Cameron Stack

Don't Miss September's Podcast Award Deadlines

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Cameron Stack

We’re looking for two creator-focused brands to partner with us on a new show about awards and recognition.

Each partner will be featured across our channels from day one and positioned in front of an audience of award enthusiasts, content creators, and marketing leaders who care about recognition, credibility, and standing out.

The show is led by a podcast strategist and producer with nearly a decade of industry experience, with past work including Indeed, Ligue 1, Brain Games, and HBS.

Want more details? Email hello@recognized.fm or reach out on LinkedIn.

It’s awards roundup time! Here’s what’s open for entry in September 2026, from major podcast and audio awards to international competitions and student opportunities. We’ve also included a few recently closed programs worth knowing about, so you can keep them on your radar for next year.

Signal Awards

Grace Period Deadline: September 11, 2026.
Entry fees: Shows, $345; Limited Series & Specials, $345; Individual Episodes, $295; Brand Storytelling, $345. Professional Plan categories cost $1,035 for three entries.
Eligibility: Work must have been “originally published after September 1, 2025, and be live and accessible upon entry.”

The Ambies

Award year: The entries now open are for the 2027 Ambies. Early-bird submissions opened August 17, 2026.
Regular submission period: September 7 to October 9, 2026.
Regular fees: Members, $235; nonmembers, $285.
Late submission period: October 12 to November 6, 2026.
Late fees: Members, $285; nonmembers, $335.
Eligibility: Entries must have published at least three episodes between January 1 and December 31, 2026.
Language: Only English language entries are accepted at this time.

Anthem Awards

Extended deadline: September 18, 2026.
Entry fees: Nonprofit entries, $345; for profit entries, $495.
Who may enter: Organizations, nonprofits, brands, foundations, and individuals doing purpose and mission driven work.
Eligibility window: The project must be ongoing or have taken place between January 2025 and the entry deadline.
Cause areas: Belonging & Inclusion, Education, Art & Culture, Health, Human & Civil Rights, Humanitarian Action & Services, Technology, and Sustainability, Environment & Climate.
Podcast categories: Podcast Episode, Podcast Limited Series, and Podcast Show, under Content & Media.
Timeline: Finalists and public voting are scheduled for October 2026.

Astra Podcast Awards

Deadline: September 28, 2026.
Entry fees: Early bird, $150 (August 19 to September 4, now closed); regular, $200 (September 5 to 18); late, $250 (September 19 to 28). Fees are charged per podcast, per category.
Nominations: Announced October 14, 2026.
Ceremony: October 28, 2026.

All Ireland Podcast Awards

Entries opened: September 2, 2026.
Deadline: 6 p.m., September 22, 2026.
Shortlist: Mid-October 2026.
Ceremony: Evening of November 11, 2026.
Venue: The Woodlands Hotel, Adare, County Limerick, as part of Sound.Waves, which runs November 10 to 12.
Geographic scope: Podcasts from all 32 counties of Ireland.

Premios Ondas

Deadline: September 30, 2026.
Entry fee: Free.
Podcast categories: Best Narrative Podcast, Best Video Podcast, Best Fiction Podcast, Best Host, and Best Sound Design.
Production: National entries must be produced or coproduced in Spain.
Native podcasts only: Programs first broadcast on conventional radio or television are not eligible, even if later distributed as podcasts.
Ceremony: Barcelona, November 2026.

Audio Production Awards

Deadline: September 16, 2026, at 2 p.m.
Entry fees: AudioUK members, £60 plus VAT; non-members, £70 plus VAT. AudioUK also offers a “pay what you can” scheme.
Eligibility: Podcast and audio content must have been “first broadcast, streamed, or made available to download between June 1, 2025, and May 31, 2026.”
Scope: The awards recognize UK audio production across podcasts, radio, audiobooks, sound design, presenting, and production craft.
Shortlist: October 26, 2026.
Ceremony: November 26, 2026.

NY Audio & Podcasts Awards

Final extension deadline: September 16, 2026
Professional entry: $180 single / $225 campaign
Additional category: $120 single / $185 campaign
Student: $90 first entry / $80 additional category
Eligibility: Work produced after January 1, 2023
Results announced: November 6, 2026

New York Festivals Radio Awards

Entries opened: September 9, 2026
Deadline: January 31, 2027.
Entry fees: Podcasts, $320 for a single entry and $475 for a series; student entries, $200. A separate fee applies for each category selection.
Eligibility: Work must have been “produced, released, screened, aired, published, issued, or streamed” between January 1, 2026, and January 31, 2027.
Scope: The awards recognize worldwide audio storytelling, including direct-to-digital podcasts, radio, documentaries, branded audio, fiction, news, craft, and programming.
Podcast categories: The 2027 competition introduces Crime Drama and Kids & Family Podcast categories.

New Zealand Podcast Awards

Entries opened: August 6, 2026.
Deadline: October 9, 2026.
Eligibility: Shows must have produced at least six episodes by August 31, 2026.
Entry fees:
- Independent podcasters $50 for one category or $70 for multiple categories
- Corporate podcasts $100 or $120 for multiple categories
Scope: New Zealand podcasting, including listener-voted recognition.
Voting: Listener’s Choice voting runs from October 12 to November 19, 2026.
Winners: December 3 2026.

Audie Awards

First deadline: July 10, 2026.
Late deadline: October 9, 2026.
Entry fees: A late fee applies after the first deadline.
Scope: Audiobooks and spoken-word audio, including narration, production, original work, and genre categories.

Recent Articles on the Recognition Economy

Here are a few articles you may have missed. Each one takes a closer look at the recognition economy from a different angle, from why awards matter and how to evaluate the podcast awards landscape, to what makes recognition genuinely valuable and how the industry around awards continues to evolve.

What Is the Recognition Economy?: An introduction to the growing ecosystem behind awards, recognition, and the businesses that support them.

The Beauty and Brilliance of Award Shows: A look at why award shows still matter and what gives them lasting cultural value.
Types of Podcast Awards: A practical guide to the podcast awards landscape and how to think about it strategically.
You Wouldn’t Have Podcasting Without These People: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: The People Who Built Audio
The Reference Guide to Australian Awards: A paid deep dive into the Australian awards landscape and what it reveals about the broader recognition economy.
The Ambies in Transition: A reflection on a changing awards program and what the shift means for the industry.

Podcast Hall of Fame Behind-the-Scenes: A behind-the-scenes look at how recognition programs are built and presented.
Awards Industry Glossary: A glossary of key terms for navigating the awards and recognition space.
Cheating Scandals You Probably Never Heard Of: A tour of cheating and impropriety across mainstream and niche awards.

Podcast Competitions and Opportunities.

Podclass Contest 2026/27

Registration deadline: September 11, 2026.
Concept submission deadline: October 9, 2026.
Eligibility: Teams of students in eighth or ninth grade from schools in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, and Hamburg.
Entry requirements: A one-page podcast concept, sound design, and square podcast cover.
Scope: Students develop an original podcast concept around the 2026/27 theme “NEW TO ME.”
Finalists: Three teams from each participating state advance to the final.
Prize: One winning team from each state will produce its first podcast episode at NDR in May 2027.

ISBC Student Media Competition

Entries opened: September 1, 2026.
Deadline: October 30, 2026.
Eligibility: Currently enrolled students worldwide, including students in tertiary education and 2026 graduates, subject to the competition’s eligibility rules.
Entry fees: Fees apply per category entry; membership is free.
Scope: Student broadcasting, podcasting, journalism, production, digital content, and esports.
Podcast categories: Best Podcast Talent, Best New Podcast, and Best Established Podcast.
Judging and public voting: November 9 to 20, 2026.
Grand Finale: December 3, 2026.

NPR Senior Podcast Challenge

Entries opened: August 16, 2026.
Deadline: November 30, 2026.
Eligibility: U.S. residents aged 65 and older.
- Entries must be completely original, no longer than eight minutes, and submitted as audio. Copyrighted music and AI-generated writing or presentation are not permitted.
Entry fees: Free.
Scope: Personal narratives, interviews, reported audio journalism, family histories, memories, health, finance, retirement, relationships, and hopes for the future.
Prizes: Several finalists and one grand-prize winner will be selected.