Random matchup generator and knockout draw
This random matchup generator makes the draw for your tournament in one tap: paste the teams or players, draw, and see who faces whom. In bracket mode the tool sets up the whole knockout – with byes when the numbers do not fit – and the link you send to the group shows everyone the same draw.
Source: W3C Recommendation, W3C Web Cryptography API – getRandomValues(). Updated: .
How it is calculated
The random matchup generator shuffles your entrants and pairs them in the order drawn; in bracket mode it places them in a knockout draw with byes. Everyone who opens the shared link sees exactly the same draw.
How to draw random matchups
- Paste the teams or players, one per line.
- Choose the type: matchups for one round or knockout bracket.
- Press Draw matchups. The result appears numbered just below.
- Use Send via WhatsApp or Copy result: the message carries the games and a link that opens this very draw.
Matchups for one round
The names are shuffled and paired as they come out: first against second, third against fourth. With 8 teams you get 4 matchups. If the number is odd, the last one drawn sits out: 7 teams give 3 games and 1 team without a game. Useful for a round of the club ladder, a pool night, a school sports day or deciding who plays whom on the console.
Knockout bracket: how byes work
In a knockout the loser is out. For the bracket to reach the final cleanly, the number of places has to be a power of two: 4, 8, 16, 32 or 64. When the entrants do not fill it, some receive a bye and go straight to the next round. The tool gives the byes to the first names drawn and spreads them across the bracket so that they do not all land on one side.
| Entrants | Bracket | Byes | Games in round 1 | Games in total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 6 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 8 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| 10 | 16 | 6 | 2 | 9 |
| 12 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 11 |
| 13 | 16 | 3 | 5 | 12 |
| 16 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 15 |
| 32 | 32 | 0 | 16 | 31 |
Look at the last column: a knockout always has one game fewer than entrants, because each game eliminates exactly one. With 13 teams that is 12 games, byes or not.
How to read the bracket
The table lists the positions from top to bottom. Positions 1 and 2 meet in the next round, 3 and 4, and so on down to the final. An entrant shown with “bye” is already in the next round and waits for an opponent.
A clean draw everyone sees the same way
The shuffle uses the browser’s secure random number generator and the Fisher–Yates algorithm: every possible order is equally likely. Nothing is sent to a server. The result is written into the link, so nobody has to trust a screenshot. If the list changes afterwards, the page says so and asks for a new draw.
Looking for something else? The random team generator splits people into teams, the random partner generator forms pairs, and the tournament bracket generator builds a round-robin schedule. For the games themselves there are the futsal scoreboard and the basketball scoreboard.
Frequently asked questions
How do I generate random matchups?
Paste the teams, one per line, and press “Draw matchups”. The names are shuffled and paired: the first drawn plays the second, the third plays the fourth, and so on.
What if the number of teams is odd?
In matchups for one round, the last team drawn sits out. In the knockout bracket, some entrants get a bye into the next round until the bracket closes at 4, 8, 16, 32 or 64 places.
How many games does a knockout have?
Always one fewer than entrants, because each game eliminates one. 8 teams need 7 games; 13 need 12; 16 need 15.
What does the bracket look like with 6 teams?
It has 8 places: 2 teams get a bye into the semi-finals and the other 4 play 2 games in the first round. In total there are 5 games.
Can the draw be rigged?
There is no way to choose the outcome: the order is shuffled in your browser with a secure random generator and every order is equally likely. The link shows exactly the draw that came out.
Are the names I type sent anywhere?
No. The draw happens on your device. In the shared link the names travel in the part after the #, which the browser does not send to the server.
Can I repeat the draw?
Yes, as often as you like with “Draw again”. Each draw creates a new link; the old link keeps showing the old result.
How many teams can take part?
Up to 200 names for matchups of one round and up to 64 for the knockout bracket.
Sources and legal basis
- W3C Recommendation: W3C Web Cryptography API – getRandomValues()
- MDN Web Docs – Crypto.getRandomValues()
- Wikipedia – Fisher–Yates shuffle (Durstenfeld variant, 1964): every order is equally likely
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