Brackets / Single elimination / 16 teams
16-team single elimination bracket
15 games over 4 rounds. No byes: every team plays round 1.
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The shape of a 16-team bracket
16 fills a 16-slot bracket exactly, so round 1 is a full set of 8 games, from 1 v 16 down to 6 v 11. Nobody gets a free pass, and every later round halves the field: 8, 4, 2, 1 games.
If the favourites win
That puts seed 1 against seed 4 and seed 2 against seed 3 in the semifinals.
| Seed | Opponents if favourites win (game) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 16 (G1), 8 (G9), 4 (G13), 2 (G15) |
| 2 | 15 (G5), 7 (G11), 3 (G14), 1 (G15) |
| 3 | 14 (G7), 6 (G12), 2 (G14) |
| 4 | 13 (G3), 5 (G10), 1 (G13) |
How many games each team plays
The fewest is 1, for a team that loses its first game. The most is 4. In the favourites-win run, seed 1 plays 4 and seed 16 plays 1.
How long it takes
15 games at 30 minutes is 7 h 30 min of court time. No round has more than 8 games, so extra courts beyond that sit idle.
| Courts | Clock time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 7 h 30 min |
| 2 | 4 h |
| 4 | 2 h 30 min |
Every game in order
| Game | Round | Team A | Team B |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | Round 1 | Seed 1 | Seed 16 |
| G2 | Round 1 | Seed 8 | Seed 9 |
| G3 | Round 1 | Seed 4 | Seed 13 |
| G4 | Round 1 | Seed 5 | Seed 12 |
| G5 | Round 1 | Seed 2 | Seed 15 |
| G6 | Round 1 | Seed 7 | Seed 10 |
| G7 | Round 1 | Seed 3 | Seed 14 |
| G8 | Round 1 | Seed 6 | Seed 11 |
| G9 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G1 | Winner of G2 |
| G10 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G3 | Winner of G4 |
| G11 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G5 | Winner of G6 |
| G12 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G7 | Winner of G8 |
| G13 | Semifinals | Winner of G9 | Winner of G10 |
| G14 | Semifinals | Winner of G11 | Winner of G12 |
| G15 | Final | Winner of G13 | Winner of G14 |
Questions
How many games are in a 16-team single elimination bracket?
15.
How many rounds does a 16-team single elimination bracket have?
4 rounds.
Are there byes with 16 teams?
No. 16 fills a bracket of 16 exactly.
Can I add a third-place game to a 16-team bracket?
Yes. The two semifinal losers play once more, which makes 16 games.
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