When I started playing in late March this year, the rewards were were almost immediate for the weekly tournaments. Gradually, they have gotten more and more delayed. My city is still relatively small. I always look at elvengems to see what troops I need to focus on training and what goods I need to try and stockpile. I try to stockpile more T1 goods than I need, in case the members of my FS who have even smaller cities need trades.
I complete one tournament and have to spend time and resources preparing for the next in a just a few days - time and resources that take away from building my city. I can't compete in a weekly tournament and in the spire, so I have to choose. My choice has gotten a whole lot easier. I really feel for the members of my FS who haven't reached Chapter 3 yet.