The format is the decision that shapes a tournament the most: how many matches you need to schedule, how many each team plays and how much time it takes. These are the seven formats eSportics offers, with numbers for a tournament of 16 teams or pairs.
League (round robin)
Every team plays every other team. It is the fairest format, but it needs the most matches: with N teams there are N × (N − 1) / 2 matches.
- 16 teams: 120 matches; each team plays 15.
- Best for: leagues that run over weeks or months, with one matchday a week.
Group league
Teams are split into small groups, each played as a league. With groups of 4, every team plays 3 matches.
- 16 teams in 4 groups of 4: 24 matches.
- Best for: the first stage of a weekend tournament.
Knockout
Lose and you are out. It is the shortest format: with N teams there are N − 1 matches. If N is not a power of 2, some teams go straight through to the second round.
- 16 teams: 15 matches; half of the teams play only once.
- A consolation bracket gives first-round losers a second tournament.
- Best for: one-day tournaments or finals.
Double elimination
Nobody is out after one defeat: losers drop into a losers’ bracket and still have a chance. Every team plays at least two matches.
- 16 teams: about 30 matches.
- Best for: tournaments where a second chance matters, such as eSports.
Knockout with qualifying rounds
Qualifying rounds are played before the main draw to hand out the last places. Useful when there are more entries than places in the bracket.
Swiss system
A fixed number of rounds is played, and in each round teams with the same or a similar score meet. Nobody is eliminated and there is no need for everyone to play everyone.
- 16 teams over 4 rounds: 32 matches; each team plays 4.
- Best for: many participants and little time, as in chess.
League + final knockout
A league or group stage followed by a knockout between the top finishers. Everyone plays several matches and the tournament ends with a final.
- 16 teams in 4 groups of 4 + quarter-finals, semi-finals and final: 24 + 7 = 31 matches.
- Best for: most weekend club tournaments.
In short
- Little time: knockout (with consolation if you want everyone to play twice).
- One weekend: groups + final knockout.
- A whole season: league.
- Many participants and few rounds: Swiss system.
In eSportics you choose the format when you create each stage, run the draw in one click and the platform generates every match, bracket and standings table. Then the scheduling algorithm spreads them across your courts.