The Patriot Games — President Donald Trump’s planned teen athletic tournament to complement America’s 250th birthday celebrations — now has a home.
The Patriot Games tournament will begin in Ohio on Sunday, August 9, and run through Tuesday, August 11, giving teen athletes little time to qualify and apply.
The National Federation of State High School Associations reports about 8.26 million participants in high school sports in 2024–25, the highest total on record.
That breaks down to roughly 4.7 million boys and 3.5 million girls taking part in at least one school sport.
That means there could be a whole lot of teen athletes applying to participate in the Patriot Games.
Here’s where the Patriot Games will be held, and how you can apply.
Where will the Patriot Games be held?
Freedom250 confirmed the Patriot Games will beheld in Geneva, Ohio, at SPIRE Academy.
Geneva is about halfway between Erie, Pennsylvania and Cleveland, Ohio, along the southern coast of Lake Erie.
The SPIRE Academy is known as an elite, international high school for student-athletes looking to join Division I college programs or professional teams.
Trump is no stanger to SPIRE; during the run-up to his first election in 2016, Trump held a massive rally at the school complex.
How you apply for the Patriot Games
The Patriot Games application portal is now live.
There are broad eligibility requirements, according to Freedom 250.
Eligible contestants must be 14 by June 1, 2026, and 17 or younger on December 31, 2026. Applying athletes must also be a legal U.S. citizen, resident of a U.S. state, territory, or tribal nation and is a student in good academic standing.
That application covers who the student is (name, age, school, where they live) and how they’d represent their state, territory, or tribal nation at the competition.
From there, applicants upload a short video sharing their story and explaining why they want to compete in the Patriot Games, touching on qualities like determination, teamwork, resilience, and leadership.
Once the form and video are submitted through the Freedom 250 portal, the Patriot Games Selection Committee reviews applications, does follow‑up screening and verification, and then chooses finalists who will participate in the Patriot Games.
Patriot Games blend sport, military exercises
According to an email from Freedom250, the Patriot Games will include rounds featuring elements from football, basketball, soccer, track, and more.
Competitions will feature both team and individual competitions.
Competitors will be tested on the skills from the Presidential Fitness Test, go through a military-inspired boot camp circuit, and finalists will compete in an obstacle course designed to test strategy and skill.
Patriot Games crowns two champions with $250,000 in scholarships
The two overall champions — one male and one female — will each receive $125,000 in scholarship funding, for a total of $250,000.
Damon C. Williams is a Philadelphia-based journalist reporting on trending, breaking and service-related topics across the Mid-Atlantic region for the USA Today Network.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Trump’s Patriot Games now has a home, events and prizes; what to know
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