Here is a free printable 6-team bracket, seeded and ready to fill in. A single elimination tournament for 6 teams has 5 games in 3 rounds, with 2 byes for the top seeds. Need a second chance for every team? Switch the generator to double elimination: 10 games, or 11 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.
6-team bracket: first round matchups
A 6-team bracket fills an 8-slot draw, so 2 teams skip round 1. Byes go to the top seeds: seed 1, seed 2. Round 1 has 2 games:
| Game | Matchup |
|---|---|
| 1 | Seed 4 vs Seed 5 |
| 2 | Seed 3 vs Seed 6 |
Six-team bracket options
Six teams is one of the most searched bracket sizes because so many leagues and tournaments end up with it. In a 6-team single elimination bracket, seeds 1 and 2 get byes into the semifinals and seeds 3–6 play two quarterfinals. Five games decide the champion.
- League playoffs: top two seeds rest during the first round, a reward for the regular season.
- One-day tournaments: every team should play twice, so double elimination (10 or 11 games) or two pools of three followed by a final work better.
- Re-seeding: some leagues re-seed after round one so the No. 1 seed always faces the lowest remaining seed. If you do this, enter the semifinal teams in a fresh 4-team bracket.
With two fields, a 6-team single elimination bracket takes three time slots: two quarterfinals, two semifinals, then the final.
Full 6-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.
Quarterfinals
- Game 1: Seed 4 vs Seed 5
- Game 2: Seed 3 vs Seed 6
Semifinals
- Game 3: Seed 1 vs Winner of Game 1
- Game 4: Seed 2 vs Winner of Game 2
Final
- Game 5: Winner of Game 3 vs Winner of Game 4
The winner of Game 5 is the champion.
How to make a bracket with 6 teams
- Rank the teams 1 to 6 (by record, rating or a random draw).
- Give the top 2 seeds a bye into round 2.
- Pair the rest so the strongest meets the weakest: 4 vs 5, 3 vs 6.
- Advance each winner along the bracket until one team is left: 5 games in total.
Double elimination: 10 games, or 11 if the final needs a reset.
How long does a 6-team tournament take?
With 30-minute games, a single elimination tournament takes about 2 h 30 min on one court and 1 h 30 min on two courts. Double elimination roughly doubles those times.
Other bracket sizes: 4 teams · 5 teams · 7 teams · 8 teams · 10 teams · or any size with the tournament bracket generator. Everyone plays everyone? See the 6-team round robin.
FAQ
How many games are in a 6-team bracket?
5 in single elimination (every game knocks out one team) and 10 or 11 in double elimination.
How many byes are in a 6-team bracket?
2. The bracket has 8 slots, so the top 2 seeds advance straight to round 2.