The fifth edition of the national youth competition will offer support for a larger number of projects, a 3-month educational and mentoring program, as well as numerous in-person and online events
From January 12 to April 24, 2026, young people from across the country aged 18 to 29 (including students and pupils from grades 11 and 12) with innovative business ideas can register to participate in the fifth edition of the national competition Best Youth Startup in Bulgaria. The contest is the country's largest initiative supporting youth entrepreneurship and is organized by the Fund of Funds and Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" (Faculty of Economics and Business Administration) under the patronage of the Minister of Innovation and Growth.
Over 60 organizations are partners, participating in a 3-month free educational and mentoring program packed with numerous advanced webinars, workshops, gaming and networking sessions, and interim competitions. Participants further develop their ideas and gain access to tools and network contacts. Among the partnering organisations are financing institutions, investment funds, sector associations, accelerators, academic and research institutions, and media. This year, new partners are joining, including the Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Youth and Sports, BSMEPA, IPA, UACEG, UNWE, VUZF, Bayena, Sofia Talks, ManEco, UniBit. YES, Net Info, and may more.
Projects from all sectors and at different stages are eligible - ideation, prototype, working business, business in growth. Individual participants or teams can apply, where the lead must be a young person of eligible age, by choosing one of three competition categories:
Future Unicorns - Young entrepreneurs with an idea or an existing small or medium business (shops, cafes, family businesses, fitness centres, agencies, education, etc.) focused on long-term growth in their region or in Bulgaria.
Business Stars - Young entrepreneurs with an idea or an existing small or medium business (shops, cafes, family businesses, fitness centres, agencies, education, etc.) focused on long-term growth in their region or in Bulgaria.
SDG Dragons - Projects with a sustainable positive impact on society, cities and nature (climate, poverty and inequality reduction, access to education and healthcare, clean energy, biodiversity, sustainable cities, responsible consumption and production, etc.), oriented towards global solutions.
Best Youth Startup in Bulgaria 2026 comes with increased scope and will offer several innovations compared to previous editions. This year, investment opportunities will be sought and evaluated within the framework of the competition itself. The new edition also comes with a new website bestyouthstartup.bg. Participants will have access not only to the program, important dates, speakers, and webinar recordings, but also to additional useful resources in the field of entrepreneurship, innovation, and the journey from idea to successful business. For the first time, participation of foreign guest speakers with international experience is expected. This year, the Fund of Funds will step up efforts to promote the initiative through targeted visits to universities in Bulgaria’s major cities.
The Competition Days will be led by Founder Institute CEE, and will be conducted in five stages in April and May. The initiative will end up with an official awards ceremony in early June. As in previous years, the prize fund will include internships, access to institutions, events, a pool of business networks, individual mentorship, and many other opportunities.
Best Youth Startup in Bulgaria was launched in 2022. To date, over 750 participants with more than 500 ideas have gone through it, and 9 of them have received growth investment. The competition is a springboard for young people in Bulgaria to successfully launch their own business and aims to raise entrepreneurial and financial culture, including idea generation and development, business planning, marketing, innovation, pitching to investors, etc. A valuable opportunity for all participants is creating business contacts with investors, entrepreneurs, academia, and attracting like-minded people. All young people wishing to start their own business can join the competition through the application form on the website bestyouthstartup.bg.
