Lesson 2: Running a League in Tournament Manager

At a one-day event, the tournament file is built, used, and finished in a single day. A league file stays in use for weeks and adds new results at every session. Each session builds on the one before it, so the whole league lives in that one file.

Most of what your event software operator does at each session matches a one-day event. The difference is keeping one file accurate from the first session to the last.

Setting Up the League File

A league file is set up once, at the first session, and every later session builds on it. Setting it up correctly from the start keeps the whole league running smoothly.

In Chapter 6, Lesson 2, you learned that a tournament file starts from your event listing, connected by the Event Code and Tournament Manager Code. A league listing also sends every session date and venue to Tournament Manager. When your event software operator enters the codes, Tournament Manager lists the league's sessions, and the operator selects the first one.

Before creating the Tournament Manager file at the first session, make sure you have:

• A complete, accurate event posting — Every session date, the awards you plan to offer, and every registered team are posted with your league event on events.vex.com. Session dates are required for your league to be approved.
• An internet connection — Tournament Manager downloads the teams, awards, and session dates from events.vex.com when the file is created, just as it does for a one-day event.

Running League Sessions in Tournament Manager gives step-by-step instructions for setting up your league file.

Use the same file for every session, including the last one. Match results, rankings, and Robot Skills scores carry over from one session to the next. At each session, the event software operator opens the file saved at the end of the previous session. Do not create a new file for a later session; doing so breaks the carryover of session results.

Save the file at the end of each session to the computer, a flash drive, or both. If the next session uses the same computer, the file can be opened from there. If the next session uses a different computer, the file can be opened from the flash drive.

At Each Ranking Session

Not every team attends every session, so Tournament Manager builds each session's match schedule from the teams checked in for that session, just as you would at a one-day event. Check in the teams who are present and build the schedule once check-in closes. Building each schedule around the teams in attendance keeps the flexibility that makes a league work. Teams can miss a session, and each team's participation is counted accurately toward the 60% participation threshold described in Lesson 1.

At the end of the session, the operator saves the file and uploads that session's results to events.vex.com without finalizing. In Chapter 6, you learned that uploading and finalizing are two separate steps. In a league, there is more time between them: results are uploaded after every session, and finalizing waits until the league is over. Each upload lets teams follow the standings between sessions. Check your event page after each upload to confirm the results look right.

Refer to Running League Sessions in Tournament Manager for step-by-step guidance on using Tournament Manager at each session.

At the Championship/Finals Session

At the last session, the operator opens the file saved at the end of the last Ranking Session and selects the Championship/Finals Session from the list.

Before any Finals Matches or Alliance Selection, confirm the rankings in Tournament Manager. They reflect every Ranking Session and the participation threshold, and they decide which teams advance:

• VEX IQ — Tournament Manager creates Finals Matches from the rankings.
• VEX V5 — Teams form alliances through Alliance Selection, and Tournament Manager records the selections and builds the Elimination Match bracket.

See Running League Sessions in Tournament Manager for guidance on running the Championship/Finals Session.

Once finals are complete and award winners are entered, the operator saves a final copy of the file, uploads the results, and finalizes them. Finalizing makes the league's results official. Award winners will appear on your event page, and teams that earned a qualifying spot can receive their invitations.

Support from Your Program Support Team

Your Program Support Team can help with every part of running a league, just as they do for any event. Reach out to them with questions about posting your sessions, setting up your Tournament Manager file, or uploading results.

Course Wrap-Up

This is the final lesson of the Event Partner Certification Course. Look back at what you've covered. You started with what a competition event is and what you commit to as an Event Partner. You learned how match play works, what happens around it, and how the Student-Centered Policy, Code of Conduct, and Youth Protection Policy shape your decisions. You explored how to plan an event from date and venue to schedule and volunteers, posting the event, and running it from setup through the work that follows. Then you learned how Tournament Manager connects your event to events.vex.com, and how a league spreads that same event across a season.

What's next: the Event Partner Certification Exam. Completing every Chapter Exam unlocks the Event Partner Certification Exam, your final step toward earning your Event Partner Certificate.

Once you pass the exam, you will earn your Event Partner Certificate. You can find your certificate in your VEX PD+ Dashboard. You will get Event Partner permissions on your events.vex.com account after certification. When an Admin tab appears on your dashboard, you are ready to create your first event, download Tournament Manager, and start planning with your Program Support Team!

Later chapters build on this foundation with Spotlight, Signature, and Championship Events. Complete those chapters if you plan to host one of those events this season.

Thank you for choosing to host. Every event you run gives students a place to show what they've built and learned with their teams and to celebrate a season of hard work. Good luck, and we'll see you at your first event!