Brackets / Single elimination / 28 teams
28-team single elimination bracket
27 games over 5 rounds. Seed 1, seed 2, seed 3 and seed 4 get a bye into round 2.
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The shape of a 28-team bracket
28 teams in a 32-slot bracket leave 4 byes, for seeds 1 to 4. The other 24 teams play 12 round-1 games, from 16 v 17 down to 11 v 22. After round 1, 16 teams are left and the bracket is full from there.
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 | bye, then 16 (G13), 8 (G21), 4 (G25), 2 (G27) |
| 2 | bye, then 15 (G17), 7 (G23), 3 (G26), 1 (G27) |
| 3 | bye, then 14 (G19), 6 (G24), 2 (G26) |
| 4 | bye, then 13 (G15), 5 (G22), 1 (G25) |
How many games each team plays
The fewest is 1, for a team that loses its first game, which for a bye team is its round-2 game. The most is 5, and 4 for a champion that had a bye. In the favourites-win run, seed 1 plays 4 and seed 28 plays 1.
How long it takes
27 games at 30 minutes is 13 h 30 min of court time. No round has more than 12 games, so extra courts beyond that sit idle.
| Courts | Clock time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 13 h 30 min |
| 2 | 7 h |
| 4 | 4 h |
Every game in order
| Game | Round | Team A | Team B |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | Round 1 | Seed 16 | Seed 17 |
| G2 | Round 1 | Seed 8 | Seed 25 |
| G3 | Round 1 | Seed 9 | Seed 24 |
| G4 | Round 1 | Seed 13 | Seed 20 |
| G5 | Round 1 | Seed 5 | Seed 28 |
| G6 | Round 1 | Seed 12 | Seed 21 |
| G7 | Round 1 | Seed 15 | Seed 18 |
| G8 | Round 1 | Seed 7 | Seed 26 |
| G9 | Round 1 | Seed 10 | Seed 23 |
| G10 | Round 1 | Seed 14 | Seed 19 |
| G11 | Round 1 | Seed 6 | Seed 27 |
| G12 | Round 1 | Seed 11 | Seed 22 |
| G13 | Round 2 | Seed 1 | Winner of G1 |
| G14 | Round 2 | Winner of G2 | Winner of G3 |
| G15 | Round 2 | Seed 4 | Winner of G4 |
| G16 | Round 2 | Winner of G5 | Winner of G6 |
| G17 | Round 2 | Seed 2 | Winner of G7 |
| G18 | Round 2 | Winner of G8 | Winner of G9 |
| G19 | Round 2 | Seed 3 | Winner of G10 |
| G20 | Round 2 | Winner of G11 | Winner of G12 |
| G21 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G13 | Winner of G14 |
| G22 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G15 | Winner of G16 |
| G23 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G17 | Winner of G18 |
| G24 | Quarterfinals | Winner of G19 | Winner of G20 |
| G25 | Semifinals | Winner of G21 | Winner of G22 |
| G26 | Semifinals | Winner of G23 | Winner of G24 |
| G27 | Final | Winner of G25 | Winner of G26 |
Questions
How many games are in a 28-team single elimination bracket?
27.
How many rounds does a 28-team single elimination bracket have?
5 rounds.
Who gets the byes with 28 teams?
Seed 1, Seed 2, Seed 3 and Seed 4. They start in round 2.
Can I add a third-place game to a 28-team bracket?
Yes. The two semifinal losers play once more, which makes 28 games.
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