Wagga Wagga City Council and the NSW Touch Association (NSWTA) are hosting the Junior State Cup Southern Conference carnival at the Jubilee Park precinct this weekend, 13 – 15 February 2026.
More than 8000 players, their families, and supporters, along with organisers and volunteers will converge on Wagga Wagga for the prestigious three-day event.
NSW Touch Football General Manager Dean Russell described the Junior State Cup as one of the most important events on the NSW Touch Football calendar.
"We're excited to see Wagga Wagga host the Southern Conference this weekend," Mr Russell said.
"The venue, facilities, and local support provide an outstanding environment for our young athletes to compete, develop, and showcase the very best of junior Touch Football from across the state.
"We look forward to a fantastic event and thank the Wagga Wagga community and local association for their continued support."
Mayor of the City of Wagga Wagga Councillor Dallas Tout congratulated the grounds staff at Jubilee Park for their hard work in preparing the precinct in the challenging conditions of the recent heatwave.
"I think our staff have done a magnificent job getting the fields competition-ready for what will be a big three days of action," Cr Tout said.
"It is the eighth consecutive year the carnival has been held in the city, and each one has been a great success for both the NSW Touch Association and our community.
"We are looking forward to welcoming everyone to Wagga Wagga and Jubilee Park for this exciting event and wish all the participants and officials the very best.
"It's the final one to be hosted here under the current three-year agreement between Council and NSWTA, from 2024 to 2026, but hopefully it won't be the last time we see the Junior State Cup Southern Conference carnival in our city."
Earlier this year, Council submitted a bid to retain hosting rights for the next three JSC Southern Conference carnivals – 2027, 2028 and 2029. The successful tender is expected to be announced in March.
For now, though, the focus is on working with NSWTA to ensure the success of the 2026 carnival.
Dean Russell thanked Council's Recreation Team, grounds staff and the Wagga Touch Association who, along with the NSWTA, have made holding this carnival possible.
"A lot of logistics are involved in pulling this event together to ensure it offers these junior players the best experience possible" Mr Russell said.
"We have 183 teams taking part, with more than 500 games to be played over the three days of competition, starting at 8am on Friday and progressing through to the finals from midday on Sunday.
"To run something this large and complicated, we need the support of Council and businesses within the community and that's something we've been able to count on each year we've held the carnival in Wagga Wagga."
During the carnival, there will be changed traffic conditions around Jubilee Park, including a number of road and lane closures which will be under traffic management control. These include:
- Red Hill Road will be closed to east-bound traffic between the Bourke Street and Glenfield Road roundabouts – detours via Bruce Street.
- Bourke Street between Bourkelands Drive and Red Hill Road roundabout will be closed to south-bound traffic – detours via Berembee Road, Bourkelands Drive and Holbrook Road.
- Road closures will be in place from 6am to 7pm on Friday and Saturday, and from 6am to 5pm on Sunday – detours will be signposted.
To stay up to date about any changed road conditions, residents and motorists are encouraged to visit livetraffic.com
