For lifecycle steps and FAQs, see the Rotation League format guide. This page covers season setup in more detail.
Rotation League
Season-long. Rotating partners. Guaranteed court time.
A Rotation League is a paid, season-long competitive format for doubles sports — most commonly pickleball — where a fixed pool of players shares a recurring weekly court block. Partners rotate every session so you compete with and against everyone in the group across the season.
The primary goal is to secure and maintain premium court time. High-level players anchor a desirable time slot each week, preventing clubs from reallocating the courts — especially during peak indoor season.
Key Numbers (standard setup)
- • 32 paid players → typically ~6 of 13 sessions each (target is configurable)
- • 4 courts per session (16 players per week)
- • 13 weeks per cycle (12 regular + 1 playoff)
- • Week 13 — top 16 players by win% compete for the season trophy
The 13-week season above is just the default. From League Schedule → Settings you shape the season to your venue: set the weekly play day, carve out off weeks, and decide which week is the playoff.
Season structure
- • Play day — the weekday the league meets (e.g. Thursdays)
- • Off weeks — skip dates like a holiday break; no matches are scheduled
- • Playoff week — give a specific week over to playoffs instead of regular play
Scoring & eligibility
- • League points for a win, draw and loss (e.g. 3 / 1 / 0)
- • Allow draws on or off per division
- • Rating band per division (e.g. under 3.5, 3.5+)
- 1Organizer opens registration — share the payment link with your player group. All participants must pay before the schedule is generated.
- 2Players pay the quarterly fee ($120–$240 depending on pool size) and immediately gain access to the app.
- 3Mark unavailability — each player designates which weeks they cannot play. The schedule algorithm reads these before generating assignments.
Before the season starts, the organizer generates weekly pool sessions from League Schedule (/events/[id]/divisions/[divisionId]/schedule). Click Settings (gear) for division, session, and match-generation options. Generate all pending weeks at once or one week at a time with roster preview.
League schedule settings
- • Target sessions per player — Automatic (recommended) or fixed (e.g. 6)
- • Automatic formula: regular weeks × players per session ÷ paid roster (12 × 16 ÷ 32 = 6)
- • Also under Tournament Settings → Rotation League; click Save schedule settings on League Schedule
How the algorithm works
- • Reads each player's unavailability for each week
- • Balances session counts toward your target — players below target are prioritized
- • Assigns four players per doubles court (partners 1+2 vs 3+4); shuffles when mix partners is on
- • Optional court cap: session duration ÷ minutes per match
What players see
- • Each generated week becomes a pool session with court assignments
- • Assigned weeks on My Schedule and the division scoreboard
- • Sub drop/claim emails notify paid members when someone posts an open spot
Every league page has two separate views in the header navigation — Season Schedule and Standings — so players jump straight to the weekly fixtures or the season table.
- • Schedule — each week's fixtures and court assignments, week by week
- • Standings — the running table (played, wins, draws, losses, league points, points for/against, differential)
- • Progression — how each team's league points move up and down across the weeks
?section=schedule and ?section=standings). Off weeks and the playoff week are labelled in the season view.The substitution system is fully automated and self-managed by players. There are zero non-paying subs — all substitutes come from the pool of 32 paid members.
Dropping a session
- 1. Go to Open Spots on the division page
- 2. Select the session you can't make
- 3. Add an optional reason
- 4. Tap Post Drop Request
- → All 32 paid members are emailed instantly
Claiming an open spot
- 1. Receive email notification of an open spot
- 2. Tap Claim This Spot in the email or app
- 3. First paid player to claim wins the spot
- 4. Court assignments update automatically
- → No organizer action required
The 13th week is not a regular session. It is the season playoff: the top 16 players by individual win percentage from the regular season compete in a single session.
Playoff Rules
- • Seeding is determined by win percentage across all regular-season matches
- • Exactly 16 players participate — players ranked 17–32 do not play
- • Same rotating partner format as regular sessions
- • The winning team of 8 is crowned season champion
- • Results are recorded permanently in the season standings
Every regular-season match matters. A single win or loss can shift your ranking — and your playoff eligibility.
At the end of each 3-month cycle, the top 3 players are displayed with 🥇🥈🥉 medals on the division dashboard. The season champion's name is recorded in the permanent standings.
To start a new cycle, the organizer creates a fresh division, re-opens registration, and players re-submit their availability for the new 13-week block. Past cycle history is preserved.