NCS⁴ NEWS

It's your last chance to register for the 17th Annual National Sports Safety and Security Conference & Exhibition in Palm Desert, CA!

Registration Deadline: May 26

The NCS⁴ is pleased to welcome Brian Dubiski, Co-Founder/Treasurer of the Pink Bows Foundation, as the keynote speaker for the opening general session. His presentation, Turning Tragedy into Action: Redefining Crowd Safety After Astroworld, will reflect on the foundation’s mission to improve event safety following the loss of Madison Dubiski, one of 10 individuals who died at the 2021 Astroworld concert. The Pink Bows Foundation was established in March 2025 in her memory. The keynote will be followed by a session on the Risk Landscape of NIL, led by Forrest Dodd, NCS⁴ instructor. Conference programming will include general sessions with panel discussions on topics relevant to today’s ever-changing security landscape, while breakout sessions allow participants to engage with panelists and attendees on key issues. Below are a few sessions scheduled for the conference.

Attendees will learn a holistic, step-by-step framework that links threat identification, integrated vulnerability assessment, collaborative risk management, and layered mitigation strategies with continuous monitoring and improvement.

This session will share proven strategies to help organizations address growing concerns. Attendees will learn how to apply insider threat strategies to spot warning signs early and mitigate risk.

This session is a practical workshop designed to explore what happens in the critical seconds and minutes when a Showstop intervention becomes necessary, and why even experienced professionals can hesitate, delay, or misjudge the moment to act.

This breakout examines how the exercise was designed and executed—and the key strengths, gaps, and lessons learned that revealed real-world challenges in command transitions, information flow, and sustaining complex campus operations.

Attendees will explore emerging technologies and network with peers during the conference. A social reception planned for the event’s first evening allows practitioners, industry partners, and exhibitors to gather and network with friends and colleagues in a relaxed atmosphere.

Top 10 Reasons to Attend the Conference

1. Connect with peers at the Exhibit Hall opening
2. Celebrate NCS⁴’s 20th Anniversary at the Opening Reception
3. Hear from leading industry experts
4. Participate in interactive panel discussions
5. Attend the Awards Luncheon
6. Expand your professional network
7. Engage in dynamic breakout sessions
8. Explore cutting-edge technologies
9. Discover new products and services
10. Gain practical solutions to real-world challenges

Bring Your Team and Save $$$ with the group rate

Discounted registration is available for groups of three or more, making it easier than ever to invest in professional development, collaboration, and industry-leading insights together.   Register your group today at the special rate of $675 per person. Exclusions apply.

See complete details and exclusions on the website.

• Member Rate: $750 per person
• Non-Member Rate: $825 per person
• Group Rate: $675 per person (Three or more people from the same organization. Not stackable.)
• Private Sector Attendee: $950 per person (Individuals representing companies that provide products or services to the industry and are not sponsoring or exhibiting.)

Award Announcements

Cornerstone Award

Congratulations, Lauren Cranford, NCS⁴ Director of Operations, on being named the 2026 Cornerstone Award Recipient!

Thank you to our SOLUTION PARTNERS!

Their participation helps make this event possible.

2026 FIFA World Cup Preparedness Special Event

Conflict Prevention Strategies to Deter Targeted Violence

June 3, 2026

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM ET

Registration is Limited to 1,000 Attendees

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) invites you to register for the Conflict Prevention Strategies to Deter Targeted Violence training. This 60-minute webinar provides a deeper dive on the principles of conflict prevention and offers a more in-depth discussion on tangible de-escalation actions that can be used to effectively diffuse a volatile situation.  This webinar is intended for hotel and hospitality staff, front line employees, volunteers and others interested in receiving foundational training on de-escalation topics.   Objectives: 

• Introduce the threat landscape
• Gain insights into specific conflict prevention strategies and actions 
• Understand best practices for targeted violence prevention

Showstop® Procedure E-Learning Course Goes Multilingual

The Introduction to Showstop® Procedure Course, launched March 2026, is now available in nine languages, increasing global accessibility and supporting the international adoption of a consistent, defensible approach to event safety.  New translations in German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Arabic, Dutch, and Italian translations, alongside English, aim to strengthen international events safety culture. This expansion of Showstop’s E-Learning platform makes it easier, and more cost-effective, for event professionals anywhere in the world to engage with the award winning, widely endorsed emergency protocol.  Since launching in March, over 300 people have registered for the E-Learning module. This multi-lingual rollout supports the extensive campaign, spearheaded by The Pink Bows Foundation, in memory of Madison Dubiski, to establish the global implementation of the Showstop® Procedure for live performances, sports, entertainment and cultural events. 

NCS⁴ Promotional Video

Since 2006, the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS⁴) at The University of Southern Mississippi has been a leader in providing training and critical resources to the sport and special event community. With the resounding growth of NCS⁴ programs nationally and internationally over the past 20 years, we’d like to thank our partners, members, national advisory board, and advisory committees for their avid support.

NCS⁴ eLearning Options

The NCS⁴ eLearning platform, NCS⁴ LEARN, provides opportunities for individuals and organizations to access asynchronous professional development opportunities. Current offerings include the following:

• Frontline Staff Foundational Skills
• Crowd Manager Fundamentals
• Venue Staff Training: Security Awareness
• Senior Leader Course: Sports and Entertainment Security

Please visit the website or contact us at NCS4Learn@usm.edu if you have any questions or would like to inquire about bulk registration.

Click one of the links above or the button below for details on registering.

Routledge Handbook of Sport Security

Dr. Stacey Hall, NCS⁴ Executive Director, serves as the editor of the first-ever published Handbook of Sport Security (available in hardback and eBook format). The book provides an in-depth analysis of security issues and concerns in contemporary sport. Featuring the work of 60 leading researchers and practitioners from around the world, it offers practical, evidence-based commentary and guidance covering over 40 chapters. The book examines the multiple stakeholders, agencies, and organizations involved in providing a safe space for spectators, participants, staff, organizations, communities, and sponsors. It considers the coordination of private and public entities in the sports security ecosystem, including facility management, event management, law enforcement, emergency management, emergency medical services, and state/federal government partners, as well as the private sector organizations providing support services. The book also offers a comprehensive analysis of key issues and debates in contemporary sport security, including terrorism, cybersecurity, spectator violence, planning and assessment guidance for sport venues and events of all sizes, management and policy considerations for leaders and decision-makers, and the lessons learned from critical incidents. It introduces the core principles of research methods in sport security and looks ahead at future developments in this rapidly changing field. This is essential reading for any advanced student, researcher, practitioner, or policymaker with an interest in sport studies, security studies, event studies, criminal justice, management, or public policy.

Fundamentals of Crowd Safety Course

NCS⁴ and GKStill International have partnered to jointly offer the Fundamentals of Crowd Safety online eLearning course to address capability gaps in crowd behavior and sciences. Professor Dr. G. Keith Still, Visiting Professor of Crowd Science at the University of Suffolk, developed this certified, accredited course. The course offers an 8-hour online interactive experience designed to teach the essential elements of crowd safety and crowd risk analysis. The course is especially valuable to event organizers, as it ensures that those who complete it are compliant with the NFPA 101 - Life Safety Code — specifically, the areas of section 12 of the code that require a venue to provide a crowd manager trained in crowd management techniques for occupancies exceeding 1,000.