CHAMPS Trade Show Las Vegas (Fall)

CHAMPS Trade Show Las Vegas (Fall) runs August 26–28, 2026 (Wednesday–Friday) at the Las Vegas Convention Center — the second and largest of the two annual CHAMPS Las Vegas shows, bringing 15,000+ wholesale buyers and 1,000+ exhibiting brands to the LVCC for three days of product sourcing, brand launches, and industry networking. The show draws smoke shop owners, head shops, dispensaries, glass studios, and cannabis accessory retailers from across the United States and Canada for the critical late-summer buying cycle ahead of the holiday season. CHAMPS is a business-to-business only event with no public admission; all attendees show trade credentials.

The LVCC location at 3150 Paradise Road positions CHAMPS attendees within the Strip's most nightlife-dense corridor — Resorts World Las Vegas (Zouk Nightclub, AYU Dayclub) is a 10-minute walk, and Wynn Las Vegas (XS Nightclub, Encore Beach Club) is a 15-minute walk or 5-minute rideshare. The CHAMPS demographic — independent retail operators and industry buyers aged 25–45 — represents one of the nightlife industry's most active convention audiences, and the late-August window coincides with some of the strongest dayclub and nightclub programming of the summer close.

## Wednesday, August 26 — Convention Opens

The CHAMPS trade show floor opens Wednesday August 26 for its first of four full days. Post-show Wednesday evening runs the same mid-week nightlife circuit as the broader Las Vegas calendar. At Hakkasan Nightclub at MGM Grand, DJ Franzen hosts his weekly R&Bae Wednesdays at 10:30 PM — his hip-hop, R&B, and reggae format delivering a genre-distinct mid-week option relative to the EDM-heavy weekend Strip programming. From the LVCC corridor, Hakkasan is an 18-minute rideshare south to the MGM Grand campus. Liquid Pool Lounge at The Cosmopolitan operates its Wednesday session with DJ Buza at 11:00 AM for any attendees with a midday window.

The CHAMPS show floor is adjacent to Resorts World Las Vegas, making Zouk Nightclub at RWLV (also Wednesday-open) the most logistically accessible nightclub for convention attendees on opening night. Zouk's programming lineup for Wednesday August 26 was not confirmed at time of publication — check zoukgrouplv.com for the current schedule.

## Thursday, August 27 — Trade Show Day 2

Thursday is a full convention day. XS Nightclub at Wynn Las Vegas operates normally through August 2026 ahead of its September 2026 renovation closure — no specific headliner bookings were confirmed for Thursday August 27 via primary sources at time of publication. Zouk Nightclub runs Thursday programming. Liquid Pool Lounge operates resident DJ Shr3d at 11:00 AM. Thursday Strip nightlife generally runs at lower capacity than the weekend circuit, making it a practical option for convention attendees who want to go out without peak-Saturday crowds and pricing.

## Friday, August 28 — Trade Show Day 3

Friday August 28 is a full convention day and the opening night of the August 28–29 final summer weekend. The CHAMPS show floor releases its 15,000+ wholesale buyers into the Strip's Friday entertainment circuit as the August 28–29 lineup activates.

The Friday dayclub circuit opens at 11:00 AM: HNTR holds Encore Beach Club at Wynn Las Vegas and CID headlines Marquee Dayclub at The Cosmopolitan with a Beatport Fridays set — the final edition of the Beatport Fridays weekly series that has run every Friday since May.

Friday night runs four simultaneous nightclub headliners. Deorro holds OMNIA Nightclub at Caesars Palace at 10:30 PM with his moombahton and electro house catalog. Knock2 brings bass-forward tech house to LIV Nightclub at Fontainebleau at 10:30 PM. Subtronics — the Philadelphia dubstep specialist — headlines EBC at Night at Wynn Las Vegas at 10:30 PM. Ray Volpe takes Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World at 10:30 PM, a walkable 10-minute option from the LVCC campus for CHAMPS attendees staying in the convention corridor. Drai's After Hours at The Vanderpump Hotel (formerly The Cromwell) runs its House • Hip Hop overnight program from 1:00 AM for the after-midnight crowd.

## Saturday, August 29 — Convention Closes + Peak Summer Weekend

Saturday August 29 is simultaneously the final CHAMPS convention day and the peak day of the August 28–29 weekend — one of the strongest non-holiday August dayclub lineups of the summer, with The Chainsmokers, Zedd, Tiësto, and Chris Lake all headlining competing venues simultaneously.

The dayclub circuit opens at 11:00 AM across six simultaneous venues: The Chainsmokers headline Encore Beach Club at Wynn Las Vegas, Zedd anchors OMNIA Dayclub at Caesars Palace, Chris Lake takes Palm Tree Beach Club at MGM Grand, Tiësto headlines LIV Beach at Fontainebleau at 11:30 AM, Timmy Trumpet holds Marquee Dayclub at The Cosmopolitan, and DJ Pauly D takes TAO Beach Dayclub at The Venetian. The simultaneous six-venue dayclub circuit on Saturday August 29 matches the competitive booking density of major holiday weekends.

Saturday night closes the August chapter of Las Vegas nightlife. Diplo with Special Guest Charly Jordan headlines EBC at Night at 10:30 PM — his Major Lazer catalog and open-format production range headlining Wynn's post-sunset format. Ian Asher takes Zouk Nightclub at 10:30 PM for melodic house closing set. LIV Nightclub at Fontainebleau is listed with a Special Guest booking; confirm closer to the date.

## Guest List Strategy for CHAMPS Week

The LVCC corridor positions CHAMPS attendees within walking distance of Zouk Nightclub and a short rideshare to EBC, XS, and LIV Beach at Wynn and Fontainebleau. Saturday August 29 is the highest-demand day — register NoCoverVegas guest list for The Chainsmokers at EBC or Zedd at OMNIA Dayclub by Wednesday August 26 for guaranteed processing. Friday night guest list for Subtronics at EBC at Night should be submitted by Monday August 24; bass music audiences fill EBC at Night's lists faster than comparable non-holiday Fridays. Walk-up cover at top venues runs $40–$80 for Friday night and $50–$100 for Saturday dayclubs without guest list.

CHAMPS's Saturday convention close aligns well with the dayclub schedule: convention floor hours typically end before the 11:00 AM dayclub open, allowing attendees to transition from the show floor to pool parties within a 30-minute window on the same day.