Liguilla Formats: How We Play with 6, 8, 10 and 12 Teams
La Liguilla is IF7KING LEAGUE’s flagship format, but it doesn’t always play out the same way. The number of teams signed up changes how the group stage and knockout rounds are organized — and therefore how much time you’ll spend on the pitch. Here we break down the four versions we use: 6, 8, 10 and 12 teams, with real schedules from start to finish.
Our philosophy: we always prefer to play with as many teams as possible — more teams means more atmosphere, more rivalry, and a higher level 🔥. But when the tournament is smaller, we make up for it by lengthening each group-stage match a bit, so the guaranteed playing time stays similar no matter the format. Nobody gets short-changed on football just because they ended up in a smaller group.
📋 What never changes (in any format)
No matter how many teams sign up, these rules always stay the same. Every tournament calls teams in at 19:30 and matches kick off at 20:00 sharp.
🏆 Points system
| Win | Draw | Loss |
|---|---|---|
| 3 points | 1 point | 0 points |
⚖️ Tiebreakers, in this order:
- Points earned.
- Head-to-head result between the tied teams.
- Goal difference (goals scored − goals conceded).
- Highest number of goals scored.
- Fair Play: yellow card = -1, red card = -3. It doesn’t subtract points from the standings, it’s only used to break ties.
- A draw (lots), if the tie is still unresolved after all of the above.
What does change depending on the number of teams is how many groups there are, how long each group-stage match lasts (to compensate for the number of guaranteed matches), and which knockout round is needed to reach the final. Let’s go format by format.
⚽ 6 teams — A single group
One single group of 6 teams, playing round-robin: 5 guaranteed matches per team, 12 minutes each with a 3-minute break between shifts — 60 minutes of guaranteed football. It’s played on 2 pitches simultaneously, so in each round one team rests while the other four play: 8 rounds in total to complete the 15 group-stage matches.
At the end, the top two teams play the final (1st vs 2nd), and the third and fourth best play for third place — both matches 15 minutes long, on the same pitch, one after the other.
🕒 Approximate schedule
| Time | Organization |
|---|---|
| 19:30 | Arrival, bibs and rules briefing (30 min) |
| 20:00 | Group stage: 2 pitches simultaneously, 8 rounds of 15 min (12 + 3 break) → 2 hours |
| 22:00 | Break and standings count (5 min) |
| 22:05 | 3rd/4th place → 15 min |
| 22:20 | Final preparation (5 min) |
| 22:25 | Final (1st vs 2nd) → 15 min |
| 22:40 | Awards ceremony (15 min) |
Summary
| 3h 50min | 60min | 75min |
|---|---|---|
| Approx. total duration | Guaranteed play | If you reach the final or 3rd/4th |
⚽ 8 teams — Two groups of 4
Teams are split into Group A and Group B, 4 teams each. Each group plays round-robin: only 3 guaranteed matches per team, so to compensate we lengthen each match to 20 minutes, with a 3-minute break between shifts — 60 minutes of guaranteed football, matching the rest of the formats. With 4 pitches available, both groups play in parallel (2 pitches per group) and the entire group stage is resolved in 3 rounds.
The top 2 of each group qualify (4 teams total) for the semifinals, crossing groups so that no group-stage matchup is repeated: Semifinal 1 — Group A 1st 🆚 Group B 2nd · Semifinal 2 — Group B 1st 🆚 Group A 2nd. Both are played at the same time, in 12-minute matches. The winners contest the final, and the losers play for third place — both 15 minutes, also at the same time.
🕒 Approximate schedule
| Time | Organization |
|---|---|
| 19:30 | Arrival, bibs and rules briefing (30 min) |
| 20:00 | Group stage: 4 pitches simultaneously, 3 rounds of 20 min (18 + 2 break) → 1h |
| 21:00 | Break and standings (5 min) |
| 21:05 | Semifinals, simultaneously → 12 min |
| 21:17 | Break before the final (3 min) |
| 21:20 | Final and 3rd/4th place, simultaneously → 15 min |
| 21:40 | Awards ceremony (15 min) |
Summary
| 2h 30min | 54min | 81min |
|---|---|---|
| Approx. total duration | Guaranteed play | If you reach the final or 3rd/4th |
⚽ 10 teams — Two groups of 5
Same logic as the 8-team format, but with groups of 5: Group A and Group B, round-robin within each group, 4 guaranteed matches per team. Here we compensate with 15-minute matches and a 3-minute break — 60 minutes of guaranteed football, matching the rest of the formats. With 5 teams per group, one team has to rest each round (2 pitches per group, 4 in total, both groups in parallel): 5 rounds to complete the group stage.
Just like in the 8-team format, the top 2 of each group qualify and cross over in the semifinals (A 1st vs B 2nd, B 1st vs A 2nd, 12 minutes), played at the same time, followed by the final + third place, 15 minutes, also at the same time.
🕒 Approximate schedule
| Time | Organization |
|---|---|
| 19:30 | Arrival, bibs and rules briefing (30 min) |
| 20:00 | Group stage: 4 pitches simultaneously, 5 rounds of 17 min (15 + 2 break) → 1h25 |
| 21:25 | Break and standings (5 min) |
| 21:30 | Semifinals, simultaneously → 12 min |
| 21:42 | Break before the final (3 min) |
| 21:45 | Final and 3rd/4th place, simultaneously → 15 min |
| 22:00 | Awards ceremony (15 min) |
Summary
| 2h 50min | 60min | 87min |
|---|---|---|
| Approx. total duration | Guaranteed play | If you reach the final or 3rd/4th |
⚽ 12 teams — Two groups of 6
The biggest version of La Liguilla, with two groups of 6 teams playing in parallel: Group A on 2 pitches and Group B on another 2 pitches, both at the same time. Each team plays 5 guaranteed matches of 12 minutes, with a 3-minute break — the same 60 minutes of guaranteed football as in the 6-team format.
The top 2 of each group qualify for the semifinals (A 1st vs B 2nd, B 1st vs A 2nd, 12-minute matches), followed by the final + third place in parallel, 15 minutes.
🔗 We’ve already organized a special edition of this 12-team format, with teams representing different nations — you can see the full schedule, hour by hour, in that article: La Liguilla - World Cup Edition.
| 3h 30min | 60min | 87min |
|---|---|---|
| Approx. total duration | Guaranteed play | If you reach the final or 3rd/4th |
📊 Comparison summary
To make it clear how much football you’re guaranteed, and how much more if you advance in the tournament, we’ve split it into three tables: group stage, knockout stage, and the total if you make it all the way to the end.
🔹 Group stage
| Teams | Groups | Guaranteed matches | Duration/match | Break | Minutes played |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 1 group of 6 | 5 | 12 min | 3 min | 60 min |
| 8 | 2 groups of 4 | 3 | 20 min | 3 min | 60 min |
| 10 | 2 groups of 5 | 4 | 15 min | 3 min | 60 min |
| 12 | 2 groups of 6 | 5 | 12 min | 3 min | 60 min |
🔹 Knockout stage (only if you qualify)
| Teams | Semifinal | Final / 3rd-4th place | Extra minutes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | None, straight to the final | 15 min each, same pitch, one after the other | 15 min |
| 8 | 12 min, simultaneously | 15 min, simultaneously | 27 min |
| 10 | 12 min, simultaneously | 15 min, simultaneously | 27 min |
| 12 | 12 min, simultaneously | 15 min, simultaneously | 27 min |
🔹 If you make it to the end of the tournament
| Teams | Total minutes played | Total event duration |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 75 min (60 + 15 for final or 3rd/4th) | 3h20 |
| 8 | 87 min (60 + 27 for semifinal + final/3rd-4th) | 2h30 |
| 10 | 87 min (60 + 27 for semifinal + final/3rd-4th) | 2h50 |
| 12 | 87 min (60 + 27 for semifinal + final/3rd-4th) | 3h30 |
Whichever format we choose, the formula stays the same: more teams means a better atmosphere and a higher level, and if the tournament is smaller, we compensate with slightly longer matches so the guaranteed playing time is always the same: 60 minutes of guaranteed football, whether 6, 8, 10 or 12 teams play. Clear tiebreakers, and an exciting knockout stage to close out the day. The only thing that changes is the size of the party.
⚽ See you on the pitch! ⚽