Here is a free printable 16-team bracket, seeded and ready to fill in. A single elimination tournament for 16 teams has 15 games in 4 rounds and no byes. Need a second chance for every team? Switch the generator to double elimination: 30 games, or 31 if the final needs a reset.
Type your team names below to fill in the bracket, tap the winners as games finish, then print it, save it as a PDF or save it online to get a live link for players.
16-team bracket: first round matchups
16 is a power of two, so the bracket is full: no byes, and every team plays in round 1. The 8 first-round games are:
| Game | Matchup |
|---|---|
| 1 | Seed 1 vs Seed 16 |
| 2 | Seed 8 vs Seed 9 |
| 3 | Seed 4 vs Seed 13 |
| 4 | Seed 5 vs Seed 12 |
| 5 | Seed 2 vs Seed 15 |
| 6 | Seed 7 vs Seed 10 |
| 7 | Seed 3 vs Seed 14 |
| 8 | Seed 6 vs Seed 11 |
The 16-team bracket
Sixteen teams fill the bracket perfectly: a round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and the final, 15 games in four rounds, with no byes. It is the classic size for school tournaments, club championships and the knockout stage of big events.
- Courts and time: with eight courts, the first round runs at once and the whole event takes four slots. With four courts, plan for five slots.
- Double elimination: 30 or 31 games, a full day for cornhole, darts or softball tournaments.
- Consolation bracket: first-round losers can play their own 8-team bracket so everyone gets at least two games.
- From pools: four pools of four, with the top two going into an 8-team bracket, is a popular alternative.
Full 16-team single elimination bracket
Every game in order, numbered the same way as the bracket above, so you can call “Game 1 on court 1” and everyone knows who plays.
Round 1
- Game 1: Seed 1 vs Seed 16
- Game 2: Seed 8 vs Seed 9
- Game 3: Seed 4 vs Seed 13
- Game 4: Seed 5 vs Seed 12
- Game 5: Seed 2 vs Seed 15
- Game 6: Seed 7 vs Seed 10
- Game 7: Seed 3 vs Seed 14
- Game 8: Seed 6 vs Seed 11
Quarterfinals
- Game 9: Winner of Game 1 vs Winner of Game 2
- Game 10: Winner of Game 3 vs Winner of Game 4
- Game 11: Winner of Game 5 vs Winner of Game 6
- Game 12: Winner of Game 7 vs Winner of Game 8
Semifinals
- Game 13: Winner of Game 9 vs Winner of Game 10
- Game 14: Winner of Game 11 vs Winner of Game 12
Final
- Game 15: Winner of Game 13 vs Winner of Game 14
The winner of Game 15 is the champion.
How to make a bracket with 16 teams
- Rank the teams 1 to 16 (by record, rating or a random draw).
- Pair the rest so the strongest meets the weakest: 1 vs 16, 8 vs 9, 4 vs 13, 5 vs 12. and so on
- Advance each winner along the bracket until one team is left: 15 games in total.
Double elimination: 30 games, or 31 if the final needs a reset.
How long does a 16-team tournament take?
With 30-minute games, a single elimination tournament takes about 7 h 30 min on one court, 4 h 00 min on two courts and 2 h 30 min on four courts. Double elimination roughly doubles those times.
Other bracket sizes: 8 teams · 10 teams · 12 teams · 32 teams · or any size with the tournament bracket generator.
FAQ
How many games are in a 16-team bracket?
15 in single elimination (every game knocks out one team) and 30 or 31 in double elimination.
How many byes are in a 16-team bracket?
None. 16 is a power of two, so the bracket is full.