Playoffs are a critical point in the season where we celebrate the top teams in each league and watch as they face off to determine who will take home the title of season champion!
Forfeits
In order to qualify for playoffs, teams must compete in or be present for a minimum of 5 regular season matches. Teams with missing results and/or forfeits in more than 2 matches will be disqualified from the playoffs.
How playoff brackets are determined
The number of teams that qualify for playoffs is based on the total number of teams enrolled in a particular league. As a result, larger leagues will have larger playoff brackets. In order to keep playoffs competitive, we allow, at most, the top 50% of the enrolled teams in a league.
# of Teams Enrolled | # Teams in Playoffs | Total Rounds including Championships
(Days of Play) |
16 - 31 | Top 8 | 3 |
32 - 63 | Top 16 | 4 |
64 - 127 | Top 32 | 5 |
128+ | Top 64 | 6 |
As you can see, playoff brackets are either 8, 16, 32, or 64 teams. In the event that team counts do not align perfectly with bracket sizes, the team count is rounded down to the nearest bracket.
Example: A league that has 34 teams will have 17 teams in the top half of the standings. From there, we use a 16 team bracket for the playoffs. This allows us to keep playoffs competitive for eligible teams and ensure consistency across each league.
To get a sense for how many rounds your league may have during playoffs you can view team enrollment on the League Page in the PlayVS application by clicking Explore > League.
Important: Bracket sizes are determined for leagues based on the amount of teams that are enrolled at the end of a league’s late enrollment period.
How playoffs scheduling works
Since the number of rounds during Playoffs is based on the total enrolled teams with a maximum of 5 rounds and 64 teams participating, playoffs can run for 2 weeks with up to 3 rounds per week. Smaller leagues begin playoffs later while larger leagues will begin sooner.
Bracket size | Week 1 | Week 2 | Championships |
Top 8 | No matches | 2 Rounds (8 > 4 > 2) | 1 Round (2 teams) |
Top 16 | 1 round (16>8) | 2 Rounds (8 > 4 > 2) | 1 Round (2 teams) |
Top 32 | 2 Rounds
(32 > 16 > 8) | 2 Rounds (8 > 4 > 2) | 1 Round (2 teams) |
Top 64 | 3 Rounds (64 > 32 > 16 > 8) | 2 Rounds (8 > 4 > 2) | 1 Round (2 teams) |
Championships
Playoffs culminate in one Championship round. Championship dates are announced on Week 7 of the current season.
For State leagues (High School), your State may have specific rules around scholastic championships that can impact the format and timing for playoffs.
For State leagues (High School), your State may have specific rules around scholastic championships that can impact the format and timing for playoffs.
Example: Some states may have semi-finals and finals played the same day at a physical venue.
Restrictions and Bracket Adjustments
Only a maximum two (2) eligible teams per school can make playoffs. If both teams from the same school make it to the Semi-Finals in the Playoff bracket, they will be paired up against one another regardless of which side of the bracket they are currently on. The Playoff bracket will be adjusted accordingly before the Semi-Finals match day without affecting the match day schedule.
Single player esport titles, such as Madden and NBA 2K, will have a maximum of four (4) eligible teams per school that can make playoffs. The playoff bracket will not be adjusted to ensure teams from the same school face one another before finals.