LSE Tournaments
Every year, LSE hosts some of the biggest tournaments on the circuit. Please come back here to check for further details on:
LSE Open
8th - 9th February
LSE Open is our flagship annual competition and easily one of the most prestigious in Europe. It attracts around 250 participants each year from across Europe, making it one of the five largest competitions on the continent. Its attraction is the extremely high quality of debating; this year our Chief Adjudication Panel consisted of a world champion, a European finalist and a future World Championships Chief Adjudication Panelist. The LSE Open attracts not just university students but also recent graduates who are keen to test their skills against the new generation. Winning the LSE Open is widely viewed as one of the pinnacles of debating achievement.
LSE Pro-Am
19th February
LSE Schools
30th November
LSE Schools is one of the most competitive schools debating tournaments in the country. It routinely attracts over 80 teams every year, comprised of the most intelligent and ambitious schoolchildren interested in debating. We work hard to ensure that we provide a strong pool of judges to give high quality and constructive feedback to every pupil. Given the number of bursaries we provide, attendance from state and inner-city schools is higher than most competitions. We do this to ensure this opportunity remains as accessible as possible.
LSE Juniors
18th of January
LSE Juniors focuses on the development of young debaters, giving them a chance to debate in a competition specifically aimed at their age group and experience level. With approximately 75 teams competing, this tournament provides a valuable opportunity for fledgling debaters to debate with an experienced group of judges and organisers - an opportunity not otherwise available on the London circuit.
Registration is open -- sign up with this link:
https://forms.gle/xuiwpaoRW5oSvqmH8
LSE Juniors
18th of January
LSE Juniors focuses on the development of young debaters, giving them a chance to debate in a competition specifically aimed at their age group and experience level. With approximately 75 teams competing, this tournament provides a valuable opportunity for fledgling debaters to debate with an experienced group of judges and organisers - an opportunity not otherwise available on the London circuit.
Registration is open -- sign up with this link:
https://forms.gle/xuiwpaoRW5oSvqmH8
LSE Pro-Am
19th February
LSE Pro-Am is a development focussed competition which teams up experienced debaters with novices. Only a handful of this style of competition exist in the country and we are proud that LSE Pro-Am is one of the flagship ones. We provide high quality judging to ensure that the tournament constitutes an invaluable learning experience to new or developing debaters seeking to improve their skills.
LSE Asians
TBC (Likely Early to Mid June)
LSE Asians is unique among European tournaments due to its 3 vs 3 format and its focus on presentation and delivery as a core part of the adjudication. As the only competition in Europe to run this format, we have experienced high levels of interest in this innovative tournament, which has been attended by a large and diverse, international pool of speakers and judges.
LSE Women's
1st December
In December 2018, LSE Debate Society hosted LSE Women’s, a competition exclusively for female and non-binary identifying individuals. LSE Debate Society recognises the structural barriers women face within debating and the wider world wherein the female voice is often drowned out or viewed as a transgression. We wanted to create an environment to develop women’s voices in a space that they felt comfortable. The competition was highly successful, with 20 teams from London and across Europe competing and many expressing their wishes to return next year. We would like to see this competition expand to benefit more female debaters in the future.
LSE Asians
TBC (Likely Early to Mid June)
LSE Asians is unique among European tournaments due to its 3 vs 3 format and its focus on presentation and delivery as a core part of the adjudication. As the only competition in Europe to run this format, we have experienced high levels of interest in this innovative tournament, which has been attended by a large and diverse, international pool of speakers and judges.
LSE Women's
1st December
In December 2018, LSE Debate Society hosted LSE Women’s, a competition exclusively for female and non-binary identifying individuals. LSE Debate Society recognises the structural barriers women face within debating and the wider world wherein the female voice is often drowned out or viewed as a transgression. We wanted to create an environment to develop women’s voices in a space that they felt comfortable. The competition was highly successful, with 20 teams from London and across Europe competing and many expressing their wishes to return next year. We would like to see this competition expand to benefit more female debaters in the future.
Internal Tournaments
We run several internal tournaments throughout the year that are open to LSE Debate Society members only. These include:
Novice Cup
Novice Cup
The Novice Cup is a tournament for specifically for students who are in their first year of British Parliamentary debate. There are three rounds with a break to finals.
RAG Valentine's Cup
The RAG Valentine's Cup is a perfect chance to pair up with that special someone and show them how much you care (by evenly distributing your substantive points and maybe even sharing a rebuttal or two). Participants benefit from our (almost) perfect matchmaking algorithm. All non-debaters are welcome; no prior debating experience is necessary! All proceeds go to charity.
Pop Culture Pro-Am
This year at Pop Culture Pro-Am we debated everything from Game of Thrones, to the Kardashians, the Black Mirror! This is a pro-am tournament with a twist; the focus on pop culture makes it fun, relaxed, entertaining and welcoming. If you love debating (or just want to try it out!) but would rather argue about superheroes than the financial crisis then this is the competition for you!
