Your league schedule shouldn't give you a headache

To build a season schedule, settle the numbers first: teams, weeks, games per game day, surfaces, dates with no games and playoffs. Then place the games so each team plays the others about the same number of times, never the same opponent three weeks in a row, with early and late time slots for everyone. You can do it by hand in a spreadsheet, or let a tool make the matchups: Notre Ligue offers a free one, no account needed.

You know the scene. It's 10 pm, a spreadsheet is open, four teams, thirteen game days, and one question keeps coming back: "Are we playing them for the third week in a row?"

Yes. And you're the one who'll get the message.

Key takeaways

• Settle the numbers before you place a single game.
• Each team plays the others about the same number of times.
• Never the same opponent three weeks in a row, and early and late slots for everyone.
• Days off, the makeup date and the playoffs are in the schedule from the start.

Why is a schedule so easy to get wrong?

A season schedule means dozens of games to place with nobody in two games at once, the same teams not bumping into each other every week, and the playoffs not landing on a date the gym is closed. Your brain isn't built for that at 10 pm.

What should you decide before building the schedule?

Decide these six things. The rest is a computer's job.

• The number of teams. It decides how many games each game day needs so everyone plays.
• The number of weeks. Count the dates you rent, and decide whether the playoffs fit inside them or come after.
• Games per game day. With four teams, two games have each team play once; four games, twice.
• The surfaces. On one surface, games follow each other; on two, two games run at the same time.
• Dates with no games. Holidays, a closed gym, a tournament.
• The playoffs. How many teams qualify, the format of each round, and on which dates.

If your teams change every week, you can also balance them in two minutes.

How do you balance the matchups?

1. Each team plays the others about the same number of times. With four teams, there are six pairs. If each team plays once per game day, a full round takes three weeks: in twelve weeks, each pair meets four times.
2. Never the same opponent three weeks in a row. Follow the order of a full round: each team plays every other team before seeing the first one again.
3. Early and late slots for everyone. A team that always plays the last game will complain.

What do you do with an odd number of teams?

One team doesn't play each game day: that's its bye. Rotate it. With five teams and two games per game day, a full round takes five weeks, and each team gets one bye per round. Another option, if your rental allows it: one team plays twice on the same game day, taking turns.

How do you plan days off and makeup dates?

Put days off in the schedule from the start: holidays, spring break, the gym taken. Two ways to handle them:

• Push the rest back a week. The season ends later, with the same number of games.
• Keep a makeup date at the end, before the playoffs. A game cancelled during the season is played there.

What does a 4-team rotation over 3 weeks look like?

Four fictional teams, two games per game day, one after the other:

For weeks 4 to 6, repeat the same pairs with the time slots swapped: in six weeks, each team plays the first game three times and the second game three times.

Before you send the schedule to players

• Each team has the same number of games, or close to it.
• Each pair meets about the same number of times.
• No team sees the same opponent three weeks in a row.
• Each team plays early and late about equally.
• No team plays two games at the same time.
• Days off, the makeup date and the playoffs are in the schedule.
• Each game has its date, time, place and surface.

Doing it by hand

In a spreadsheet, make one row per date and one column per time slot or surface. Write one full round, as in the table, then copy it to the end of the season, swapping the time slots from one round to the next. With an odd number of teams, add a team called "Bye": the team that plays it sits out that date.

With Notre Ligue

Notre Ligue's schedule generator is free, no account needed. You enter your teams (2 to 16), the first date, the day, the first game time, the games per game day, the length of the season and your dates with no game. You can add playoffs: the teams that qualify, the format of each round (one game, best of 3 or best of 5) and the third-place game. The playoffs are part of the season's length: they take the last slots.

It starts with the teams that have met the least, and it avoids putting the same pair on the same game day as long as there's another option. With an odd number of teams and one game per team, one team rests each game day, taking turns. "Remove this date" pushes the rest back a week, with the same games. It also alternates early and late slots: each team plays the first and the last game about as often as the others.

Once your league is created, if it has fixed teams, "Assign matchups" does the same on the games created with "Create multiple games", playoffs included. Before you confirm, you see a preview of the whole season. You read it and confirm, and if a matchup bugs you later, you change it right on the calendar. Players get their invitation by email and answer from the link, no account and no app.

Free under 15 regular players. Create my league

Frequently asked questions

How many weeks should a season have?

When you can, pick full rounds: with four teams that play once per game day, a multiple of three weeks, plus the playoffs.

What do you do with an odd number of teams?

One team has a bye each game day, taking turns. Tell players ahead of time.

What do you do when a date is cancelled?

Push the rest of the season back a week, or play the game on the makeup date planned at the end.

Should the playoffs be in the schedule?

Yes, from the start: their dates, how many teams qualify and the format of each round. They're already in the schedule, not something to improvise in March.