Double Elimination

Double elimination is a tournament bracket format where a competitor must lose two matches before being eliminated from the tournament. After a first loss, the competitor drops to the "losers bracket" (also called the consolation bracket) and continues competing. If they win out through the losers bracket, they can still reach the finals. A competitor who goes undefeated through the winners bracket faces the losers bracket champion in the final, typically needing to be beaten twice since they have not yet lost.

Double elimination is less common in BJJ than single elimination but is used by some organizations and local tournaments. NAGA has historically used double elimination formats in some of their events. AGF uses it for certain division sizes. IBJJF primarily uses single elimination with a repechage (consolation) round for third place, which is not the same as true double elimination. Grappling Industries uses round robin rather than double elimination.

For youth competitors and their parents, double elimination is appealing because it guarantees at least two matches per competitor. Losing the first match is not the end of the day — the child gets a second chance through the losers bracket. This can be less stressful for newer competitors who are still developing their competition nerves. The downside is that double elimination tournaments tend to run longer because there are more total matches. When choosing tournaments, parents should check the bracket format to set appropriate expectations for how many matches their child will have and how long the day will be.