Tournament Format
The Gandaberunda Trophy is a year-round, data-driven ecosystem: thirty-one districts, three zonal battlegrounds, and a twelve-team grand state finale in November 2026.
Qualification path
How qualification flows
Tap any step to see how districts become twelve teams at the November finale.
Thirty-one districts enter three zonal events. Each zone qualifies four teams for the November Gandaberunda Trophy: the knockout winner, runner-up, third-place match winner, and one fan favourite chosen from the five other quarter-finalists.
Bracket play crowns the two finalists and decides the third-place match. Those match outcomes—not league rank alone—produce the three direct state berths.
Eight teams make the quarter-finals. Remove the three direct qualifiers; exactly five teams remain in the pool.
Fans vote once across that pool of five. The top vote-getter becomes the fourth qualifier from the zone.
Together with the three knockout qualifiers, this completes four teams per zone.
Four qualifiers × three zones = twelve teams at the statewide championship.
- 31 districts
- 3 zones
- 4 per zone
- 12 teams
Same path in every zone
Swipe the path · tap a step to highlight
North Zone bracket
From league pools to the knockouts
Ten teams play two pool round-robins. The top four from each pool become seeds A1–A4 and B1–B4, then face cross-pool quarter-finals. Hover or focus a box to trace paths; tap again to lock on touch screens.
Swipe sideways to explore the full diagram.
Hover, focus, or tap any stage to highlight how it connects.
Qualification pathway
From districts to the twelve-team finale
Each zonal tournament is a three-day sprint with a full bracket. Three direct tickets go to the winner, runner-up, and third-place match winner. A fan favourite vote among the five other quarter-finalists awards the fourth ticket. Four teams × three zones = twelve in the November Gandaberunda Trophy.
Step 01
District foundation
All thirty-one districts of Karnataka feed the competitive identity of the trophy.
Step 02
Three zones
North, Central, and South host intense qualification weekends. North opens first in Belagavi (May 1–3, 2026) with ten teams and twenty-eight matches.
Step 03
Four tickets per zone
Match results crown the winner, runner-up, and third-place match winner as the three direct qualifiers. The fan favourite poll then decides which of the five remaining quarter-finalists takes the fourth berth.
Step 04
Grand state finale
Twelve teams meet for the statewide championship in November 2026.
Player care
Best-of-three knockouts
On the final zonal day, knockout rounds use a best-of-three innovation to deepen strategy and improve player safety.
North Zone stakes
Belagavi opens the statewide tempo
Harugeri hosts May 1–3, 2026 with ten districts. Bracket results deliver the winner, runner-up, and third-place match winner to the November finale; the fan favourite vote fills the fourth zonal berth from the remaining quarter-finalists.
More to explore