Hockey fans in four Iowa cities will be at their loudest during the highly-anticipated matchups which will settle the 2025/26 Dupaco Cowbell Cup series.

Dupaco Community Credit Union has presented the all-Iowa competition since 2015.  Once again this season, the Waterloo Black Hawks, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, Des Moines Buccaneers, and Dubuque Fighting Saints will contend for the trophy.  Twenty-four United States Hockey League games will count toward the series standings.

"We're proud to support local hockey through the Cowbell Cup partnership—where community spirit meets friendly competition," said Dupaco Marketing Communication Specialist Tara McDermott. "Sponsoring this event gives us a unique way to connect with four great teams representing the communities in which we serve. It's more than just branding—it's about showing up for our communities, celebrating local talent, and creating memorable experiences for our members and staff. Last year, Dollar Dog made appearances at Dupaco Night in each city, and we're excited to cheer everyone on again this season."

The first Dupaco Cowbell Cup game in 2025/26 will be Thursday, October 30th when Des Moines visits Dubuque.  This week, fans can take a look at several Dupaco Cowbell Cup previews: Waterloo hosts an exhibition game against Cedar Rapids tomorrow, then the Hawks visit Des Moines Thursday. Meanwhile, the RoughRiders and Fighting Saints meet for a home-and-home preseason series on Friday and Saturday.

"Even during the preseason, there is a lot of intensity when the Hawks meet our Dupaco Cowbell Cup rivals," said Black Hawks President and Chief Operating Officer Joe Greene. "We look forward to these matchups each winter and would like to thank Dupaco and the thousands of Dupaco members who support their communities in this series, and in so many other important ways."

Dupaco Community Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperative headquartered in Dubuque. It is dedicated to the financial well-being of its members, and specializes in personalized financial counseling, money advice and education. It offers savings, loans, investments, insurance and wealth management products for individuals and businesses. Founded in 1948, membership has grown to more than 175,000 with assets exceeding $3.5 billion. It has over 600 employees and 23 branch office locations.

The four contending teams will each play six home games and six road games which count toward earning the Dupaco Cowbell Cup.  Wins will earn two points toward the trophy, with one point resulting from overtime or shootout losses.  Fans are the real winners during the Dupaco Cowbell Cup series; a special giveaway is planned for each market throughout the season, and those in attendance should be on the lookout for Dupaco Cowbell Cup t-shirts thrown into the crowd during each designated game. 
 

October 30	Des Moines at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
November 15	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m
November 26	Des Moines at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
December 6	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
December 13	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
January 17	Dubuque at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	6:05 p.m.
	Waterloo at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
January 18	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	4:05 p.m.
February 6	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 13	Cedar Rapids at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
February 14	Cedar Rapids at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
February 21	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 27	Waterloo at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 28	Dubuque at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
March 1	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	2:05 p.m.
March 6	Dubuque at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
March 7	Waterloo at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
March 13	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
March 17	Dubuque at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
	Cedar Rapids at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	6:35 p.m.
March 25	Des Moines at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
March 27	Des Moines at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
March 28	Cedar Rapids at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
April 1	Waterloo at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.

Due to an imbalanced schedule, a limited number of matchups between participating teams will not count toward this season's Dupaco Cowbell Cup standings.  These include games during the DICK'S Sporting Goods USHL Fall Classic (Waterloo vs. Dubuque September 18th and Cedar Rapids vs. Des Moines September 19th).  The following home games are also excluded from the series:

Cedar Rapids: November 11th, November 29th, February 7th

Des Moines: November 14th, December 9th

Dubuque: December 31st, January 30th

Waterloo: September 27th, November 27th, December 31st