How do I organize a local tournament in my community?

Start by choosing tournament management software like Brakto, which offers free community features. Set up your tournament format, create registration, and share with your local community through social media and community boards.

What is the best free tournament software for small communities?

Brakto offers the most comprehensive free tier for community tournaments: up to 16 players for the entire event, with bracket management, email notifications, and scheduling at no cost.

Can I use tournament software for school sports?

Yes, Brakto offers specialized features for schools including student-safe registration, parent communication tools, academic calendar integration, and educational pricing discounts for schools and non-profits.

How much does local tournament management software cost?

Brakto Free covers small offline tournaments: up to 16 players tournament-wide with CSV/manual import (no online registration). Online registration uses Event plans by number of players: $79 (≤64), $149 (65–128), $249 (129–256), $549 (257–600); Club is $790/year billed annually. Standard payment processing fees apply on online payments — no Brakto per-player platform fee. Voting contests are free up to 16 entries. Legacy grandfathered events may use older pricing.

What sports can I manage with tournament software?

Brakto supports all major sports including tennis, pickleball, basketball, soccer, volleyball, and more. The platform includes sport-specific rules, scoring systems, and tournament formats.

Event Format Guide

Explore all 8 available event formats (7 tournament/league formats + 1 voting contest). Select a format below to see the complete lifecycle.

Pool Play

Group stage → playoff bracket

What is Pool Play?

Teams split into small round-robin pools, then top finishers from each pool advance to a single-elimination playoff. Guaranteed games for everyone, then knockout competition.

Complete Lifecycle

Create tournament and configure pools

RegistrationStep 1 of 6

Organizer

1Create tournament, enable Pool Play format
2Set pool size (4–6 teams) and number of teams advancing per pool
3Open registration and collect teams

Player

1Register for the tournament
2Understand the format: round robin within your pool, then single elimination playoffs

Key Characteristics

Two stages: pool round robin + playoff bracket
All teams guaranteed minimum pool matches
Pool standings determine playoff seeding
Scales to very large tournaments (16–128 teams)

Perfect For

Large tournaments with 16–128 teams
Full-day or weekend events
Venues with multiple courts or fields
Skill-based divisions with cross-pool playoffs

Technical Details

Advancement and playoff seeding

·Example: 4 pools of 4 teams → top 2 each → 8-team playoff
·Pool 1st seeds are distributed across the bracket to avoid immediate rematches
·Within-pool tiebreakers: win%, point differential, H2H, total points

Uneven pool sizes

·With e.g. 17 teams in 4 pools, some pools have 5 and others have 4
·Brakto handles this automatically when generating pools
·Cross-pool tiebreakers for playoff seeding use total tournament point differential

FAQs

Team advancing from the wrong pool position

·Check that all pool scores are entered correctly
·Tiebreakers apply automatically; you can manually adjust pool position in admin
·Advancement recalculates whenever scores change

Pools are unbalanced in skill level

·Use seeded pool generation (based on team rating) for balanced pools
·Manual pool assignment also available — drag teams between pools

Wrong number of teams advanced to playoffs

·Check the "Teams Advancing Per Pool" setting in division settings
·Change the setting before finalizing pool play

Ready to run your Pool Play event?

Create your tournament on Brakto, or see the full dedicated guide for this format.

Related guides

More from the Help Center — setup, formats, clubs, and tournament day

Event Format GuideAll 8 formats — lifecycle steps, technical details, and FAQs Single EliminationKnockout brackets Clubs: create, privacy, members-onlyPublic vs private clubs, invites, branding, and members-only events Organizer GuidePayments, divisions, and day-to-day admin Player GuideRegistration, matches, and standings Getting StartedCore concepts for new organizers Quick Start — OrganizerSet up a tournament in about 5 minutes Registration & Check-InOnline signup and QR check-in Score Entry & PIN ScoringPlayer self-scoring on tournament day Help FAQAccount, payments, and platform questions

All help articles

Event Format Guide

Explore all 8 available event formats (7 tournament/league formats + 1 voting contest). Select a format below to see the complete lifecycle.

Pool Play

Group stage → playoff bracket

What is Pool Play?

Teams split into small round-robin pools, then top finishers from each pool advance to a single-elimination playoff. Guaranteed games for everyone, then knockout competition.

Complete Lifecycle

Create tournament and configure pools

RegistrationStep 1 of 6

Organizer

1Create tournament, enable Pool Play format
2Set pool size (4–6 teams) and number of teams advancing per pool
3Open registration and collect teams

Player

1Register for the tournament
2Understand the format: round robin within your pool, then single elimination playoffs

Key Characteristics

Two stages: pool round robin + playoff bracket
All teams guaranteed minimum pool matches
Pool standings determine playoff seeding
Scales to very large tournaments (16–128 teams)

Perfect For

Large tournaments with 16–128 teams
Full-day or weekend events
Venues with multiple courts or fields
Skill-based divisions with cross-pool playoffs

Technical Details

Advancement and playoff seeding

·Example: 4 pools of 4 teams → top 2 each → 8-team playoff
·Pool 1st seeds are distributed across the bracket to avoid immediate rematches
·Within-pool tiebreakers: win%, point differential, H2H, total points

Uneven pool sizes

·With e.g. 17 teams in 4 pools, some pools have 5 and others have 4
·Brakto handles this automatically when generating pools
·Cross-pool tiebreakers for playoff seeding use total tournament point differential

FAQs

Team advancing from the wrong pool position

·Check that all pool scores are entered correctly
·Tiebreakers apply automatically; you can manually adjust pool position in admin
·Advancement recalculates whenever scores change

Pools are unbalanced in skill level

·Use seeded pool generation (based on team rating) for balanced pools
·Manual pool assignment also available — drag teams between pools

Wrong number of teams advanced to playoffs

·Check the "Teams Advancing Per Pool" setting in division settings
·Change the setting before finalizing pool play

Ready to run your Pool Play event?

Create your tournament on Brakto, or see the full dedicated guide for this format.

Event Format Guide

Explore all 8 available event formats (7 tournament/league formats + 1 voting contest). Select a format below to see the complete lifecycle.

Pool Play

Group stage → playoff bracket

What is Pool Play?

Teams split into small round-robin pools, then top finishers from each pool advance to a single-elimination playoff. Guaranteed games for everyone, then knockout competition.

Complete Lifecycle

Create tournament and configure pools

RegistrationStep 1 of 6

Organizer

1Create tournament, enable Pool Play format
2Set pool size (4–6 teams) and number of teams advancing per pool
3Open registration and collect teams

Player

1Register for the tournament
2Understand the format: round robin within your pool, then single elimination playoffs

Key Characteristics

Two stages: pool round robin + playoff bracket
All teams guaranteed minimum pool matches
Pool standings determine playoff seeding
Scales to very large tournaments (16–128 teams)

Perfect For

Large tournaments with 16–128 teams
Full-day or weekend events
Venues with multiple courts or fields
Skill-based divisions with cross-pool playoffs

Technical Details

Advancement and playoff seeding

·Example: 4 pools of 4 teams → top 2 each → 8-team playoff
·Pool 1st seeds are distributed across the bracket to avoid immediate rematches
·Within-pool tiebreakers: win%, point differential, H2H, total points

Uneven pool sizes

·With e.g. 17 teams in 4 pools, some pools have 5 and others have 4
·Brakto handles this automatically when generating pools
·Cross-pool tiebreakers for playoff seeding use total tournament point differential

FAQs

Team advancing from the wrong pool position

·Check that all pool scores are entered correctly
·Tiebreakers apply automatically; you can manually adjust pool position in admin
·Advancement recalculates whenever scores change

Pools are unbalanced in skill level

·Use seeded pool generation (based on team rating) for balanced pools
·Manual pool assignment also available — drag teams between pools

Wrong number of teams advanced to playoffs

·Check the "Teams Advancing Per Pool" setting in division settings
·Change the setting before finalizing pool play

Ready to run your Pool Play event?

Create your tournament on Brakto, or see the full dedicated guide for this format.

Double Elimination Tournament Format Guide | Brakto