Specialty Coffee 2026 events: what’s next

From national titles to global stages, our year is shaped by the places where coffee culture lives and grows.

Innovation within the Specialty Coffee competition circuit

Over the last decade, specialty coffee competitions have evolved from niche events into major platforms for new ideas, techniques, and tools. As Perfect Daily Grind reports, these stages concentrate on exclusive coffees, advanced equipment, and the increasing development of new competitions formats; conditions that help innovative practices emerge and spread quickly across cafés worldwide. Staying close to this ecosystem means remaining up to date on emerging trends while continuing to support baristas' passion as they push the craft forward.

Valentina Dalla Corte, Chief of Staff & Commercial Excellence Manager in Dalla Corte, highlights that competitions aren't just shows; but most of all they're live classrooms where the entire industry learns and evolve together.

Read more: How much innovation and creativity do we really see at coffee competitions? - Perfect Daily Grind

Why we support different championships

Dalla Corte's global presence reflects a simple belief: coffee grows stronger when skills, formats, and communities interact with each other. We support a broad range of competitions (from long‑standing SCA world championships to complementary platforms) because each format cultivates different dimensions of the craft:

• Italian Latte Art Championship (CILA): the national pathway to the World Latte Art Championship (WLAC), celebrating visual artistry, precision, and hospitality at the bar.
• World Espresso Championship (WEC) and other complementary formats: these events often maintain fixed coffees and equipment so that extraction choices and technique are brought clearly into view; it is a different lens on mastery that complements other competition styles.
• Latte Art Grading System (LAGS): an accessible framework and event ecosystem that encourages progressive learning and community‑driven recognition.
• National championships: crucial steppingstones that develop local talent and bring new voices to the world stage.

Across this landscape, our role remains consistent: support the craft and the people who move it forward; baristas, trainers, judges, roasters, and organizers.

Events where we met

Trade shows are where ideas and people meet new extraction tools, workflow upgrades, sensory research, training, and café design under one roof. Whatever the context‑specific reasons for attending, our public‑facing goal is consistent: open dialogue, hands‑on learning, and community support.

• HostMilano (Oct 17-21): a global benchmark for hospitality, where technology, coffee culture, and design come together.
• SIGEP World, Rimini (Jan 16-20): In Italy, SIGEP remains a key crossroads for sweet foodservice, from gelato and pastry to coffee, with international buyers, showcases, and competitions across five days at Rimini Expo Centre.
• World of Coffee Dubai (Jan 18-20): now a leading platform for the Middle East, World of Coffee Dubai gathered producers, roasters, equipment brands, and buyers at Dubai World Trade Centre, mixing competitions, cuppings, lectures, awards, and auctions highlighting the region's growing momentum.
• CoffeeFest Madrid (Feb 14-16): at IFEMA Madrid, CoffeeFest blended competitions, roaster showcases, cuppings, and a green‑coffee program fueling Spain's fast‑rising specialty scene and welcoming both professionals and enthusiasts. At our booth we hosted a LAGS activation, bringing live grading and community energy to the show floor.

The next steps for Specialty Coffee

• World of Coffee San Diego | April 10–12, 2026: this year, World of Coffee San Diego marks the rebrand of North America's flagship SCA event and hosts the World Latte Art Championship. Expect a full program of lectures, workshops, cuppings, awards, and new show features surrounding the WLAC arena.
• United States Barista Championship | June 18–21, 2026: Dalla Corte is proud to serve as Official Machine Sponsor of the 2026 United States Barista Championship (USBC), one of the most respected and influential competitive stages within the U.S. Coffee Championships circuit. The 2026 USBC will take place June 18–21, 2026, in Denver, Colorado, hosted by Huckleberry Roasters. Over four days, the competition will bring together 36 of the nation's top baristas, each demonstrating technical mastery, creativity, and exceptional espresso preparation under the guidance of certified sensory and technical judges. The event is organized by RoasTronix, the SCA USA Event Partner responsible for delivering this nationally recognized competition in collaboration with regional and national stakeholders.

Shaping the future of specialty coffee

Competitions and trade shows aren't ending in themselves, but they're catalysts: places where skills, creativity, and technology inspire each other. That's why Dalla Corte's calendar spans national titles, global stages, and multidisciplinary (like CILA, WEC and LAGS) fairs. We believe that accessible, high‑quality competition elevates hospitality, deepens knowledge, and keeps specialty coffee welcoming to new talent.

Whether a competition standardizes equipment or leaves it to the competitor, our machines are built to empower technique, from flow control to repeatability, so baristas can express flavor, texture, and creativity where it matters most: in the cup.