revised May 2024, ITA DI Championships Subcommittee): Teams that wish to play outdoors must submit a waiver to host if any of the conditions below apply. These waivers will be reviewed and ultimately approved/denied by the ITA Championships Subcommittee.

• Have applied to host as an outdoor site without indoor backup (must have 12 outdoor courts to be considered).

• Have an indoor backup facility that is more than 60 miles away from the outdoor facility.

• Have an indoor backup facility that does not meet one or more ITA guidelines for indoor facilities.

If a waiver to play without indoor backup is denied: Teams must secure indoor backup no later than 1 month following the Kickoff Weekend Draft. Indoor facility must be within 150 miles.

If waiver to play without indoor backup is approved: Teams will still be required to make every effort to complete all matches outdoors, including but not limited to using the rain makeup day, having additional facilities/operations staff on-hand to aid in the drying of courts, and be prepared to secure and travel to additional outdoor backup within 150 miles.

Policy if an event cannot be completed: If inclement weather, facility failure, pandemic, or other Act of God does not allow for the championship match to begin by 9 pm local time on Monday, January 27 (9 pm local time on Tuesday, January 28 for sites originally slated to finish on Monday), the ITA Championships Subcommittee will review on a case-by-case basis to determine whether the host site met the conditions of their waiver approval and made every effort to complete the matches. The ITA Championships Subcommittee reserves the right to reschedule the championship match or award the spot at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships to the next highest-seeded team remaining from that Region if it’s determined that those conditions were not met.

Any facility secured for hosting an ITA Kickoff Weekend must be given priority over all other activities requiring usage of the facility for the length of time needed to accommodate the full length of practice, warmup and competition of all Kickoff Weekend matches. Courts must be properly maintained and ready for play prior to the warm-up time before each match.

Practice Courts

Practice courts must be made available at the event site the day prior to the start of the event for all participating teams. Teams shall receive, at a minimum, three courts for 90 minutes on the day prior. At dual gender sites, the host site can request permission for warm-up courts for all teams playing on day two to be at an alternate site with a similar surface.

ITA Certified Officials

Host sites will be required to provide an ITA certified official as head referee for the event and that referee will be required to attend a referee training webinar. Host sites will also be required to chair every match in all four team dual matches with ITA certified officials. The head referee must not serve as a chair umpire for any of the team dual matches (unless extenuating circumstances warrant – illness, injury, etc., to one of the chair officials). ITA certified officials are not permitted to work the event if they are employed by one of the four participating schools.

Hosting Expenses

Host sites will be responsible for all costs associated with hosting the four team dual matches including tennis balls, certified athletic trainers, ITA certified officials, promotions, etc. Dunlop is the official ball of the ITA, and Dunlop Grand Prix Extra Duty tennis balls must be used during all ITA Kickoff Weekend events. Dunlop High Altitude tennis balls shall be used at locations with an elevation of 4000 ft. or more above sea level. The ITA will provide each host site with one case of Dunlop Grand Prix Extra Duty tennis balls for use during the event at the expense of the ITA.

Accommodations

Host sites are required to designate a host hotel(s) within 15 miles of the location where matches will be played and make their best effort to secure a discounted rate for incoming teams. All host sites must send a host site information packet or email including items of importance – health and safety protocols, airport and hotel information, host site facility information, practice and warm-up schedule, match schedule, time of coaches meeting, information on athletic trainers and available training equipment, etc.

Entry Fees

All participating teams, including host schools, must pay a $200 entry fee to the ITA prior to the start of the event.

Coaches Meeting

Host sites must arrange for a coaches meeting before play starts. The head referee and the four participating coaches must attend this meeting. This meeting should be scheduled after the final master lineups have been approved and no later than the mandatory practice day.

National Team Indoors

Teams choosing to host a Kickoff Weekend regional should have initial approval from their administration to participate at National Team Indoors should they qualify.

Note: If a host site does not meet the requirements listed above, the ITA Division I Operating Committee will review each incident on a case-by-case basis, with the understanding that if there are substantial issues, a host site may lose its hosting privileges for the following year.

Schedule of Play

Host sites will be required to turn in a proposed schedule of play, including a practice court schedule, by Monday, May 19th for Division I Championships Subcommittee review. Once the schedule has been approved, the dates and times of play are final and may not be changed without approval of the ITA office, the four coaches involved and the head referee. Any proposed changes to the schedule after final approval must first be sent to the ITA office for processing. For dual gender sites that require play to start on Friday, January 23rd, the men will play first in 2026.

The following are recommended schedules. Submitted schedules are not final until they have received approval from the ITA Division I Championships Subcommittee.

SINGLE GENDER SITE- FEWER THAN 12 COURTS

Saturday, January 24
Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Sunday, January 25
Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3 

Monday, January 26
Weather day for outdoor sites with no indoor backup

SINGLE GENDER SITE- 12 OR MORE COURTS (Option 1)

Saturday, January 24
Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Sunday, January 25
Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3 

Monday, January 26
Weather day for outdoor sites with no indoor backup

SINGLE GENDER SITE- 12 OR MORE COURTS (Option 2)

Saturday, January 24
Matches #1 & #2: Simultaneous at 10 am, 11 am, 12 pm, 1 pm, or 2 pm
*Host site will play on featured courts

Sunday, January 25
Match #3 & #4: Simultaneous at 10 am, 11 am, 12 pm, 1 pm, or 2 pm
*Championship match will play on featured courts

Monday, January 26
Weather days for outdoor only sites with no indoor backup.
*Host sites with indoor backup will be required to submit an inclement weather plan detailing which matches move indoors first.

DUAL GENDER SITE- FEWER THAN 12 COURTS

Dual gender sites without indoor backup or utilizing less than 6 courts of indoor backup must utilize the Fri/Sat & Sun/Mon split schedule.

Option 1:

Friday, January 23
Men's Match #1: 10 am, 11 am, 12 pm, 1 pm, 2 pm or 3 pm
Men's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1

Saturday, January 24
Women's Match #1: 9 am
Women's Match #2: “not before” 12 pm
Men's Match #3: “not before” 3:30 pm
Men's Match #4: “not before” 6:30 pm
*If host site health safety protocols allow, host sites may follow the ITA Team Indoors practice court schedule, including practice during the doubles point and a minimum warmup time once 6 courts are available.

Sunday, January 25
Women's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3

Monday, January 26
Weather day for outdoor sites with no indoor backup

Option 2:

Friday, January 23
Men's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Saturday, January 24
Men's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3 

Sunday, January 25
Women's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Monday, January 26
Women's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3

DUAL GENDER SITE- 12 OR MORE COURTS 

Dual gender sites without indoor backup or utilizing less than 6 courts of indoor backup must utilize the Fri/Sat & Sun/Mon split schedule.

Option 1:

Saturday, January 24
Men's Matches #1 & #2: Simultaneous at 10 or 11 am
Women's Matches #1 & #2: Simultaneous and “not before” 3 hours after the start of the women’s matches 

Sunday, January 25
Men's Matches #3 & #4: Simultaneous at 10 or 11 am
Women's Matches #3 & #4: Simultaneous and “not before” 3 hours after the start of the women’s matches 

Monday, January 26
Weather day for outdoor sites with no indoor backup

Option 2:

Friday, January 23
Men's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Saturday, January 24
Men's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3 

Sunday, January 25
Women's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Monday, January 26
Women's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3

DUAL GENDER SITE- FEWER THAN 6 COURTS

Friday, January 23
Men's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Saturday, January 24
Men's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Men's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3 

Sunday, January 25
Women's Match #1: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #2: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #1 

Monday, January 26
Women's Match #3: 10 or 11 am
Women's Match #4: “not before” 3 hours after the start of match #3

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