← All formatsDouble Elim
Double elimination
Two lives per player. Fairer than a knockout, faster than round robin.
- formula
- 2N − 2
- complexity
- medium
- best for
- 8–32 players
How it works
Two parallel brackets: winners and losers. Lose once in winners and you drop to the losers bracket. Lose again and you're out. The final is between the two bracket winners; if the losers' side winner wins, a grand final reset is played.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Fairer than single elimination — one loss isn't fatal
- Less influence from unlucky draws
- Champion has survived two potential losses
- Losers keep playing — more matches, more experience
Cons
- Roughly twice the matches of single elimination
- Bracket is harder to visualize and explain
- Needs 1.5–2 days for 16+ players
- Grand final has asymmetric conditions
When to pick it
- 01Minimizing randomness matters
- 02You have two days for winners + losers bracket
- 03Players are happy to play more matches
- 04Esports, fighting games, short-match formats
How many matches
Match and round count by participant number — plan your courts and schedule.
formula2N − 2
You must eliminate N−1 players twice each (except the champion). That is 2N−2 matches, plus an optional grand-final reset (+1) if a losers-side player wins.
| Participants | Matches | Rounds |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 6 | 4 |
| 8 | 14 | 5 |
| 16 | 30 | 7 |
| 32 | 62 | 9 |
| 64 | 126 | 11 |