All meetingsTournament format and regulations of the Judo Pro League 2026
Created in 2022, the Judo Pro League is France's first mixed professional sports league. After a successful fourth edition and the victory of AC Boulogne Billancourt (ACBB) at a sold-out Dojo de Paris, the Judo Pro League returns in September 2026 with 14 teams determined to win the mixed team French championship title.
Find all the information you need to understand the Judo Pro League's competition schedule and rules.
Competition scheme:
Elimination stages
The knockout phases of the 2026 Judo Pro League bring together 14 teams into a single ranking. Each team will play 4 matches, 2 at home and 2 away, against opponents determined by the draw.
During the knockout stages, a win is worth 3 points, a draw is worth 1 point, and a loss is worth 0 points. At the end of all the matches, the eight best-ranked teams will qualify for the final tournament.
In the event of a tie in the standings, the clubs will be separated in the order of the criteria below:
- Number of wins
- Number of points scored
- Number of Ippons scored (Direct Ippon or 2 Waza-ari)
- Number of Shidos taken
Discover the format of the Judo Pro League in effect since the 2025 edition:
Final stages
The final standings will be crucial in determining the quarter-final line-ups. Qualified teams will face off as follows:
- QF 1: 1st vs. 8th
- QF 2: 2nd vs. 7th
- QF 3: 3rd vs. 6th
- QF 4: 4th vs. 5th
A Final Four will be held at the Arena of the Paris Dojo, where the quarter-final winners will face each other:
- Winner QF 1 vs Winner QF 4
- Winner QF 2 vs Winner QF 3
Regulation:
Team composition
Each team must field athletes in the 10 regulatory weight categories:
- Women -52kg, -57kg, -63kg, -70kg, +70kg
- Men -66kg, -73kg, -81kg, -90kg, +90kg
Each club must submit the list of its fighters for the entire competition before the launch of the Judo Pro League.
- Maximum of 20 fighters registered per club for a competition evening (the lineup can vary between rounds).
- A maximum of 40 % of foreign athletes on the mat.
Following the final phases, the clubs will be able to strengthen their teams with two female athletes and two male athletes for the rest of the competition. These additions must be communicated and validated one week before the quarter-finals by the federation.
During the weighing, a tolerance of 5% of the weight will be allowed per weight category.
An athlete can only fight for one club per season, and all fighters must be registered with the club (individual or team license).
Winning a fight
The fights will take place according to international refereeing rules with the following adaptations:
- A fight lasts 5 minutes with matte.
- A 30-second time-out will be given at mid-fight.
- In the preliminary round, a fight that is tied at the end of the 5 minutes of regular time ends in a hiki-wake (draw). In the final round, the fight goes to Golden Score.
An athlete wins if :
- He scores an ippon
- He scores 2 waza-ari
- He leads at the end of the 5-minute fight
- His opponent receives a hansoku-make (for 3 shidos or via direct disqualification)
Winning a match:
The team that wins a match is the one that has won the most fights after the 10 fights. In the event of a tie in the number of wins, the teams may be separated by the number of points scored in the encounter. If the number of points also does not allow the two teams to be separated, a draw will be declared.
Starting from the quarterfinals, in the event of a tie in the number of wins and points scored, a weight category will be drawn by lot for a match that will determine the winner of the match.
During the Final Four, a match whose outcome is decided will be stopped before the end of the 10 fights.
Find out more Complete rulebook of the 2026/2027 Judo Pro League.
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