Aspire Guide
Every event on the Aspire platform uses one of these five draw formats. Organisers assign the draw format per event — it's always shown on the tournament page before you register.
Lose once and you're out.
Each match is a must-win. Players are seeded into a bracket and face a single opponent each round. Lose once and you're eliminated. Draws always expand to the nearest power of 2 — 8, 16, 32, 64 — with byes filling the earliest round so the bracket stays symmetrical. The round names below are defined by how many players remain: 64 left = Round of 64, 8 left = Quarter-final, 4 left = Semi-final, 2 left = Final.
Guaranteed matches
1 (just the first round if you lose early)
Best for
Deciding a clear champion quickly. Standard format for Open grade events.
Draw flow
How draw size scales with registrations
Players registered
First round
≤ 8
Quarter-final
9 – 16
Round of 16
17 – 32
Round of 32
33 – 64
Round of 64
65 – 128
Round of 128
129 – 256
Round of 256
No upper limit — the draw always grows to the next power of 2. Smaller draws skip the earlier rounds shown in the flow above.
Everyone plays everyone.
Every player in the draw faces every other player exactly once. No one is eliminated mid-tournament — the full standings are decided at the end by total wins, then game difference (games won minus games lost), then points difference. Used for smaller draws where guaranteed play time is a priority.
Guaranteed matches
N − 1 (where N = number of players in the draw)
Best for
Age-grade events, smaller draws, developmental tournaments.
Draw flow
Group stage, then knockout.
Players are split into small groups (typically 3–4 per group) and play a round-robin within the group. The top 1 or 2 finishers from each group advance to a knockout bracket. This guarantees every player at least 2 matches regardless of result — the group stage minimum — while still producing a clear elimination bracket for the final stages.
Guaranteed matches
2 (group stage minimum)
Best for
Events with 8–32 players wanting a balance of guaranteed play and competitive finals.
Draw flow
Two losses required to be eliminated.
There are two parallel brackets — a Winner Bracket and a Loser Bracket. Players start in the Winner Bracket. Lose once and you drop to the Loser Bracket but stay in the tournament. Lose again in the Loser Bracket and you're eliminated. The Winner Bracket champion and the Loser Bracket champion meet in the Grand Final.
Guaranteed matches
2 (at minimum — you must lose twice to be out)
Best for
Competitive events where a single bad match shouldn't end your tournament.
Draw flow
First-round losers get a second chance.
The main draw runs as a standard knockout bracket. Players who lose in the first round enter a separate consolation bracket and continue competing for a consolation title. Everyone else is eliminated as normal from the main draw. This gives all first-round losers at least one additional match.
Guaranteed matches
2 (for first-round losers entering the consolation draw)
Best for
Events where organisers want to maximise court time and give newer players extra match experience.
Draw flow