Gaming tech brand Alienware has announced that its Collegiate Clash tournament is returning for 2026, with a focus on Marvel Rivals this year.
According to the official blog post, 24 North American schools will field Alienware partnered teams, playing in two Marvel Rivals qualifiers to reach the finals in Austin, Texas, US.
According to the announcement trailer posted by Alienware, the qualifiers will take place from March 2nd to 6th, 2026, with the finals scheduled to run on April 11th. Matches will be broadcast on the official Marvel Rivals Twitch and YouTube channels.
These are all the schools that will compete in the Alienware Collegiate Clash:
- Centennial College
- Florida International University
- Michigan State University
- Purdue University
- St. Clair College
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of Colorado Boulder
- University of Texas at Austin
- Ball State University
- Baylor University
- East Tennessee State University
- Georgia Institute of Technology
- Indian University Bloomington
- Kansas State University
- Minnesota State University
- Old Dominion University
- Southern Methodist University
- St. Edwards University
- Syracuse University
- Texas A&M University
- University of Buffalo
- University of California, Berkley
- University of Kentucky
- Winthrop University
Alienware Collegiate Clash was last held in 2025, pitting academic teams against one another in the battle royale game, Apex Legends. The offline PC competition was won by Texas A&M University, which outperformed 10 other teams on April 12th, 2025.
Collegiate Esports in 2026
Esports has featured more prominently in academia over the years, especially in the US, with various competitive titles holding circuits, programmes, and more.
In 2026, Epic Games unveiled the return of the Collegiate Rocket League for the Spring 2026 semester. It brings a new circuit, from qualifiers to the Spring Championship, offering $55,000 (~£40,180) in scholastic awards.
Blizzard Entertainment also relaunched Overwatch Collegiate for the 2025-2026 academic year. The programme began on August 5th, 2025, in partnership with the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE), with over $140,000 (~£105,000) in scholarship prizing.
Moreover, MOONTON, the developers of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, extended its partnership with smartphone brand OPPO for the Hyper Legends Cup, an SEA-focused college-level tournament offering $100,000 (~£72,500) in prize funds.
