By Robert Hokin, Managing Partner, Fundraising101
Covering UK regions and Europe. Dates, focus areas, and 2027 projections.
Every year, founders ask me the same question: where should I be pitching? It’s the right question. But only if the deck, the story, and the raise structure are ready for the room.
A pitch event competition is a compressed investor experience. You get 90 seconds or three minutes, a live panel, and an audience. That is not a practice run for your fundraise. That is your fundraise, in public.
This guide covers 75 confirmed pitch events & competitions open to UK-based startups, across every region of the UK and across Europe. Each entry is real, verified, and within each section upcoming events appear first, followed by past events in order of their next 2027 estimated date.
HOW TO READ THIS GUIDE
PAST: 2026 event has taken place. Estimated 2027 date shown.
UPCOMING: 2026 event is still ahead.
ROLLING: Applications accepted year-round or on a rotating cycle.
Prize amounts are in the currency of the originating country. Post-Brexit, UK founders remain eligible for all EU competitions listed here. Eligibility is based on company location, not EU membership.
PART ONE: UK BY REGION
SCOTLAND
1. Scottish EDGE — Round 27 UPCOMING — Semi-finals: May–June 2026. Final: est. November–December 2026. Round 28 est. late 2027. Scotland’s largest small business funding competition. Up to £150,000 per winner across four categories: Main EDGE (all sectors, up to £150,000 grant/loan), Young EDGE (all directors under 30, up to £15,000), Wild Card EDGE (pre-trading, up to £15,000), Social Enterprise EDGE (up to £75,000). All businesses must be Scotland-based.
2. CivTech Challenge UPCOMING — Finals: est. September 2026, Scotland. Est. September 2027. Scotland’s public sector innovation pitch competition, backed by the Scottish Government. Startups pitch solutions to challenges set by Scottish public bodies — NHS, councils, national agencies. Winners secure paid pilot contracts, typically £100,000. Focus: govtech, healthtech, smart cities, sustainability. One of the most commercially de-risked pitch opportunities for Scottish tech founders.
3. Converge Net Zero Challenge UPCOMING — Live pitch final: 21 September 2026. Awards: 2 October 2026. Est. September 2027. For academics and university-linked founders in Scotland working on climate, sustainability, environmental tech, and blue economy innovation. Co-delivered with SSE. Cash prize split between winner and runner-up. Scottish university connection required.
4. Converge KickStart Challenge UPCOMING — Live pitch: 23 September 2026. Awards: 1 October 2026. Est. September 2027. The entry-level Converge route for Scottish academic innovators at the very earliest stage — pre-company, often still in the lab. All sectors. Open to Scottish university staff, students, and recent graduates. Up to £10,000 in cash prizes plus expert training.
5. Converge Challenge — Main Competition UPCOMING — Finals: October 2026. Est. October 2027. The flagship Converge programme. First prize: £50,000 plus business support. Additional sector prizes: industrial biotech (£20,000), data science and AI (£20,000), social impact (£10,000), aquaculture/marine innovation (£35,000 fund). The most prestigious academic spinout competition in Scotland.
6. The Pitch — Glasgow Regional Final PAST — 29 January 2026. Est. January 2027. The UK and Ireland’s largest pitch competition, powered by SeedLegals. Glasgow hosts 10 shortlisted founders for 90-second live pitches to an investor panel. Sector-agnostic, pre-seed and seed. Any UK or Irish early-stage startup can apply.
7. Regional EDGE PAST — Finals: March 2026. Est. March 2027. Delivered across four Scottish regions by Opportunity North East, Elevator & GrowBiz, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, and South of Scotland Enterprise. Each region awards one £50,000 top prize plus four additional grants of £10,000–£15,000. One of the only UK competitions explicitly serving founders in rural and remote communities.
8. Royal Bank Accelerator Pitch — Edinburgh PAST — Final: 24 April 2026. Est. April 2027. First time this competition came to Scotland. Six finalists pitched at the opening of Royal Bank’s new Edinburgh Accelerator Hub for a £30,000 prize pot (1st: £15,000, 2nd: £10,000, 3rd: £5,000). Restricted to Scotland-registered limited companies, up to £1M turnover, incorporated within five years. All sectors.
9. Elevator Venture Competition PAST — Final: est. June 2026, Dundee. Est. June 2027. Scotland’s long-running regional startup pitch competition run by Elevator Business Accelerator. Prize fund £65,000 in 2025. Finalists pitch live to a public audience; prizes span multiple sponsored categories. Winners offered a place on Elevator’s accelerator programme. Open to early-stage Scottish businesses across all sectors.
NORTH WEST ENGLAND
10. Wayra UK Open Call and Demo Day ROLLING — Open calls and demo days run multiple times per year. Telefonica UK’s innovation platform, one of Europe’s oldest corporate accelerators. Selected startups pitch to Telefonica’s investment committee at demo days. Focus: AI, IoT, cybersecurity, digital health, and future connectivity. Equity-light but genuine commercial pipeline with O2 UK and enterprise partners. Open to UK and global startups.
11. The Pitch — Manchester Regional Final PAST — 3 February 2026. Est. February 2027. One of six stops on the SeedLegals Pitch tour, held at Barclays Eagle Labs Manchester. Ten founders, 90-second pitches, investor panel. Sector-agnostic, pre-seed and seed. Regional winner progresses to the London Grand Final and a £25,000 prize package.
NORTH EAST ENGLAND
12. Creative UK — North of Tyne Investment Pitch ROLLING — Live pitch events tied to the North of Tyne Culture and Creative Investment Programme. Funded by North of Tyne Combined Authority. Creative UK runs equity pitch events for creative sector-led businesses in Newcastle, North Tyneside, and Northumberland. Winners receive up to £100,000 in equity investment. A rare opportunity for founders at the intersection of creative industries, technology, and IP-led businesses in the North East.
13. VentureFest North East PAST — est. June 2026, North East England. Est. June 2027. Run by Innovation SuperNetwork. The region’s flagship event for startups, scale-ups, and investors. Features a dedicated startup pitch competition alongside keynotes, networking, and ecosystem showcases. Strong focus on advanced manufacturing, digital, energy, and creative industries. Open to North East-registered startups.
YORKSHIRE
14. Leeds Digital Festival — Startup Pitch Stage PAST — est. September/October 2026, Leeds. Est. September/October 2027. The UK’s largest free digital and tech festival, running for two weeks each autumn across 150+ events. Multiple pitch and showcase formats across AI, fintech, healthtech, and digital. A strong opportunity for Northern investor visibility. Open to Yorkshire and Northern UK founders.
MIDLANDS 15. The Pitch — Birmingham Regional Final PAST — 12 February 2026. Est. February 2027. The Midlands heat of the SeedLegals tour, held at Barclays Eagle Labs Birmingham. Sector-agnostic, early-stage. Ten founders, 90 seconds each.
16. Pitch Up — West Midlands PAST — Final at Venturefest Wolverhampton: 10 March 2026. Est. March 2027. Running for a decade. Delivered by Aston University, the University of Birmingham, and Minerva Business Angels at the University of Warwick Science Park. Finalists also receive exhibition space at Venturefest, doubling investor exposure. Previous judges include Ascension Ventures, Mercia Technologies, and Innovate UK. Over £75,000,000 in investment connected to the region since launch.
EAST OF ENGLAND
17. OION Investor Showcases ROLLING — Multiple showcases per year — confirmed July 2026 event. Est. quarterly 2027. Oxford Innovation Finance hosts one of the UK’s oldest and most active angel networks (established 1994, recognised most active UK angel network by Beauhurst 2023). OION Showcases take place quarterly at venues including Blenheim Palace and the London Stock Exchange. Up to ten pre-screened companies pitch live to specialist angel investors. SEIS/EIS eligible startups from across the UK apply.
18. #ThinkBigARU Pitching Competition PAST — March 2026, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge/Chelmsford. Est. March 2027. Live pitch competition run by Anglia Ruskin University’s enterprise programme. Pitches assessed by investors and entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIRs). Investment genuinely available to the right pitch at the right stage. Open to current ARU students and ARU-linked startups.
19. Oxford Student Venture Showcase PAST — 27 May 2026, Oxford Mathematical Institute. Est. May 2027. Ten teams pitch live, having completed two mandatory training sessions. Top prize: £5,000. Two runner-up prizes: £2,500 each. Open to Oxford University students and recent graduates. Strong in deep tech, life sciences, and AI given Oxford’s research base.
SOUTH WEST ENGLAND
20. The Pitch — Bristol Regional Final PAST — 10 February 2026. Est. February 2027. Bristol is the birthplace of The Pitch. South West heat held at Runway East Bristol Bridge. Ten founders, 90-second pitches, investor panel. One of the most energetic regional heats on the circuit.
SOUTH EAST ENGLAND & OXFORD
21. NatWest Accelerator Pitch — Oxford Final UPCOMING — 18 June 2026. Est. June 2027. First of three 2026 NatWest Accelerator Pitch events. Five finalists pitch for a £100,000 prize pot — top prize £70,000. Open to any UK-registered limited company, up to £1M turnover, any sector. No requirement to bank with NatWest. Entry via 60-second video pitch.
22. VentureFest South PAST — est. Spring 2026, Hampshire/South England. Est. Spring 2027. Hampshire and South England’s flagship innovation event, combining a pitch competition, startup showcases, and investor networking. Strong representation from maritime tech, defence, advanced engineering, and digital. Open to startups from across the South of England.
LONDON & NATIONAL FINALS
23. Tech Nation OneToWin — London Tech Week UPCOMING — 8 June 2026, Olympia London. Est. June 2027. Ten pre-Series A B2B startups from across the UK pitch live on the opening day of London Tech Week — 30,000+ attendees from 128 countries. At least one company receives a £500,000 EIS investment opportunity live on stage via investment partner Haatch. EIS registration required. B2B or B2B2C only.
24. Ignite Social Impact Accelerator Pitch UPCOMING — Annual final, London (Fleet Street venue). Est. 2027. Bridges the funding gap for early-stage social enterprise and impact founders from UK universities. Up to £20,000 top prize from a £50,000 impact accelerator fund. Open to for-profit and not-for-profit ventures. Founders pitch live at an exclusive London venue. One of the only dedicated social impact pitch competitions with a genuine cash prize for university-backed founders.
25. NatWest Accelerator Pitch — London Final UPCOMING — November 2026. Est. November 2027. The third NatWest Accelerator Pitch event of 2026. Five finalists, £100,000 prize pot. UK limited companies, up to £1M turnover, all sectors.
26. UKBAA TechInvest — Investing Across the UK ROLLING — Multiple London showcase events per year, sector-themed. Run by the UK Business Angels Association and British Business Bank. Each event selects ten companies for five-minute pitches to angel investors and UKBAA members. Sectors rotate across AI, FinTech, HealthTech, and CleanTech. Founders attend a 1-to-1 pitch rehearsal session before the stage. Investment-ready businesses raising £250,000–£3,000,000. UK-wide eligibility; in-person in London.
27. The Pitch — London Regional Final PAST — 24 February 2026. Est. February 2027. The sixth and final regional heat of the SeedLegals tour, Bloomsbury Event Space. The capital’s early-stage founders compete for a Grand Final spot. Sector-agnostic, pre-seed and seed.
28. Innovate Finance Pitch360 PAST — 22 April 2026, Level39, Canary Wharf. Est. April 2027. The UK’s most prestigious fintech pitch competition, run by Innovate Finance as part of UK FinTech Week. Ten companies — five startups and five scaleups — each get three minutes to pitch to judges including senior leaders from Stripe, Google, City of London Corporation, and major banks. Two winners crowned (one per category). 2026 winners: Serene (startup) and Yavrio (scaleup). Launched 2017; consistently the most credentialed fintech pitch event on the UK calendar.
29. The Pitch 2026 — Grand Final PAST — Spring 2026, London. Est. Spring 2027. Five regional finalists compete for the 2026 title and a £25,000 prize package. Pre-seed and seed, all sectors. 2026 cohort included AI, consumer tech, compliance SaaS, and sustainability.
30. Entrepreneurs Collective — London Tech Startup Pitch PAST — 5 March 2026. Runs monthly — next est. July 2026. Monthly in-person pitch event at Home Grown, London’s private members’ club for founders. Tech startups at SEIS fundraising stage pitch to angel investors, family offices, and VCs. One of the most accessible recurring pitch formats in London for founders actively in a round.
31. SVC2UK — Silicon Valley Comes to the UK NOTE: SVC2UK ended in 2022 and has not run since. Remove from live editions. Annual event connecting UK founders with Silicon Valley investors and mentors, co-founded by Sherry Coutu CBE. Selected UK startups present to US and European VCs. Focus on high-growth AI, deep tech, and digital. Application-based with curation by the SVC2UK team.
WALES
32. NatWest Accelerator Pitch — Cardiff Final UPCOMING — September 2026. Est. September 2027. The second 2026 NatWest series event. £100,000 prize pot. One of the largest single cash prizes available to Welsh founders in 2026.
NORTHERN IRELAND 33. TechTides Belfast — Startup Pitch Competition UPCOMING — 11 June 2026. Est. June 2027. Up to ten tech startups from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland pitch on stage at TechTides, Belfast’s main tech conference. £3,500 cash prize. Strong ecosystem networking alongside the stage.
34. Techstart Female Founders Grant Competition PAST — Applications closed 27 January 2026. Pitch sessions: February 2026. Est. January 2027. Pitch-based grant competition for female-led startups in Northern Ireland, run by Techstart Ventures and Women in Business. All eligible applicants invited to pitch; successful applicants receive grants up to £15,000. Pre-idea to pre-trading stage. Restricted to Northern Ireland-based founders.
35. Techstart Regional Innovation Challenge PAST — Applications closed 17 February 2026. Pitches: March 2026. Est. early 2027. Funded by Invest Northern Ireland, run by Techstart Ventures. Northern Ireland divided into four regions; shortlisted founders pitch only against others in their region. Grants of £10,000–£50,000. Pre-seed and idea-stage. Restricted to Northern Ireland-based founders.
36. Ulster Bank Accelerator Pitch PAST — Final: 25 March 2026, Belfast Telegraph Business Awards. Est. March 2027. Northern Ireland’s flagship founder pitch competition. One hundred entrepreneurs submitted video pitches; four finalists competed live for a £50,000 prize. All sectors. Consistently high standard.
UK-NATIONAL
37. Santander X UK Awards 2026 UPCOMING — Applications closed 27 May 2026. National Final: est. November 2026. Est. November 2027. Thirteenth year of this programme. Three categories: University ventures, Startups (under 18 months trading), and SMEs. Nine finalists pitch live in London for a share of £150,000 equity-free funding. All nine winners also enter the Santander X Global Awards, competing against European and Latin American startups.
38. SETsquared Partnership Annual Showcase ROLLING — Investment showcases across partner universities (Bath, Bristol, Exeter, Southampton, Surrey) throughout the year. The world’s number one university business incubator, backing high-growth tech startups from five leading UK research universities. Regular investor showcases give shortlisted startups structured pitch time in front of angel investors, VC funds, and corporate innovators. Natural stepping stone for university-spinout founders ahead of a formal competition.
Before You Go European – A Quick Word
Thirty-eight UK competitions. Every region. That is a lot of stages. Most founders who enter and go home without a prize or a follow-up do not have a weak business. They have a weak application or a pitch that does not yet reflect the business they are actually building. The deck is off. The framing is wrong. The ask does not match the stage.
At Fundraising 101 Academy we help pre-seed tech founders fix exactly that — quickly, directly, and before the next window opens. Application prep, pitch deck review (70-point, 5 working days, £375 no VAT), and live pitch rehearsals. fundraising101.academy — robert.hokin@fundraising101.academy
PART TWO: EUROPE & INTERNATIONAL — OPEN TO UK FOUNDERS
Post-Brexit, UK founders remain eligible for virtually every European competition below. Eligibility is based on where your company is incorporated, not EU membership. Several 2026 finals included UK companies on the main stage. Listed with upcoming events first.
39. Impact! Poznan — Startup Pitch Stage UPCOMING — est. May/June 2026, Poznan, Poland. Est. May/June 2027. 6,000+ participants across 26 tracks. Open to European and global startups. Strong on impact investing, SaaS, and fintech.
40. Finance Forward Award UPCOMING — est. June 2026, Hamburg, Germany. Est. June 2027. Germany’s flagship fintech and financial innovation pitch competition, run alongside the Finance Forward conference in Hamburg. Open to European and global fintech startups. Categories cover payments, banking infrastructure, wealthtech, insurtech, and sustainability finance. Strong German and Northern European investor audience.
41. Arctic15 UPCOMING — est. June 2026, Helsinki. Est. June 2027. Nordic and Baltic startup conference with a dedicated pitch stage and structured 1:1 investor meetings. Globally open. Useful proving ground for UK founders testing investment narratives before a larger round.
42. Hello Tomorrow Global Challenge UPCOMING — Finals: 11–12 June 2026, Amsterdam. Applications open September 2026. Finals est. June 2027. The world’s most prestigious deep tech pitch competition. Eighty finalists pitch across 14 deep tech tracks; 800 more earn Deep Tech Pioneer status with access to 350+ VCs. Grand prize: 100,000 euros equity-free. Mandatory for UK founders in hard science or advanced engineering.
43. VivaTech Startup Challenges UPCOMING — 17–20 June 2026, Paris. Est. June 2027. Corporate-sponsored open innovation competitions run alongside Europe’s largest startup event (180,000 attendees, 3,600 investors). Partners set real business challenges; winning startups gain enterprise pilots, stage time, and commercial introductions. All sectors, global eligibility.
44. VivaTech Innovation of the Year (with TechCrunch) UPCOMING — 17–20 June 2026, Paris. Est. June 2027. Co-run by VivaTech and TechCrunch. Winner pitches live in Paris and secures automatic entry into TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200 at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco. UK exhibitors at VivaTech are eligible. Top 30 selected by TechCrunch; final five pitch to a live jury.
45. GITEX AI Europe — Supernova All-Stars Pitch UPCOMING — 30 June–1 July 2026, Messe Berlin. Est. June/July 2027. The flagship pitch competition at Europe’s most international technology investment event, alongside 600+ investors from 100+ countries. Finals: 25,000 euros first prize, 15,000 euros second, 10,000 euros third, plus qualification for Road to 2M in Equity Investment. Focus: deep tech, AI, quantum, green tech, cybersecurity, mobility. Note: entry requires a startup exhibition stand (from 495 euros).
46. Bits & Pretzels UPCOMING — September/October 2026, Munich. Est. September/October 2027. One of Europe’s most founder-focused startup conferences, with a pitch competition for selected startups on the main stage. Primarily C-level founders and DACH-region investors. Globally open. The PODIM Pitching Competition winner receives automatic entry as part of their prize.
47. Deep Tech Momentum — DTM100 UPCOMING — Autumn 2026, Berlin. Est. Autumn 2027. Invite-only: 100 curated European deep tech startups (pre-seed to Series A) meet investors and corporate decision-makers. Focus: AI, energy, defence, robotics, space. DTM100 startups have collectively secured 150M+ euros in funding to date.
48. TechCrunch Disrupt — Startup Battlefield 200 UPCOMING — 13–15 October 2026, San Francisco. Applications open January each year. The most globally recognised startup stage. 200 early-stage startups showcase live at TechCrunch Disrupt; a smaller cohort compete for a $100,000 equity-free prize. Pre-Series A, globally open. UK founders regularly make the Battlefield 200. The investor and media exposure consistently accelerates fundraising timelines.
49. Oslo Innovation Week — Startup Pitch Stage UPCOMING — 19–23 October 2026, Oslo. Est. October 2027. Multiple pitch formats across five days in the Nordic region. Open to global startups. Particularly relevant for cleantech, maritime tech, aquaculture, and energy founders — sectors where Norway’s capital and industrial networks carry global weight.
50. IBM Sports Tech Startup Prize at Web Summit UPCOMING — November 2026, Web Summit Lisbon. Est. November 2027. Invite-only pitch competition at Web Summit for AI-driven startups at the intersection of sports and technology. Winner enters a paid proof-of-concept agreement with IBM worth up to $100,000. Regional UK showcases run earlier in the year; top performers invited to the Web Summit final.
51. Web Summit PITCH — Lisbon UPCOMING — 9–12 November 2026, Lisbon. Applications open August 2026. Est. November 2027. The startup pitch competition at the world’s largest tech conference: 70,000+ attendees, 3,000+ startups. Selected founders pitch live on Centre Stage to global investors, media, and enterprise leaders. No single large cash prize — the value is scale of exposure. Startup programme packages from 495 euros. Both Slush 100 and Web Summit PITCH open in August — the two most high-stakes autumn opportunities for the right UK startup.
52. Slush 100 UPCOMING — 18–19 November 2026, Helsinki. Applications open August 2026. The most high-stakes autumn pitch competition in Europe. Eligibility: incorporated after 2022, under 2,000,000 euros raised. Winner receives a 1,000,000 euro equity investment from General Catalyst and Cherry Ventures. All selected startups receive pre-event coaching from top founders and VCs. Industry-agnostic. Mark August in your diary now.
53. F10 Incubation & Acceleration Programme ROLLING — Cohort intakes across Zurich, Stockholm, and Singapore. Demo days typically spring and autumn. One of Europe’s most respected fintech, insurtech, and wealthtech accelerators, backed by SIX Group (Swiss stock exchange). Selected startups pitch at investor demo days to financial services VCs and corporate innovation leads. UK fintech, insurtech, and wealthtech founders are eligible and well-represented in European cohorts.
54. Startup Autobahn powered by Plug and Play ROLLING — Multiple cohort intakes per year, Stuttgart/digital. Demo days typically spring and autumn. Corporate innovation platform co-founded by Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Daimler Truck, and Plug and Play. Startups pitch proof-of-concept solutions to major automotive, mobility, and industrial manufacturers. Focus: AI, autonomous systems, energy management, industrial IoT, smart manufacturing. Valuable for UK deeptech and mobility founders seeking German corporate innovation budgets.
55. Nordic Startup Awards ROLLING — National rounds through Q3/Q4 2026. European finals: est. November 2026. Est. 2027. UK national category available. Pan-European jury across categories including Best Tech Startup, Best Impact Startup, Best FinTech, Best Deep Tech. Recognition-focused — useful for UK founders who want coordinated cross-market investor visibility across multiple European markets.
56. Get in the Ring — Global Startup Competition ROLLING — UK qualifying events throughout 2026. Global Competition finals: date TBC. Founders pitch head-to-head in a boxing-style ring in front of a live audience. Runs in 200+ cities globally; UK events feed the European and Global Competition. Particularly strong for impact-driven founders. Good for stress-testing your story under real pressure.
57. KPMG Private Enterprise Global Tech Innovator ROLLING — UK qualifying via VivaTech (June). Global Final at Web Summit Lisbon (November). 25+ national competitions feed one winner per country into the Web Summit Grand Final. UK qualifying runs via the VivaTech Startup Challenges. Winner’s brand goes on the Nasdaq Tower in Times Square and they pitch at Web Summit’s main stage.
58. EIT InnoEnergy Highway ROLLING — Applications open year-round. EIT InnoEnergy’s commercial pathway for energy transition startups, culminating in investor pitch moments at major European energy conferences. UK startups should verify current Horizon Europe bilateral access. Best suited to energy, cleantech, and industrial decarbonisation founders.
59. Global Startup Awards — European Competition ROLLING — National rounds through Q3/Q4 2026. European finals: est. Q4 2026. Est. 2027. UK national entry feeds into the European finals. Categories include Best Tech, Best CleanTech, Best HealthTech, Best FinTech, and Best Social Impact. Useful for founders who want pan-European investor visibility across multiple markets simultaneously.
60. Startup Istanbul ROLLING — Annual, typically October/November, Istanbul. Est. Oct/Nov 2027. One of the largest startup conferences in Turkey and the MENA/European crossover region. Annual pitch competition open to global startups. Particularly relevant for UK founders building toward emerging markets or seeking access to Turkish and Gulf-region investor capital.
61. Startup World Cup — UK/European Regional + Grand Finale ROLLING — UK/European regional events throughout 2026. Grand Finale: 18–20 November 2026, San Francisco. 100+ regional events globally; each regional winner advances to the Grand Finale for a $1,000,000 investment prize. No stage or capital raised restrictions. Any incorporated legal entity globally eligible.
A NOTE ON TIMING: TWO EVENTS YOU CAN’T AFFORD TO MISS
The two most high-stakes autumn opportunities for the right UK startup are Slush 100 (Helsinki, November) and Web Summit PITCH (Lisbon, November). Both open applications in August 2026.
Mark August now. Slush 100 is the highest single-stage cash prize in Europe for an early-stage startup: 1,000,000 euros in equity investment from General Catalyst and Cherry Ventures. Web Summit PITCH puts you on a stage in front of 70,000 people and the global tech press. Neither competition will find you. You have to find them first — and you have to show up with a pitch that is already sharp. Fundraising101 can help you there.
62. South Summit Startup Competition UPCOMING — 3–5 June 2026, Madrid. Applications open January 2027. Finals est. June 2027. One hundred finalist startups from thousands of global applications pitch before an international jury. Open to any sector, stage, or country. Over 17 billion euros raised by past finalists; nine are now unicorns. South Summit also runs Brazil and Israel editions — UK founders can enter all three.
63. Latitude59 Pitch Competition PAST — 22 May 2026, Tallinn, Estonia. Applications open January/February 2027. Finals est. May 2027. The 2026 prize pool reached 400,000+ euros in syndicated investment from four Nordic angel networks and VC funds. Globally open — 53 countries applied in 2026. Top 7 pitch on the main stage after structured due diligence with lead investors. Not a trophy; a live investment decision.
64. 4YFN Awards at MWC Barcelona PAST — 4 March 2026, Barcelona. Finals confirmed 1–4 March 2027 (alongside MWC Barcelona). Applications open est. September 2026. Run alongside Mobile World Congress. Five categories: ClimaTech, FinTech, HealthTech, Mobile Frontiers, and Digital Horizons. Twenty startups selected globally for semi-finals; five advance to the awards ceremony. Overall winner: 20,000 euros cash. All five finalists: 2,500 euros.
65. Wolves Summit Startup Pitch PAST — April 2026, Warsaw, Poland. Est. April 2027. One of Central Europe’s most active startup pitch events. Open to all stages and sectors. 400+ investors typically attend. Strong fintech and SaaS representation.
66. PODIM Pitching Competition PAST — 11–13 May 2026, Maribor, Slovenia. Est. May 2027. One of Central and Eastern Europe’s most respected startup competitions. Five finalists pitch on the main stage before 60+ VC funds. Globally open — the 2026 jury included two UK-based judges. Winner receives the Fundraising Bootcamp programme and automatic entry to Bits & Pretzels Munich.
67. EU-Startups Summit Pitch Competition PAST — 7–8 May 2026, Malta. Finals confirmed 13–14 May 2027, Malta. Applications open est. December 2026. Fifteen finalists from 1,600+ applications pitch at this 2,500-person summit. UK explicitly included in eligibility. UK-based Cooled Motors made the 2026 finals. Prize package valued at over 750,000 euros. Pre-seed and seed, all sectors.
68. Web Summit PITCH — Vancouver PAST — 11–14 May 2026, Vancouver. Est. May 2027. Web Summit’s North American edition with the same PITCH competition format as Lisbon. Early-stage startups from all sectors pitch live on the main stage. Globally open. No cash prize; the value is scale of exposure. Startup programme packages from 495 euros.
69. Dublin Tech Summit Startup Pitch PAST — 27–28 May 2026, Dublin. Est. May 2027. Ireland’s flagship B2B tech conference with a dedicated startup pitch segment. Strong Atlantic crossover — Irish, UK, and US founders in the same room. Fintech, SaaS, and AI heavy. A natural first European step for UK founders who want cross-border investor exposure.
70. Panathenea Athens — Startup Pitch Stage PAST — 27–29 May 2026, Athens. Est. May 2027. Cross-sector festival bringing together 10,000 founders, investors, and creators. AI, defence, climate tech, deep tech, and life sciences. Partners from Sequoia, Atomico, Accel, and Balderton represented in 2026.
71. Infoshare Great Pitch Contest PAST — 20–21 May 2026, Gdansk, Poland. Est. May 2027. One of CEE’s largest tech conferences with a dedicated pitch competition. Open to any early-stage tech startup globally. Strong on SaaS, AI, and B2B software. Baltic, Scandinavian, and German investor density in a single room.
72. ViennaUP — Pioneers Challenge PAST — 18–22 May 2026, Vienna. Est. mid-May 2027 (ViennaUP Connect Day 27 confirmed 11 May 2027). Austria’s flagship innovation week and deep tech pitch competition across 35+ programme partners. Multiple pitch stages covering fintech, climate tech, AI, and deep tech. 150+ VC GPs in attendance across the week.
73. Collision Pitch Competition PAST — est. June 2026, Toronto. Est. June 2027. The pitch competition at Collision Conference — North America’s fastest-growing tech event. Early-stage startups pitch live to global investors. Globally open. Strong US VC presence makes this relevant for founders with transatlantic ambitions.
74. Techsylvania Pitch Competition PAST — 24–25 June 2026, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Est. June 2027. Open to European and global startups. AI, SaaS, and deep tech well represented. Unusually good access to Eastern European investor networks not typically found on the London circuit.
75. South Summit — Brazil and Israel Editions PAST — Rio and Israel editions: Spring/Summer 2026. Est. 2027. South Summit runs editions in Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Tel Aviv. Each edition opens a separate global competition. UK founders can apply to all three, giving multiple entry opportunities within the same competition brand.
THREE TO WATCH FOR 2027 APPLICATIONS
Pioneers Challenge — Vienna, within ViennaUP (May). Deep tech and impact. Applications typically open January. pioneers.io
EIC Accelerator — Blended Finance Pitch — Brussels and online, rolling cut-offs. UK deep tech and net zero founders can pitch to the European Innovation Council jury for grants up to 2.5M euros plus equity investment up to 15M euros. Check current UK-Horizon bilateral access before applying. eic.ec.europa.eu
Get in the Ring UK Regional Heats — Multiple UK cities, rolling. If you have not tried the ring format, put it on the 2027 list for pitch practice. getinthering.co
FINAL NOTE
Seventy-five opportunities. One pitch: YOURS. That is the ratio that matters. The competitions in this guide are stages, not strategies. Your strategy is your business: the problem, the market, the traction, the team. No pitch competition closes a funding round for you. The best ones put you in a room with the right people and give you 90 seconds mebbe more to make them curious enough to want a meeting.
That meeting is where money moves.
If you are applying to competitions and still getting ‘great idea, not quite right for us’ from investor judges — you do not have a competition problem. You have a deck problem. That is fixable. Quickly. Before the next application window opens.
FUNDRAISING 101 CAN HELP YOU PREPARE
Pitch competitions are not won on the day. They are won in the weeks before — in the application, the deck, and the rehearsal room.
At Fundraising 101 Academy, we work with pre-seed tech founders preparing for investment. That includes competition applications, pitch decks, and live pitch rehearsals. With over 30 years in UK venture capital and technology investment and having assessed pitches across more than 50 UK funds — we know exactly what a judging panel is looking for. Not what they say they are looking for. What actually moves them.
Application prep. Most pitch competition applications ask the same core questions: what problem do you solve, for whom, and why now? If those answers are not crisp on paper, the application does not make the cut. We work through your framing quickly — direct, no padding, no watered-down feedback.
Pitch deck review. The Raise-Ready Deck Review is a 70-point assessment of your investor pitch deck, returned in 5 working days. We will tell you exactly what is landing, what is not, what gap exists between your current deck and an investor-ready standard, and what to fix first. £375. No VAT. Whether you are heading into a Scottish EDGE final, a Slush 100 application, or a Web Summit PITCH submission, this is the work to do before the window opens — not after.
Pitch rehearsals. Knowing what to say and being able to say it under pressure in front of a live panel are different skills. We run focused rehearsal sessions — structured feedback, investor Q&A simulation, and delivery coaching — so that when you are on stage, you are not thinking. You are pitching. Book a Fast Track day or a targeted session ahead of your event date.
Pre-seed tech founder? There’s a difference between deck-ready and Raise-Ready. We can help you get there. Fast. With No BS.
Get in touch. Get Raise-Ready. No obligation. No equity. No waffle.
