Bracket Builder: How to Set Up Every Tournament Format

Step-by-step instructions for every bracket type in Super Bracket Builder — single, double, and triple elimination, round robin (with all four sub-modes), and Swiss. Each format includes the instant flow, the scheduled flow, every setup option, and where to change settings after the tournament starts.

Shared flow Single Elim Double Elim Triple Elim Round Robin Swiss Mid-tournament changes

The shared starting point

Every format starts the same way. From the Director Dashboard (the home screen for organization owners), find the ⚡ Quick Create grid — a 2×4 panel of format buttons. Alternatively, open the Tournaments tab and tap ➕ Create.

Tapping a format opens the Create or Schedule modal with two options:

  • ▶️ Create Now — add players immediately and start the tournament right away.

  • 📅 Schedule for Later — set a future date and time and open public pre-registration.

🏆

A. Single Elimination

Classic knockout format. Lose once and you're out. Fastest format for any size field — works great for a quick league night or a one-and-done championship.

▶️ Instant (Create Now)

  1. From the Director Dashboard, tap Single Elim in the ⚡ Quick Create grid.
  2. In the Create or Schedule modal, tap Create Now.
  3. On the Tournament Setup screen (Step 1/2), fill in Sport (required) and Tier (required). Name, description, and venue are optional.
  4. Pick a Match Format: Single Game, Best of 3, Best of 5, or Best of 7.
  5. (Optional) Toggle 🤝 Doubles Tournament, Cash Tournament (sets entry fee), or 🧪 Test Tournament.
  6. Tap Next: Registration →.
  7. Search and add players by name or email. Drag entries to reorder seeding, or tap Shuffle to randomize.
  8. Tap Start Tournament — the bracket goes live.

📅 Scheduled (for later)

  1. Tap Single Elim in Quick Create.
  2. Tap Schedule for Later.
  3. In the Schedule Tournament modal, fill in Sport, Tier, and Match Format.
  4. Pick a Scheduled Date/Time and a Registration Close Date.
  5. Toggle Allow Pre-Registration to generate a public join link.
  6. Save. Players self-register through the link until close.
  7. On the scheduled date, the tournament auto-starts (or you can start it manually).

Every setup option

Tip: Need to change the Match Format mid-tournament? Tap the ⚙️ icon on the Tournament Screen to adjust it without restarting.
🔄

B. Double Elimination

Two-life format. Players drop into a losers bracket on their first loss and only exit when they lose again. The winners bracket and losers bracket each have independent Best-of settings — run Bo5 on the winners side and Bo3 on losers, for example.

▶️ Instant (Create Now)

  1. From the Director Dashboard, tap Double Elim in ⚡ Quick Create.
  2. Tap Create Now.
  3. Set Sport and Tier (required).
  4. Set Winners Bracket Format: Single Game, Best of 3, 5, or 7.
  5. Set Losers Bracket Format independently — typically shorter (Bo3) to keep pace.
  6. (Optional) Cash, Doubles, Test toggles.
  7. Tap Next: Registration → and add players.
  8. Tap Start Tournament.

📅 Scheduled (for later)

  1. Tap Double Elim in Quick Create.
  2. Tap Schedule for Later.
  3. Set Sport, Tier, and both bracket formats (Winners + Losers).
  4. Pick the Scheduled Date/Time and Registration Close Date.
  5. Enable Allow Pre-Registration to publish the join link.
  6. Save. Players sign up through the link until close.
  7. Tournament auto-starts (or start manually) on the scheduled date.

Double-elim-specific settings

Tip: Both bracket formats are also editable mid-tournament via the ⚙️ Settings modal on the Tournament Screen.
💪

C. Triple Elimination

Three-life format. Players drop from Winners → Losers → Super Losers, exiting only after a third loss. Every bracket gets its own Best-of setting. Great for small fields where you want everyone to play more games.

▶️ Instant (Create Now)

  1. Tap Triple Elim in ⚡ Quick Create.
  2. Tap Create Now.
  3. Set Sport and Tier.
  4. Set Winners Bracket Format.
  5. Set Losers Bracket Format.
  6. Set Super Losers Bracket Format.
  7. (Optional) Cash, Doubles, Test toggles.
  8. Add players, tap Start Tournament.

📅 Scheduled (for later)

  1. Tap Triple Elim, then Schedule for Later.
  2. Set Sport, Tier, and all three bracket formats (Winners, Losers, Super Losers).
  3. Pick Scheduled Date/Time and Registration Close.
  4. Enable Allow Pre-Registration.
  5. Save. Tournament auto-starts on the date.

Triple-elim-specific settings

Tip: Triple elim is best for fields of 6–16 players. Larger fields can stretch the Super Losers bracket too long — consider a Pods → Double Elim hybrid instead.
🔁

D. Round Robin

Everyone plays everyone. Round Robin has four sub-modes — Standard, Double, Custom Rounds, and Lives Mode — so you can scale it to any group size.

▶️ Instant (Create Now)

  1. Tap Round Robin in ⚡ Quick Create.
  2. Tap Create Now.
  3. Set Sport, Tier, and Match Format (Best of N).
  4. In the 🔄 Round-Robin Format section, pick one mode (see below).
  5. If you pick Custom Rounds, enter games per player.
  6. If you pick Lives Mode, enter lives per player (default 3).
  7. Tap Next: Registration →, add players, tap Start Tournament.

📅 Scheduled (for later)

  1. Tap Round Robin, then Schedule for Later.
  2. Set Sport, Tier, Match Format, and pick the Round-Robin mode.
  3. If Lives Mode, set Lives per Player.
  4. Pick Scheduled Date/Time and Registration Close.
  5. Enable Allow Pre-Registration, save.

Round-Robin sub-modes

Tip: The setup screen shows a live preview: "X total games, Y rounds (Z games per round)". Use it to size the tournament to the time you have available.
🎯

E. Swiss

Smart pairing system: every round pairs players with similar records. Great for large fields where a full round robin would take all day — you get meaningful standings in a fraction of the time.

▶️ Instant (Create Now)

  1. Tap Swiss in ⚡ Quick Create.
  2. Tap Create Now.
  3. Set Sport, Tier, and Match Format.
  4. In the 🎯 Swiss Format section, set Number of Rounds (or tap Reset to Recommended to use the suggested value based on player count).
  5. Toggle Allow Draws if your sport supports ties. Scoring becomes Win = 1, Draw = 0.5, Loss = 0.
  6. Pick a Rematch Policy: Soft (default — avoid rematches when possible), Strict (no rematches ever), or Off (rematches allowed).
  7. Tap Next: Registration →, add players, Start Tournament.

📅 Scheduled (for later)

  1. Tap Swiss, then Schedule for Later.
  2. Set Sport, Tier, Match Format, Number of Rounds, Draws, Rematch Policy.
  3. Pick Scheduled Date/Time and Registration Close.
  4. Enable Allow Pre-Registration, save.

Swiss-specific settings

Tip: Setup shows a live preview: "X rounds · Y matches per round ~ Z total matches" so you can plan the schedule before starting.
⚙️

Changing settings after the tournament starts

You don't have to get it perfect up front. Most setup options stay editable while the tournament is running.

⚙️ Open the Settings modal

  1. On the Tournament Screen, tap the ⚙️ Settings icon.
  2. The Settings modal opens with every editable option for that tournament's format.

What's editable mid-tournament

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