Round robin chess pairing table generator
Make a round robin chess pairing table in seconds: enter the number of players or their names, choose a single or double round robin, and get every round, board and colour from the FIDE Berger tables. Free, without an account, and nothing you type is stored.
Round robin table generator
How a round robin schedule works
In a round robin everyone plays everyone: once in a single round robin, twice in a double one. With an even number of players there is one round fewer than players, each with half of them on the boards: 8 players play 7 rounds of 4 games. With an odd number every player sits out once, so there are as many rounds as players.
The player with the most points wins. Equal scores are separated by tie-breaks such as direct encounter, Sonneborn-Berger, the number of wins and Koya; Buchholz-type tie-breaks are not used, since everyone has the same opponents.
The Berger tables
FIDE publishes the round robin schedule as the Berger tables (FIDE Handbook C.05 Annex 1). The players get their start numbers by drawing lots, and the table says who plays whom in every round, with which colour.
- The highest number plays on board 1 and changes colour every round.
- The other numbers move round a circle, and every player gets White in about half of their games.
- The FIDE Handbook prints the tables for up to 16 players; for 17 to 20 players the generator above continues the same rotation.
An odd number of players
The table for the next even number is used, and its highest number counts as a bye: whoever is paired with it has the free round. With 5 players the 6-player table is used, and each round one player rests. In round robin tournaments on ChessLivo a free round is worth 0 points.
Double round robin
A double round robin plays the table twice: the second cycle repeats the pairings with the colours reversed, so everyone has White once against each opponent. FIDE recommends swapping the last two rounds of the first cycle, so that nobody plays three games in a row with the same colour where the cycles meet. The generator and ChessLivo tournaments do both.
From pairing table to tournament
ChessLivo runs round robins of 3 to 16 players for your club:
- a drawing of lots for the start numbers, or your own order;
- the whole schedule paired at once from the same Berger tables;
- results in any order, standings with tie-breaks (direct encounter, Sonneborn-Berger, wins and Koya by default) and a crosstable;
- withdrawals handled by the FIDE rules (C.05 Article 6.6);
- club ratings once a club tournament is finalized, and team round robins for 3 to 16 teams.
Every step, with every button: the round robin tournament guide.
Round robin questions
- How many rounds does a round robin have?
- With an even number of players, one fewer than the players: 7 rounds for 8 players. With an odd number, as many as the players, since everyone sits out once: 5 rounds for 5 players. A double round robin has twice as many.
- What happens with an odd number of players?
- The table of the next even number is used and its highest number is a bye, so in every round one player has a free round. In round robin tournaments on ChessLivo the free round is worth 0 points.
- How are the start numbers decided?
- Usually by drawing lots before the first round. ChessLivo tournaments draw the lots for you or take your own order. In the generator, number 1 is the first name of your list.
- Why are two rounds swapped in a double round robin?
- FIDE recommends reversing the order of the last two rounds of the first cycle. Otherwise some players would get the same colour three times in a row where the first cycle ends and the second, with reversed colours, begins.
- Is the generator free, and are the names stored?
- It is free and needs no account. Nothing you type is stored: the table is made for your request only. A list of names is sent with the form and never becomes part of a link; a table by number has a link you can share.
- How many players can a round robin have on ChessLivo?
- The generator makes tables for 3 to 20 players. Round robin tournaments on ChessLivo take 3 to 16 players, the field the FIDE tables cover; for a larger field, run a Swiss.
Run your round robin on ChessLivo
Pair the whole schedule at once and enter the results as they come in: the standings and the crosstable follow, and for a club tournament the ratings too.