Creating Your First Tournament

This guide will walk you through creating your first tournament in MyCup. The entire process takes just 5 minutes!

Before You Start

Make sure you have:

  • Created a MyCup account, or login via Google account (account will be created automatically)
  • Verified your email address (if needed)

Step 1: Choose Your Plan

Visit MyCup pricing page and select the plan that fits your tournament needs.

Free Plan: Perfect for trying out MyCup - no payment information required. You can upgrade anytime later if needed.

Pro/Premium Plans: For larger tournaments with more features.

Step 2: Complete Checkout

Complete the checkout process for your selected plan:

  • Free Plan: No payment required - just confirm and proceed
  • Paid Plans: Enter payment information and complete purchase

All plans can be upgraded later as your tournament grows.

Step 3: Access Your Dashboard

After completing checkout, the dashboard link will be available in your user menu:

  1. Click on your user menu (top right)
  2. Select "Dashboard"
  3. You'll see your first tournament onboarding process

Step 4: Complete Onboarding

Follow the tournament setup wizard to configure your tournament:

  1. Complete all onboarding steps
  2. Follow the tournament setup suggestions in the dashboard
  3. The wizard will guide you through:
    • Basic tournament information
    • Sport selection
    • Tournament structure
    • Participant management

Once onboarding is complete, your tournament is ready for management!

Step 5: Review Sport Configurations

Before setting up your tournament structure, review your sport-specific settings:

  1. Go to Settings > Sport Settings
  2. Review the default configurations for your selected sport:
    • Number of periods/halves
    • Period duration
    • Scoring rules
    • Match events (goals, cards, fouls, etc.)
    • Overtime and penalty rules
  3. Customize settings if needed to match your tournament rules
  4. Save changes

Understanding these configurations will help you set up your tournament structure and matches correctly.

Step 6: Tournament Structure

Choose your tournament format:

  • League (Round-Robin): All participants play each other
  • Knockout (Elimination): Single or double elimination brackets
  • Groups + Knockout: Combine both formats for multi-stage tournaments

Select your preferred format and configure the details (number of groups, participants per group, etc.).

For detailed information about tournament structures, see the Tournament Structure documentation.

Step 7: Add Participants

Add participants to your tournament (teams or individual participants depending on your sport type).

You have two options:

Option A: Add Participants Manually

  1. Click "Add Participant" or "Add Team"
  2. Enter participant/team name and optional details
  3. Repeat for all participants

Option B: Enable Public Registration

  1. Navigate to Website Settings
  2. Enable "Public Registration"
  3. Share the registration link
  4. Approve participants as they register

Step 8: Generate Matches

Important: Before generating matches, make sure all tournament phases are filled with participants. Empty phases cannot generate matches.

Once you have participants assigned to your tournament phases:

  1. Go to Structure page
  2. Review your tournament structure
  3. Click "Generate Matches"
  4. Confirm the match schedule

MyCup will automatically create all matches with balanced scheduling. Alternatively, if you prefer, you can add matches manually instead of using automatic generation.

Step 9: Enable Public Website

Make your tournament visible to the public. See example tournament website

  1. Go to Website Settings
  2. Review website configuration options
  3. Enable or disable specific pages (matches, standings, statistics, etc.)
  4. Enable "Public Website"
  5. Customize appearance and language
  6. Share the tournament URL

Your tournament website is now live!

Step 10: Add Tournament Admins (Optional)

If you need help managing your tournament, you can invite other administrators:

  1. Go to Settings > Team Members or Users
  2. Click "Invite Admin"
  3. Enter their email address
  4. Select permission level (Admin, Manager, etc.)
  5. Send invitation

They will receive an email invitation to help manage your tournament.

Next Steps

Now that your tournament is created:

Tips for Success

  • Start Simple: Begin with a basic structure, you can always adjust later
  • Test First: Create a test tournament to familiarize yourself with the system
  • Use Templates: Copy structure from previous tournaments
  • Enable Tracking: Monitor your setup progress in the Setup Wizard

Common Questions

Can I change the format after creating the tournament?

Yes, but it's easier to set it up correctly from the start. Contact support if you need help restructuring.

How many teams can I add?

Depends on your plan:

  • Free: Up to 8 teams
  • Pro: Up to 32 teams
  • Premium: Unlimited

Can I edit team names later?

Yes, go to Participants and click on any team to edit.

Need Help?

If you get stuck:

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