Each year, in late April or early May, the National Science Bowl competition is held in Washington, DC. As of 2006, the competition has been hosted by the National 4-H Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
The winning team of each regional Science Bowl competition is invited to participate in the National Science Bowl all expenses paid. There are a number of regional competitions all over the United States; the exact number changes from year to year. For example, in 2006 there were 65 regional's, while in 2004 there were 64 regional's, and in 2003 there were 66 regional's These figures count as two separate regional's the few "super regional" sites that are permitted to send two teams to the national competition (e.g. the Kansas City/St. Louis regional competitions).
Typically, any high school that meets the eligibility rules of the National Science Bowl competition is permitted to register for any regional competition in the country, but no high school or student group may compete in multiple regional's In addition, some regional competitions permit schools to register multiple teams. For example, Mission San Jose High School of Fremont, California has, for two years, sent teams to its regional competition that have placed 1st and 2nd. Teams comprised entirely of home schooled students are also permitted to enter; a perennial qualifier to the national competition is the Edmond Home Cooperative from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.