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Free printable bracket · Single elimination

26 team single elimination bracket

A 26-team single elimination bracket has 25 games, with 6 first-round byes for seeds 1–6.

Twenty-six teams: 6 byes, 10 first-round games, 25 games, five rounds. One day on six or more fields.

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Free to build and preview. $29 one-time to publish. The PDF is free, no sign-up.

  • 25games
  • 6first-round byes
  • 5rounds
  • 1–5games per team

The bracket

26 teams, 25 games, every one numbered.

Bracket

Show the bracket as

First RoundGames 1–10

  1. 116Team 16v.17Team 17
  2. 28Team 8v.25Team 25
  3. 39Team 9v.24Team 24
  4. 413Team 13v.20Team 20
  5. 512Team 12v.21Team 21
  6. 615Team 15v.18Team 18
  7. 77Team 7v.26Team 26
  8. 810Team 10v.23Team 23
  9. 914Team 14v.19Team 19
  10. 1011Team 11v.22Team 22

Byes1 Team 1 · 4 Team 4 · 5 Team 5 · 2 Team 2 · 3 Team 3 · 6 Team 6

Round of 16Games 11–18

  1. 111Team 1v.Winner of Game 1
  2. 12Winner of Game 2v.Winner of Game 3
  3. 134Team 4v.Winner of Game 4
  4. 145Team 5v.Winner of Game 5
  5. 152Team 2v.Winner of Game 6
  6. 16Winner of Game 7v.Winner of Game 8
  7. 173Team 3v.Winner of Game 9
  8. 186Team 6v.Winner of Game 10

QuarterfinalsGames 19–22

  1. 19Winner of Game 11v.Winner of Game 12
  2. 20Winner of Game 13v.Winner of Game 14
  3. 21Winner of Game 15v.Winner of Game 16
  4. 22Winner of Game 17v.Winner of Game 18

SemifinalsGames 23–24

  1. 23Winner of Game 19v.Winner of Game 20
  2. 24Winner of Game 21v.Winner of Game 22

FinalGame 25

  1. 25Winner of Game 23v.Winner of Game 24

Byes

Where the byes go.

The bracket is drawn on a 32-team frame, which leaves 6 empty slots in round one. They go to the top of the draw: seeds 1–6 skip round one and start in round two (Games 11–18). Round one is 10 games between the lower seeds.

A bye isn't a win on the record. TourneyPage advances the bye teams automatically, so the page never shows a game that doesn't exist.

Game order

All 25 games in play order.

  1. Game 1First RoundTeam 16 vs Team 17Winner plays Team 1 in Game 11.
  2. Game 2First RoundTeam 8 vs Team 25Winner plays the Game 3 winner in Game 12.
  3. Game 3First RoundTeam 9 vs Team 24Winner plays the Game 2 winner in Game 12.
  4. Game 4First RoundTeam 13 vs Team 20Winner plays Team 4 in Game 13.
  5. Game 5First RoundTeam 12 vs Team 21Winner plays Team 5 in Game 14.
  6. Game 6First RoundTeam 15 vs Team 18Winner plays Team 2 in Game 15.
  7. Game 7First RoundTeam 7 vs Team 26Winner plays the Game 8 winner in Game 16.
  8. Game 8First RoundTeam 10 vs Team 23Winner plays the Game 7 winner in Game 16.
  9. Game 9First RoundTeam 14 vs Team 19Winner plays Team 3 in Game 17.
  10. Game 10First RoundTeam 11 vs Team 22Winner plays Team 6 in Game 18.
  11. Game 11Round of 16Team 1 vs Winner of Game 1Winner plays the Game 12 winner in Game 19.
  12. Game 12Round of 16Winner of Game 2 vs Winner of Game 3Winner plays the Game 11 winner in Game 19.
  13. Game 13Round of 16Team 4 vs Winner of Game 4Winner plays the Game 14 winner in Game 20.
  14. Game 14Round of 16Team 5 vs Winner of Game 5Winner plays the Game 13 winner in Game 20.
  15. Game 15Round of 16Team 2 vs Winner of Game 6Winner plays the Game 16 winner in Game 21.
  16. Game 16Round of 16Winner of Game 7 vs Winner of Game 8Winner plays the Game 15 winner in Game 21.
  17. Game 17Round of 16Team 3 vs Winner of Game 9Winner plays the Game 18 winner in Game 22.
  18. Game 18Round of 16Team 6 vs Winner of Game 10Winner plays the Game 17 winner in Game 22.
  19. Game 19QuarterfinalsWinner of Game 11 vs Winner of Game 12Winner plays the Game 20 winner in Game 23.
  20. Game 20QuarterfinalsWinner of Game 13 vs Winner of Game 14Winner plays the Game 19 winner in Game 23.
  21. Game 21QuarterfinalsWinner of Game 15 vs Winner of Game 16Winner plays the Game 22 winner in Game 24.
  22. Game 22QuarterfinalsWinner of Game 17 vs Winner of Game 18Winner plays the Game 21 winner in Game 24.
  23. Game 23SemifinalsWinner of Game 19 vs Winner of Game 20Winner plays the Game 24 winner for the title in Game 25.
  24. Game 24SemifinalsWinner of Game 21 vs Winner of Game 22Winner plays the Game 23 winner for the title in Game 25.
  25. Game 25FinalWinner of Game 23 vs Winner of Game 24

How long it takes

Roughly how long a 26-team single elimination day runs.

About 10 hours 50 minutes. 25 games in 13 rounds of play across 2 fields.

Arithmetic, not a schedule: it ignores breaks and assumes every field stays busy. In TourneyPage you type the actual times and courts, and they show on the page.

Printable

Print it, or make it live.

26 team single elimination bracket drawn as lines, with every game numbered

The PDF is US Letter, landscape, with seed numbers on blank lines so you can write the teams in. Free, no sign-up, nothing on it but the bracket and this page's address.

Or skip the clipboard. The live version has the same bracket with the team names in, scores entered from a phone, standings that update, and the next games on top. Free to build and preview; $29 one-time to publish, for up to 32 teams per division.

Download the PDFMake this bracket live

Questions

Questions about a 26-team single elimination bracket.

How many games are in a 26 team single elimination bracket?

25: every game eliminates one team, and 26 teams need 25 eliminations to leave a champion. A third-place game, if you add one, makes it 26.

How do the byes work with 26 teams?

The bracket is drawn on a 32-team frame, so 6 first-round slots stay empty. Seeds 1–6 skip round one and start in round two. A bye isn't a win on the record; the team just plays one game fewer on the way to the title.

How many games does each team play?

At least 1: one loss and you're out. The champion plays 5 (4 with a first-round bye).

How long does a 26 team single elimination tournament take?

About 10 hours 50 minutes with 25 games at 50 minutes each on 2 fields. Change the game length and the number of fields above to match your event. TourneyPage doesn't schedule the games for you; you type the times and courts you decide on, and they show on the page.

Should I add a third-place game?

If you want a full podium, or the two semifinal losers traveled a long way to play once. It adds one game between the semifinal losers, usually played right before the final, making 26 in all. TourneyPage has it as a switch, and the bracket shows it as its own game.

Single or double elimination for 26 teams?

Single elimination is 25 games; double elimination for 26 teams is 50, plus a reset final if it's needed. Go single when the day is short or the fields are few, and double when every team should be sure of two games. Pool play into a playoff is the third option: more games per team in a set number of rounds.

Can I print this bracket or run it live?

Both. The PDF is free, with no sign-up. "Make this bracket live" opens the TourneyPage builder with single elimination already chosen for your 26 teams; you add their names, preview the page free, and pay $29 once to publish a link everyone can open on their phone.

Other sizes

Single elimination brackets for 4 to 32 teams.

← 25-team single elimination27-team single elimination →

How single elimination works · Games, rounds, and byes for every format and size

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