Who’s in The Jack?
102 teams from 41 states and 22 countries will descend on Lynchburg Oct. 9-11 for barbecue’s biggest weekend
9:45 a.m. Aug. 7, 2026 | Updated 6:55 p.m. Aug. 8, 2026
DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor
Most of the year, Lynchburg knows its own pace.
Then The Jack comes to town.
Smoke hangs in the air before breakfast. Coolers roll down the sidewalk. Southern drawls mingle with accents from half a world away. By Saturday morning, there are license plates from everywhere and more folks packed into our little corner of Tennessee than seems reasonably possible.
For one weekend, barbecue’s biggest spotlight shines squarely on Lynchburg.
This is our Super Bowl.
The 2026 Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue returns Oct. 9-11, bringing world-class pitmasters and more than 40,000 visitors to town for a competition that has spent more than three decades becoming one of barbecue’s crown jewels.
It’s free. It’s family-friendly. And around here, it’s circled on the calendar.
This year’s field stretches from one coast to the other – and well beyond them.
The latest rosters include 73 U.S. teams from 41 states and 26 international teams representing 22 countries, putting 99 teams in this year’s field. The domestic contingent reaches from Maine to California and Florida to Washington. International teams are coming from Australia, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Sweden and plenty of places in between.
Some of the best barbecue cooks on Earth are hauling smokers, recipes and championship ambitions to Lynchburg, Tennessee.
The champ is coming back
One team will roll into town carrying something nobody else in the field has: The Jack’s championship to defend.
Kings BBQ Team of Jacksonville, Fla., claimed the 2025 Grand Champion title, taking home $25,000 and earning its place back in Lynchburg this fall.
The trophy may belong to Kings – for now. ... But nobody simply wanders into this field.
The domestic roster reflects the invitation-only nature of The Jack, with teams qualifying through state and home-state competitions, automatic berths, seven-win qualifications and a wild card.
The names read like a roll call from barbecue country: Gettin’ Basted, Loot N’ Booty BBQ, Porky Butts BBQ, Slaps BBQ, Texas Oil Dust, Smokey D’s Wannabees and dozens more.
Then come the international crews – Butterbeard BBQ from Australia, Black Forest from Germany, Pitmasters Syndicate from Mexico, and Bunch of Swines from the United Kingdom.
Some will travel thousands of miles just to cook here.
In Lynchburg.
For a weekend, the world comes to us
Living here, it can be easy to forget just how big The Jack has become.
We shouldn’t.
Once a year, competitors who spend seasons chasing championships point their trucks, trailers – and sometimes airplanes – toward Moore County. Families come with them. Barbecue fans follow. Visitors who may have never heard of Lynchburg before booking the trip learn pretty quickly where to find us.
And somehow, our little town holds them all.
There is money on the line. There are trophies to win. Years of work, recipes, smoke and long nights beside a pit can come down to one weekend.
But The Jack has always been bigger than the scoreboard.
It is somebody from Moore County swapping stories with a pitmaster from Poland. It is a crowd gathered around a cooker, trying to figure out what smells so good. It is old friends coming back year after year and first-timers discovering that, yes, Lynchburg really is that small.
For three days in October, the barbecue world gets a Lynchburg address.
Then Sunday comes. The trailers pull out. The smoke clears. And our little town goes back to being our little town.
Until next year.
2026 U.S. teams
The domestic field is grouped alphabetically below by the state where each team lives, using the “Lives In” column on the 2026 roster.
• Alabama – Dang Good BBQ
• Arizona – Loot N' Booty BBQ
• Arkansas – Bad Dog BBQ; Razorracks BBQ
• California – B'Mackin BBQ; Bone Rubbin BBQ; Cynical BBQ; Mar-B-Que’s BBQ; Smokin’Volts BBQ
• Colorado – Brinkerhoff BBQ
• Connecticut – Fire At The End of the Day (FATED BBQ); Sticks & Stones BBQ; Titans of BBQ
• Florida – Cocamoke Smoke BBQ; DONE RIGHT SMOKIN’; Kings BBQ
• Georgia – Maya Jane BBQ; ZIPS BBQ; Bad Rooster BBQ
• Idaho – CROOKED PIGS
• Illinois – Janky Leg BBQ; QUE U; Triple H BBQ
• Indiana – Scuffletown Smokers
• Iowa – Smokey D’s Wannabees; Wags Backwoods BBQ
• Kansas – Bocephus BBQ; Slaps BBQ
• Kentucky – WeQ4u
• Louisiana – All Jacked Up; SWEET BAYOU BBQ; Vallee A/C Cold Smoke
• Maine – Humphrey's BBQ
• Maryland – All Fired Up BBQ; Good Googly Goo BBQ
• Massachusetts – Paddy McQ's; Smokin Hoggz BBQ
• Michigan – Shiggin Aint Easy
• Minnesota – Hot Daddy's BBQ; Shiggin & Grinnin
• Mississippi – Glamping Grillers; Heath Riles BBQ
• Missouri – Gettin’ Basted; GO PIG OR GO HOME; Poor Boys BBQ
• Montana – BrewsCue
• Nebraska – Porky Butts BBQ
• Nevada – Big Johns BBQ Company
• New Hampshire – Angrycock BBQ; ELJEFE SMOKE
• New York – Grandpa Val's BBQ
• North Carolina – Muttley Crew BBQ
• North Dakota – Burnt Trees BBQ
• Ohio – Tire Smoke BBQ
• Oklahoma – BULL IN THE RING; Okie Folks Barbecue
• Oregon – Small Axe BBQ
• Pennsylvania – Drilling And Grilling BBQ Team; HotMess BBQ
• South Carolina – Smoke Central BBQ
• Tennessee – Mudville BBQ; Rooters-N-Tooters TN
• Texas – Cast Iron Cookers; Chicken Fried BBQ; Kickin' Ash BBQ - Bulverde; LC BBQ; Smokin' Aces BBQ; Texas Oil Dust; The Miller Lite Bunch
• Virginia – B's Que
• Washington – Rob's Smokin and Grillin BBQ
• West Virginia – Dog Bite Barbecue; Poor Boys BBQ
• Wisconsin – Son of a Boar BBQ
• Wyoming – Colorado Bulldawg BBQ; Wyo Smoke Show
2026 international teams
The international field includes 26 teams representing 22 countries.
• Australia – BUTTERBEARD BBQ
• Austria – COOKLOUNGE BBQ
• Belgium – The Antwerp Smoker
• Brazil – B.R.A. BARBECUE TEAM
• Bulgaria – The Rusty Grill
• Canada – BBQ WorX; BIGG SMOAK BBQ; SmellaQue
• Costa Rica – Justice BBQ
• Croatia – BBQ Hot Yard
• Denmark – Bbq brothers
• Estonia – BBQ Symphony
• Germany – Black Forest
• Italy – Skinny Beans BBQ Team – Wild Card; SMOKY COTTE
• Lithuania – Alkanas briedis
• Mexico – Pitmasters Syndicate
• Netherlands – Keij Smokin’ Hot
• New Zealand – BEERS
• Panama – Grill and Chill
• Poland – Black Bark Coyotes BBQ; Polish Bbq KING - Smoker
• Romania – FOOD’VENTURE GRILL & BBQ
• Slovenia – Knox BBQ
• Sweden – Lingon & dill BBQ Team
• United Kingdom – Bunch of Swines
Editor’s Note: Following Thursday’s draw for the 37th Annual Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue, organizers determined that three qualifying teams were inadvertently left out because of a miscommunication with the Kansas City Barbeque Society regarding qualifying criteria and the new open format. After a review with KCBS, Bad Rooster, Poor Boys BBQ, and Blind Fox BBQ have been added to the 2026 field. Each earned a spot as a Grand Champion at a qualifying event.