Can I take teams from other organisers’ tournaments?

No, not at the moment. You can only choose your own tournaments as qualifying tournaments, including ones that have already ended.

What happens if I correct a result in the qualifying tournament?

If the correction changes who qualifies, the team in the follow-up tournament is swapped automatically. This applies until the first result for that team has been entered in the follow-up tournament. After that the place stays fixed: you see a notice and can replace the team yourself if needed.

Can I take over only some places and fill the rest myself?

Yes. You enter places without a qualifying source yourself or open them for registration.

Can one qualifying tournament feed several follow-up tournaments?

Yes. For example, the top two can go to the gold round and the third- and fourth-placed teams to the silver round. Each position can only be assigned once, though.

Which tournament modes are supported?

Group stage + KO phase, only KO phase and only group stage – as qualifying and as follow-up tournament, in any combination. Leagues and Funino tournaments cannot be connected.

What happens if a qualified team withdraws?

Choose “Team withdraws” for that team. Free-Tournament suggests the next-placed team from the same ranking as a replacement, for example the third of the group for the runner-up. You can also enter another team or leave the place empty.

Yes, follow-up tournaments are a Premium feature. You can create your qualifying tournaments without Premium. If your Premium ends, teams already taken over stay in the follow-up tournament; the automatic takeover pauses until you renew.

Tournament series

Create a tournament series: connect multiple tournaments

Follow-up tournaments with automatic qualification – from the qualifying rounds to the final.

Premium

Create tournament series How it works

Tournament series are a Premium feature. You can still create single tournaments for free.

At a glance

Plan aheadSet up all tournaments at once. The places in the follow-up tournament wait for their teams.
Teams advance automaticallyQualified teams move into the follow-up tournament without retyping, even after a result is corrected.
Linked both waysQualifying and follow-up tournaments point to each other, and the whole tournament series shares one overview.

Examples of tournament series

Three typical set-ups. The numbers are only examples – you decide them for each tournament.

Nationwide tournament series in England

16 city tournaments, places 1–2 of each advance. England North and South with 16 teams each, places 1–4 of each go to the final with 8 teams.

Gold and silver round from one qualifier

One qualifying tournament with 16 teams in four groups feeds two follow-up tournaments: the top two of each group the gold round, the third and fourth the silver round.

Yorkshire final with mixed modes

Each qualifying tournament plays in its own mode. You take over the positions that mode offers: group places, final placings or winners of a knockout match.

When does a tournament series make sense?

Whenever teams qualify in one tournament for another.

Tournament series with qualifiers in several cities

Qualifiers in many cities, then regional tournaments such as England North and South, and finally one shared final.

Gold and silver round

The winners and runners-up of each group play in the gold round, the third- and fourth-placed teams in the silver round.

Several qualifiers, several final tournaments

The best teams from two qualifying tournaments go to the first final tournament, the next-placed teams to the second.

City and district championships, youth cups, indoor masters

Qualifying in the morning or over several weekends, then the final round with the best teams.

Step by step: how to connect your tournaments

This is how it works in Free-Tournament. You can plan everything before the first match kicks off.

Create the tournament series
Choose “Create tournament series”, give the series a name and add the stages, e.g. “Qualifiers” and “Final”. Click “Create” to save it – even before it has any tournaments.
Add tournaments
With “Add tournament” you put an existing tournament into any stage or choose “Create new tournament” – in the mode group stage + KO phase, only KO phase or only group stage. Alternatively, in “Create tournament” choose the “Advanced” option and tick “Follow-up tournament: take teams from my qualifying tournaments” on the “Tournament” tab.
Connect the places
On the “Teams” tab of a tournament in a later stage, choose the “Qualifying tournament” for each place and the position in the “Choose position” dialog, e.g. “1. Group A” or “Place 1”.
Several places at once
With “Several places at once” you take over whole rankings in one step, e.g. all group winners and runners-up, and can “Distribute by origin” if you like. Positions already used by another tournament are locked. You enter the remaining places yourself or open them for registration.
Play the qualifying tournaments
Enter the results of the qualifying tournaments live, just as you always do.
Teams arrive automatically
As soon as a position is decided, the team appears in the follow-up tournament – a group place, for example, once all matches in that group have been played. If you correct a result, the teams are swapped automatically until the team has its first result in the follow-up tournament.
Notify the teams and start
Let the qualified teams know by email with “Notify qualified teams” and start the follow-up tournament.

Which places can I take over?

The positions a qualifying tournament offers depend on its mode.

Position	Group stage + KO phase	Only KO phase	Only group stage
Group placee.g. “1. Group A”	Yes	No	Yes
Best next-placed teamse.g. “Best team in position 3”	from two groups	No	from two groups
Final placinge.g. “Place 1”	places decided by a match	places decided by a match	only with one group
Winner or loser of a knockout matche.g. “Winner semi-final 1”	Yes	Yes	No

Each position can only be assigned once. A qualifying tournament can, however, feed several follow-up tournaments.

Your benefits

Automatic

No copying standings or team names: teams move on to the next round by themselves.

Live

The team appears in the follow-up tournament right after the deciding result and is visible on the public tournament page straight away.

Works with every mode

Group stage, KO phase or both: qualifying and follow-up tournaments can be connected in any combination.

Linked both ways

The follow-up tournament shows its qualifying tournaments, and the qualifying tournament shows what comes next. On top, there is one overview of the whole tournament series.

Notify at the push of a button

With one click, all qualified teams with a contact email learn that they are through.

Frequently asked questions

Create your tournament series now

Set up your qualifying tournaments and connect them to the follow-up tournament. Qualification then runs by itself.

PremiumTournament series are a Premium feature. You can still create single tournaments for free.

See Premium and pricing

Create tournament series