Format
Double elimination
Everyone gets a second chance.
Two brackets: winners and losers. A single loss drops you to the lower bracket; a second loss sends you home. The lower-bracket champion meets the upper-bracket champion in the grand final.
Match count
2n − 2 (or 2n − 1 with reset)
Each participant except the champion loses exactly twice, so there are 2(n − 1) losses = matches. The optional bracket reset adds one.
Example: 16 participants → 30 matches, 31 if the reset is played. Roughly double single elimination.
Live demo
An 8-team double elimination bracket
Generated in your browser by the same engine that powers every tournament on Bracket.
Live demo · 8 sample teams · 15 matches
Winners bracket
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Losers bracket
Losers round 1
Losers round 2
Losers round 3
Losers round 4
Grand final
How it works
- 1
Round one is played in the winners bracket. Losers drop into the losers bracket, where they meet other losers from later winners rounds.
- 2
Losers-bracket rounds alternate between "drop-down" rounds (new losers arrive) and "consolidation" rounds.
- 3
The grand final pits the winners champion against the losers champion. With bracket reset enabled, a losers-side win forces one deciding match.
When to use it
- Fighting games, esports and any event where a single upset should not end a run.
- Fields of 8–64 with a full day available.
- When you want an accurate 1st–3rd placement.
FAQ
Double elimination questions
Other formats
Single elimination
Lose once and you are out.
Round robin
Everyone plays everyone.
Swiss system
Big fields, few rounds, no eliminations.
Groups + knockout
World-Cup style two-stage tournament.
Free for all
Placement-based events for many players at once.
Leaderboard
Several scoring events, one cumulative table.
Racing formats
Time trials, single races and Grand Prix series.
Gauntlet
Winner stays. The next seed challenges.
Custom bracket
Your list order is the bracket.