Sunday to Tuesday in Indianapolis
The American Football Coaches Association Annual Convention runs February 14-16, 2027 at the Indiana Convention Center, 100 South Capitol Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46225. The venue forecasts 7,000 attendees. Its page states the event gathers over 7,000 football coaches and support staff. February 14 is a Sunday, February 15 a Monday and February 16 a Tuesday.
The AFCA was founded in December 1921, is based in Waco, Texas, and reports more than 11,000 members.
Membership Is the Ticket
The AFCA publishes the rule. The convention is a closed event, open to active members. Memberships run July 1 to June 30. Membership now includes convention registration, so a member in good standing at the time of the convention is registered.
The convention FAQ routes a non-member who wants to attend to the AFCA office by email.
Registering a Whole Staff in One Call
The AFCA names one route for a group. Send the list of individuals, their role on the staff and their individual email addresses to the office, or call (254) 754-9900 and ask for the Membership Department. That step covers dues and convention registration together, so there is no separate convention fee to chase after the dues are paid. The association office is at 100 Legends Lane, Waco, Texas 76706.
The AFCA membership page bands dues by role. FBS head coaches pay $400. FBS assistant coaches and graduate assistants pay $175, as do FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA head coaches, professional and arena coaches and pro scouts. FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA assistant coaches pay $125, as do junior-college and high-school coaches and international members. Members not coaching this season sit in a $125 to $300 band. A high-school affiliate membership costs $25 with a promo code from a state association.
The Block: 23 Hotels, a Five-Room Minimum
The AFCA housing block runs through Fastbreak Travel and lists 23 official hotels. Every property carries a five-room minimum for a sub-block and a 60-room maximum, so a staff between those figures books inside the block.
Block rates run from $139 at TRU by Hilton to $264 at the Marriott Indianapolis Downtown. Twenty-two of the 23 properties carry a published figure. Treat the block rate as the baseline, because it is a contracted rate. Three properties name a skywalk connection to the Convention Center in their block notes: The Westin Indianapolis, the Marriott Indianapolis Downtown and the JW Marriott Indianapolis.
Use the request form for any night the block cannot cover, and check the Indianapolis directory for the wider set. bookMyTeam publishes group rates at 10 or more rooms per night, with some hotels discounting from as few as 5 rooms depending on season and availability.
Two Block Hotels Charge a Nightly Extra Adult Fee
Two properties publish an extra adult fee in their block notes. The Hilton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites charges $10.00 for occupants aged 18 and over, per night, per room. The Hyatt Regency Indianapolis charges $25.00 on the same basis. Both figures sit against the room rather than the person, so confirm with the hotel how the fee applies when two adults share one double. Staff on single occupancy avoid the question and pay for a second room instead.
What the Room Nights Cost
Two rooms for three nights is 6 room-nights. At the Hilton block rate of $169 that is $1,014 in room charges plus $60 in extra adult fees at $10 a night per room, for $1,074. At the Hyatt Regency rate of $229 the same six room-nights are $1,374 plus $150 in fees at $25, for $1,524. The $450 gap follows from the rate and the fee together.
Run a larger staff on the group rate calculator before the request reaches the person who signs it, so the number in the conversation is a total rather than a nightly rate.
Cut-Off Dates and Deposits
Eight properties close on January 14, 2027: the Omni Severin, SpringHill Suites, the Courtyard Indianapolis Downtown, The Westin, the Marriott Indianapolis Downtown, the Holiday Inn Indianapolis Downtown, the Fairfield Inn and the JW Marriott. The Hilton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites closes January 21. The other 14 close January 22, among them the Hyatt Regency, the Crowne Plaza Union Station, the Signia by Hilton Indianapolis, the Embassy Suites, the Sheraton City Centre, the Hampton Inn Downtown, TRU by Hilton, Le Meridien, Aloft, the Courtyard at the Capitol, the Hyatt Place & Hyatt House, the Holiday Inn Express Convention Center, Staybridge Suites and Hotel Indy.
Six properties collect a deposit of one night's room and tax on or around January 15, 2027: SpringHill Suites, the Courtyard Indianapolis Downtown, The Westin, the Marriott Indianapolis Downtown, the Fairfield Inn and the JW Marriott. The Signia by Hilton Indianapolis collects a nonrefundable deposit of one night's room and tax on or around January 22. The Omni Severin, the Holiday Inn Indianapolis Downtown and the Hyatt Place & Hyatt House carry a two-night minimum stay.
Fastbreak runs the block, answers questions on (888) 290-3210 and staffs a live chat Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The venue publishes the convention as February 14-16. The housing site shows the event range as February 14-17, which reads as a Wednesday checkout. The housing site lets a planner adjust the stay, so set checkout to the day the staff drive home.
Downtown carries 7,100 hotel rooms, more than half within blocks of the Convention Center, with 4,700 connected by skywalk. The venue states the skywalk window is event-dependent, with a rule of thumb of approximately 11:00 p.m. for lock down and approximately 6:00 a.m. for reopening.
