MASTERS OF COSPLAY: THE WINDY CITY QUALIFIER

The following criteria must be met to avoid disqualification: 

• Entrants must have a valid Saturday badge to FAN EXPO Chicago 2026.
• Entrants must be 13 years of age or older.
• Entrants must have made or significantly altered at least 70% of their costume in order to compete. Costumers may elect to have a model wear their costume during the contest but must be present for both the pre-judging appointment and the on stage event.
• Fan Expo staff, volunteers, and judges are not allowed to compete in the Masters of Cosplay.
• Costumes that have previously been awarded a Division Award, Runner Up, or Best in Show at a previous competition are not permitted to compete.
• FAN EXPO reserves the right to disallow any contestants on basis of appropriateness of costume FAN EXPO Chicago is a family friendly convention. Nudity and simulated nudity are strictly prohibited. Costumes that are deemed to be racist, obscene, or otherwise derogatory will not be allowed to compete. Costumes with hate symbolism such as swastikas, KKK hoods etc. will not be allowed to compete.
• FAN EXPO HQ staff has the final say on all entries. Their decisions may not be appealed.
• Entrants must be able to wear their costumes for 2+ hours without incurring medical distress such as overheating, lacerations, excessive strain on muscles etc. Entrants who are deemed to be in medical distress by EXPO staff will be removed from the competition and escorted to first aid. This decision cannot be appealed.
• All special effects and props must be pre-approved by the Expo staff prior to the day of the contest. Please surprise the audience, not the staff. All information supplied to FAN EXPO will be held in the strictest of confidence. Any electrical effects must be self-powered. FAN EXPO retains the right to disallow any prop for any reason.
• Any prop or weapon must have passed inspection and be approved by the Weapons and Prop Compliance Team prior to the contest.
• Entrants must leave the stage as clean as it was when they first walked on it. Glitter, confetti, silly string, etc. will not be allowed on stage.
• Absolutely no flame or pyrotechnical props are permitted due to fire regulations. FAN EXPO’s primary concern is public safety.
• FAN EXPO cannot accept lighting requests e.g. turning the lights off or down.
• Animals are not allowed for the competition, with the exception of service animals.
• Individual music will not be permitted.
• Posing only. No skits permitted.

Each prospective contestant must complete the online registration form to be considered for a spot in the competition

Registration does NOT guarantee a spot in the Masters of Cosplay Grand Finale.

There will be no on-site registration for the Masters of Cosplay Grand Finale.

Entrant numbers for this year’s competition will be capped at 45 (15 entrants per division).

Competitors will be selected by the contest organizers based on current progress of prospective contestant’s costume (s). Please note that costumes do not have to be completed at the time of entry.

Costumes that are entered MUST be at least 70% completed at time of registration.

Once pre-registration has closed, prospective contestants will be informed if they have qualified for the contest. A wait list will be available for those who missed pre-registration or did not initially qualify.

Contest Registration will require the following information:

• Name(s)
• Cosplay Handle or Preferred Name (This is the name our host will introduce you by on stage, not the costume you’re in)
• Age(s)
• Division (see below)
• Your Cosplay Character(s)
• Where the Character(s) is from
• A single paragraph description of how you made your costume(s) (this needs to include information on your process and techniques used and will be part of the criteria used to determine which entrants will make it into the contest).
• Photo(s) of the character(s) that is being cosplayed
• Photo(s) of the costume’s current progress
• A single paragraph introducing your costume to the audience, for our host to read on stage if you are selected for the competition. We recommend less than 100 words and a maximum of 5-6 sentences. Contest Organizers and FAN EXPO HQ reserve the right to modify this paragraph for length, clarity, or content that they deem inappropriate.
• Social Media (Instagram, TikTok)
• **If contestants would like to be considered for the Sustainability Award, a single paragraph highlight environmentally friendly aspects to their cosplay (materials and/or methods) will be required

Divisions are as follows for entrants:

MASTERS DIVISION - entrants in this division have extensive costuming experience, have received formal training in costuming or fashion and/or worked in the industry, or have won Best in Show OR three (3) or more major awards in past cosplay competitions.

JOURNEYMAN DIVISION - entrants in this division have moderate costume-making experience, and have previously competed in craftsmanship competitions, winning at least one (1) major award or three (3) minor awards. (Contestants are no longer eligible to compete in the Journeyman division if they have previously won Best in Show OR more than two (2) major awards, regardless of whether the competition included craftsmanship judging.)

NOVICE DIVISION - entrants in this division have little-to-no prior costume making experience, have never received formal training, and have never competed before, OR have competed but never won a major award, and have won no more than two (2) minor awards.

FOR DIVISION PLACEMENT PURPOSES: Major awards include Runner-Up to Best in Show, Best in Division, etc. Minor awards include Division runners-up, judges/organizers' awards, etc.

NOTE: Those entering as a duo or group must enter under the division of the highest skilled cosplayer in the duo/group

NOTE: Contestants may be moved to different divisions based on experience or at the judge’s discretion. If you are bumped to a higher division by the judges, you must continue to compete in that division for future contests.

Contestants will be given a time slot for pre-judging on the Saturday of the convention. The time and location of the pre-judging will be sent to you by email prior to the show. Be sure to arrive early to check-in as some contestants may finish quicker than others and you may be judged earlier. Failure to arrive on time for your prejudging may result in disqualification.

All entrants MUST be in costume during pre-judging.

Contestants will be judged on a point scale based on the following 3 criteria:

1. Craftsmanship & Detail (40%) – How the entrant made their costume, use of materials, and level of detail.

2. Ingenuity & Technical Difficulty (40%) - How creatively you utilized your chosen materials and techniques, and the level of technical skill needed for execution.

3. Presentation (20%) – How the entrant presents their costume during pre-judging (preparedness, build book), and showcases their costume on stage during the contest. (Level of preparedness, finishing, & stage presence.)

Each contestant will be given a maximum of THREE MINUTES with the judges, during which your craftsmanship and execution will be evaluated.

All entrants are required to provide a build book for the judges, as well as reference photos of the character and costume you are cosplaying. PLEASE BE SURE TO BRING THESE WITH YOU. Points will be subtracted from your final judging score if this is not provided for the judges. Please include several up close photos of your costume’s design.

Scoring will on a 40/40/20 scale for the above criteria.

In regard to 3D printing or using patterns, both are allowed, however, points may be deducted if the original files were not created by the entrant.

**Contestants wishing to be considered for the Sustainability Award will be judged based on their use of sustainable methods such as reused/recycled materials, low energy consumption construction methods, environmentally friendly paints, glues etc. Contestants should include this information in their build books.

Final points for judging will be awarded for stage presentation to the audience, based on your portrayal of the character on stage.

All contestants are required to appear on stage. Contestants are asked to arrive at the designated area one (1) hour before the contest begins. At this time contestants will be lined up as per their assigned order determined at check in.

Only registered entrants are allowed in the staging area. Please be aware that this means friends, children not participating in the contest, and animals (except for certified service animals) are not to accompany entrants. Should a contestant require a handler to accompany them, this must be cleared with the contest organizers in advance.

Costumes must allow freedom of movement to navigate stairs. Should your costume present a safety risk to you, costume contest staff, venue staff and/or equipment or audience members, you may be asked to walk in front of the stage.

Contestants are to arrive at the staging area in costume. Please, no sewing, gluing, spray painting, soldering, or welding in the staging area.

What to expect on stage:

The hosts will read the contestant's name, character and where the character is from as each contestant approaches the stage.

Each contestant's pre-contest write-up will be read at this time. While the write-up is being read, contestants will pose in each of the three designated spots on the stage.

FAN EXPO HQ will provide a soundtrack for all contestants. Music requests will not be allowed.

Contestants will walk from their entrance on one side across the stage to the opposite side exit.

Entrants must leave the stage as clean as it was when they first walked on it. Glitter, confetti, silly string, etc. will not be allowed on stage.

Absolutely no flame or pyrotechnical props are permitted due to fire regulations. FAN EXPO HQ's primary concern is public safety.

Lighting requests (e.g. turning the lights up or down or off) will not be accepted

Any prop or weapon must have passed inspection and be approved by the Weapons and Prop Compliance Team prior to the contest.

Profanity or statements regarding religious, political, or any activities that are deemed unsafe will result in immediate disqualification from the competition.

The throwing of anything at the audience is not allowed. This will result in disqualification from the contest.

Once the last contestant has exited the stage, the judges will deliberate. Contestants must remain in the staging area at this time. Contestants are not permitted to leave the staging area to join family or friends in the audience.

Prizing will be awarded for the following:

BEST IN SHOW
$1,000.00 USD and a trip to MEGACON Orlando 2027 to compete in the Masters of Cosplay Grand Finale*

BEST IN SHOW RUNNER UP
$500.00 and 1 VIP Pass to FAN EXPO Chicago 2027

FAN FAVORITE
$250.00 and 1 VIP Pass to FAN EXPO Chicago 2027

BEST MASTERS DIVISION
$250.00 USD and 1 VIP Pass to FAN EXPO Chicago 2027

BEST JOURNEYMAN DIVISION
$200.00 USD and 1 VIP Pass to FAN EXPO Chicago 2027

BEST NOVICE DIVISION
$150.00 USD and 1 VIP Pass to FAN EXPO Chicago 2027

SUSTAINABLE AWAD
$100.00 USD

JUDGES’ AWARDS
Certificate of Recognition

HOSTS’ AWARDS
Certificate of Recognition

ORGANIZER’S AWARDS
Certificate of Recognition

*Includes 2 round trip economy air fares + three nights hotel stay (room & tax only, valid credit card must be presented for incidentals and other charges). Travel and hotel can only be used for travel during MEGACON Orlando 2027 show dates. Winner must be in possession of a valid passport and able to legally enter the United States (if applicable). Not redeemable for cash.

GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR ALL ONLINE AND SOCIAL MEDIA PROMOTIONS

These General Terms and Conditions for Online and Social Media Promotions (“Terms”) shall apply to all competitions, contests, sweepstakes and other prize-winning competitions and/or activities (“Competitions”) operated by FAN EXPO HQ or its subsidiaries or affiliated companies (collectively, “FAN EXPO HQ”), via any website or social network account page owned or controlled (directly or indirectly) by FAN EXPO HQ.

Terms: Each Competition shall have its own set of rules governing the operation of that Competition, including, without limitation, eligibility, age restrictions, methods of entry, and prizing (“Competition Rules”). The Competition Rules for each Competition shall be set out separately at the time of the Competition and will be posted on the website or social network page. These Terms and the Competition Rules will be binding upon you when you enter or otherwise participate in a Competition. If there is any inconsistency between these Terms and any Competition Rules, the Competition Rules will govern, but only to the extent of that inconsistency. Entry and/or participation in a Competition will be deemed acceptance by you of the Terms and Competition Rules. FAN EXPO HQ reserves the right to amend these Terms or any Competition Rules at any time.

Entry to Competitions: Specific requirements for entry into a Competition will be set out in the Competition Rules. All sweepstakes will be free to enter and no purchase of any kind will be necessary unless otherwise specified in the Competition Rules. You must enter a Competition in the manner and during the period set out in the Competition Rules. Only one entry per person or email address, unless otherwise allowed by the Competition Rules. FAN EXPO HQ shall not be liable for lost, late, misdirected, inaccurate or corrupted entries whether due to human error, technical error, software or hardware failure, or otherwise. No entries will be accepted from agents, third parties, groups or entries automatically generated by computer. Incomplete, illegible or undecipherable entries will be void in FAN EXPO HQ’s sole discretion.

Personal Information: You may be required to provide certain personal information to FAN EXPO HQ to enter a Competition, such as your name, email address, or telephone number. Personal information shall be held and used by FAN EXPO HQ and/or its agents for the purpose of conducting the Competition, or as otherwise described in these Terms or in the Competition Rules, and shall be in compliance with FAN EXPO HQ’s Privacy Policy.

Eligibility:

Employees, directors and officers, and their immediate families (spouses and siblings, parents and children and their spouses) and household members, of FAN EXPO HQ and its distributors, agents and third party entities involved in the implementation, execution, hosting and prize awards of the Competitions (“Competition Entities”) are not eligible to participate in the Competition.

Submission of User-Generated Content: For Competitions that require you to submit images, videos, music, or other content (“Submissions”), the following terms apply:

Your Submission must not contain any (i) pornography, nudity or sexually explicit imagery; (ii) lewd, obscene, offensive, hateful or abusive imagery or language; (iii) harassing, disparaging or defamatory content; (iv) content that compromises the privacy or safety of yourself or others; (v) content that demeans a particular gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, race, ethnicity or nationality; (vi) violent or dangerous behavior; and/or (vii) spam, advertising or other commercial activities; or (viii) any other type of content that is indecent, immoral, discriminatory, or portrays or encourages illegal activity.

By submitting your Submission to a Competition, you hereby grant to FAN EXPO HQ a worldwide, non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free license to (i) use, copy and store for backup and archival purposes, transmit, broadcast, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, translate, reformat, transcode, and otherwise create derivative works of, publicly perform, record, re-record, synchronize with visual images and motion pictures, your Submission in any manner, in whole or in part, to incorporate your Submission into other works, and to otherwise exploit your Submission in any format or medium now known or later developed (collectively, the “Uses”), and (ii) use your name, city and state of residence, or other personal information supplied by you (“Personal Information”) to identify your Submission in the Uses, without any obligation of attribution or compensation to you. FAN EXPO HQ shall not be obligated to use any Submission.

Winner Selection: Winner(s) will be selected at a time and in a manner as set forth in the Competition Rules. Failure of a timely response to the award will result in the prize being forfeited and awarded to an alternate winner. If a prize notification is returned or deemed undeliverable, a prize is refused, or the potential winner is disqualified for any reason, an alternate winner may be selected as set forth in the Competition Rules. Acceptance of the prize constitutes permission for FAN EXPO HQ to use the winner’s name, hometown, likeness, statements, and other personally identifiable information for promotional, advertising and marketing purposes in any media throughout the world without any additional prize, incentive, consideration, consent or review, and upon request, winner will provide to FAN EXPO HQ written consent to such use. The odds of winning a sweepstakes or drawing depend upon the number of eligible entries received. The decision of FAN EXPO HQ in any Competition is final and conclusive.

Prizes: Specific prizes for each Competition shall be set out in the relevant Competition Rules. Prize winners will be contacted by the method stated in the Competition Rules, which may include telephone or email notification.

General Prize Restrictions: Prizes are not transferrable. FAN EXPO HQ reserves the right to substitute a prize in whole or in part with another prize of comparable or greater value if the intended prize is not available for any reason as determined by FAN EXPO HQ in its sole discretion.

Unless otherwise stated in the Competition Rules, FAN EXPO HQ will be responsible for the costs of delivering the prize to the winner’s residence. FAN EXPO HQ will not be responsible for prizes which are unclaimed, unused, or lost, delayed or damaged during delivery, or otherwise not received by the winner.

Disqualification: Failure to (i) comply with these Terms or the Competition Rules, or (ii) provide FAN EXPO HQ with proof of eligibility for a Competition may disqualify you from a Competition or from a prize at FAN EXPO HQ’s sole discretion. Competitions are void where prohibited by law.

By entering the Contest(s), each Entrant: (a) releases and agrees to hold FAN EXPO HQ its respective directors, officers, employees and agents harmless from and against any and all costs, injuries, losses or damages of any kind, including, without limitation, bodily injury and property damage, or any other damage or loss, due in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, to participation in the Contest(s), any Contest related activity, or from acceptance, possession, use or misuse of the prize, or participation in any prize, related activity; and (b) agrees to fully indemnify FAN EXPO HQ and its respective directors, officers, employees and agents from any and all claims on the part of any third party or parties related in any way and for any reason to the Contest(s) or to the prize, including, without limitation, death, and personal or property damage or injury.

By entering the Contest(s) the entrants and participants automatically agree to accept and abide by these Rules. All decisions of FAN EXPO HQ with respect to any aspect of the Contest(s), including without limitation the eligibility of entries, are final and binding on all entrants in all matters as they relate to the Contest(s).

FAN EXPO HQ is collecting personal data about entrants for the purpose of administering the Contest(s). No further informational or marketing communications will be received by entrants unless entrants provide Sponsors with explicit permission to do so as indicated on the entry form.

This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to FAN EXPO HQ and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for this promotion.

What’s a build book?
A build book if a portfolio showcasing your cosplay’s creation, as well as reference photos of the character you are portraying.

Wasn’t there a youth division?
With the talent of all the youth entrants we’ve had, we have decided in the interest of fair competition to have youths be able to enter the Novice, Journeyman and Masters divisions, as long as they meet the criteria for craftsmanship for the divisions.

I’m fully vaccinated, why do I need to wear a mask over my costume?
In adhering to local COVID protocols, if masks are required by attendees of the convention, contestants in the competition must also adhere to these policies.

Can we interact with the hosts on stage?
We unfortunately aren’t allowing interactions for this year.

Do I need to be in costume during judging or the Masters of Cosplay Qualifier on stage portion?
Yes. A thousand times, yes.

I missed pre-registration! Is there a waitlist?
There will be a waitlist for those who missed out on pre-registration. Those on the waitlist will be informed they are on it and a follow up email will be sent if a spot is open.