Saint John’s Seminary Basketball Team to Compete in the 2026 De Sales Invitational

Brotherhood and Basketball on a National Stage

Saint John’s Seminary is pleased to announce that our basketball team will travel to compete in the sixth annual De Sales Invitational, to be held February 13–15, 2026. The tournament will bring together 18 seminaries from across the United States for a weekend of spirited competition, fraternity, and shared mission—marking the largest De Sales Invitational to date.

More than just a basketball tournament, the De Sales Invitational celebrates the bonds of brotherhood formed through healthy competition and communal life. For Saint John’s Seminary, participation in the Invitational reflects the Seminary’s commitment to the integral formation of future priests—mind, body, and spirit—fostering teamwork, discipline, and fraternity both on and off the court.

The 2026 tournament builds on the momentum of last year’s successful Invitational, during which 16 seminaries from around the country gathered for a weekend of competition held February 28–March 2. Saint Joseph Seminary College of St. Benedict, Louisiana, emerged as champions, followed by Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary of Denton, Nebraska, in second place, and Mundelein Seminary of Mundelein, Illinois, in third. All games from the 2025 tournament are available to view on the host seminary’s YouTube channel.

The De Sales Invitational is made possible through the generous support of its sponsors, including Tom and Lynne VanHimbergen, Kevin and Linda Steiner, Pat Connaughton of the Milwaukee Bucks, and Sendik’s Food Market. Saint John’s Seminary joins the broader seminary community in expressing deep gratitude for their continued generosity and commitment to fostering fraternity and formation among seminarians nationwide.

A complete game schedule and additional details for the 2026 De Sales Invitational will be released in the coming months.

To learn more, visit 2026 De Sales Invitational website.

Souls in the Game highlights priestly formation beyond the study of philosophy and theology. It tells the story of seminary formation through the lens of fraternity, sportsmanship, and the dedication of a basketball team striving to support each other beyond the wood of the court as they grow in the understanding of their own vocations.