It's back! After a successful run in 2025, the Mitchell's Mega Matchplay Pinball Tournament returns for 2026.
A two-day, 68-player IFPA-certified Matchplay Pinball Throwdown in Northern Virginia
Date:
April 18-19, 2026
Where:
Sterling, VA – Mike Mitchell’s house. Address to be provided directly to registered players.
What:
Two-day Mega Matchplay pinball tournament. This is an IFPA Certified tournament for maximum WPPR value — Last year’s tournament was worth over 100 WPPRs!
Entry Fee:
$40 ($24 towards prize pool, $15 for food/expenses, $1 for IFPA fee)
Cancellations will be fully refunded through April 10th. After that, refunds will only be issued if we can fill your spot from the waitlist.
Max Players:
68
Schedule:
Saturday, April 18th: Qualifying – Doors open/check-in at 9am. Tournament starts at 10am sharp. Expect to finish around 9:30-10PM.
Sunday, April 19th: Finals – Doors open at 11am. Finals rounds start at Noon.
Format:
Qualifying: 20 rounds of Group Matchplay with 7/5/3/1 scoring – balanced pairing – held on Saturday with a couple breaks.
Finals: 24 finalists play PAPA finals format (3 games with 4/2/1/0 scoring) – top 8 get a single bye – held on Sunday.
Following all rules for IFPA Certified events.
Registration:
UPDATE 3/11/26: We re-worked game placement to spread things out a bit more and have bumped up the player limit to 68.
UPDATE 3/1/26: All 64 spots have now been claimed! We will maintain a waitlist, so if you’d like to play don’t hesitate to sign-up. Last year we were able to clear 100% of the waitlist prior to the tournament.
March 1st at 12pm (noon) Eastern Time Zone. Email human@mitchellsmegamatchplay.com to register. Please include name, IFPA number and phone number. Emails received before the registration date/time will not be accepted. Paypal (Friends & Family option only!) payment of entry fee will be required to keep spot within 1 day of registration. Waitlist will fill any open spots.
Here’s how registration will flow:
- You email to register
- We will send back a confirmation that your spot has been held, along with payment info (This may take a few hours to go out.)
- You pay
- We email out a confirmation that you are now fully paid and confirmed.
Players List & Waitlist:
Additional Details:
- 22+ games from all eras will be included in the game bank; see game bank on Matchplay listing.
- There will be plenty of space both indoors and outdoors to relax while not playing.
- Lunch, dinner, snacks, and water/soda will be provided. Bring your own beverages of choice or any additional food.
- Please know that 20 rounds of qualifying on Saturday will be a FULL DAY affair and plan accordingly! (20 rounds of matchplay is the minimum to qualify for certified status.) We wrapped up right around 9:30 PM last year.
- Additional details and logistics will be provided via e-mail to those who register.
Who in their right mind would do such a thing:
- Mike Mitchell & Family – Hosts, Game Fixers, & Snack Food Engineering
- TDs: Bryan Henson, Joe Landas, & Dave Hubbard
Questions?
Contact human@mitchellsmegamatchplay.com with any questions.