Fast food icon Krystal, along with the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE), announced today the 11 host cities and dates for the official qualifying circuit of the 2005 Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship.

The winner of each regional qualifier will earn one of the coveted seats at the world championship final table on Nov. 19, 2005, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where they will compete for a share of the $22,500 cash purse. As last year’s champion with 69 Krystal Hamburgers in eight minutes, Takeru Kobayashi, the world’s number-one-ranked eater, has received an automatic seat at the main event.

One of the majors in the sport of competitive eating and the only world hamburger-eating championship officially sanctioned by the IFOCE, the Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship will kick off once again with its first regional qualifier on Labor Day, Sept. 5, in Chattanooga, and will then crisscross six states, from Texas to Florida, pitting the world’s best competitive eaters against the lifelong Krystal lovers who took the sensational sport by storm last fall.

Individuals interested in competing in the 2005 Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship can find the most up-to-date information at www.krystal.com. As an officially sanctioned IFOCE event, all registration for the qualifying contests will be handled by the IFOCE through the Krystal website. Participants must be 18 years or over.