How does a tournament work once it starts?

Format: knockout

Galaxy's online tournaments are knockout events. You play one match per round. Win and you go through to the next round. Lose and you're out. The last player standing wins the tournament.

• The draw is random. Players are shuffled into the bracket when the tournament starts.
• If the number of players doesn't fill the bracket evenly, some players get a bye in the first round and go straight through to round two.
• Each match is played to the length shown on the tournament (for example "7 pts") with the tournament's clock setting.
• You can follow the whole draw on the Brackets tab.

When will my match start?

You don't need to create or accept a match. Tournament matches start automatically.

1. When your match is ready, you'll get a notification: "Tournament Match Ready – Your tournament match is about to begin!"
2. The banner at the top of the app shows "Your [name] match is ongoing, click here to play!" Tap it, or tap Play / Resume Active Game on the tournament page, to go to your board.
3. There's a short countdown before the first roll, and then the game begins, whether or not you're at the board.

Between rounds the banner reads "Your next [name] match will be ready soon!" Your next match starts as soon as your next opponent is known.

If you win the whole event you'll see: "Congratulations you won the tournament [name]!"

What if I miss my match or get disconnected?

Your match clock keeps running while you're away. If your time runs out, you lose the match and you're out of the tournament. Tournament matches are not paused or cancelled because a player is missing.

If you get disconnected, reopen the app or website as quickly as you can and go back to the match from the banner or Resume Active Game. You'll be back in the same match.

If you were knocked out because the game froze or got stuck, contact support with the match ID and we'll check the match record. See My game froze or I lost on time because of a glitch. Can I get my coins or rating back?

Tip: make sure you're online and ready at the start time, and turn on notifications for Backgammon Galaxy.

What if not enough players sign up?

A tournament needs at least two players. If fewer register, the tournament is cancelled and everyone registered gets their full entry cost back in coins.

Are there ties?

No. Every match has a winner, and the loser is knocked out, so there are no tie-breaks in the bracket. Players knocked out in the same round share the same finishing place (for example, both losing semi-finalists finish 3rd–4th).

Still stuck? Contact our support team from Support in the menu and we'll be happy to help. If you think a match ended unfairly, include the tournament name, the match ID if you have it, and roughly when it happened.