Overview

What is the UBC Contender?

The Ultimate Backgammon Championship (UBC) Contender series is a global circuit of regional qualifiers. The four regional winners meet in Monte Carlo for the UBC Contender Final 4, which decides who will challenge Zdenek Zizka, the reigning UBC Champion, for the title in Prague.

Stockholm hosts the European leg — the 4th and final qualifier in the 2026 series. The event runs within the Swedish Open, one of Europe's longest-running major tournaments. The UBC Contender is a separate, invitation-eligible event running across Days 1–3 of the Swedish Open week.

Eligibility

Who can enter?

  • BMAB Masters or Grand Masters, from any country
  • Proven PR average below 6.5 (verified via BMAB records)
  • Participants must register separately for the UBC Contender — Swedish Open registration alone does not qualify
  • Entry fee: €300 — of which €200 is the registration fee (covering tournament organisation, multi-camera recording, and full match transcription for every match you play), and €100 goes into the prize pool
Format

How the tournament works

Phase 1 — Preliminary Round Robin Days 1 & 2 · 12 Matches
Each player plays 12 preliminary matches (7-point matches), split equally across Days 1 and 2. Results are scored by match wins. After all 12 rounds, the top 6 players by total points advance directly to the knockout stage. The 2 best remaining PR averages earn wildcard spots — making 8 qualifiers in total.
Phase 2 — Knockout Stage Day 3 · QF & SF
The 8 qualifiers are seeded by their PR average from the preliminary phase and placed into a standard bracket (1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6, 4 vs 5). Each Quarter-Final and Semi-Final is played as up to four 7-point matches — the first player to reach 5 points (1 point per match win + 1 point per PR win) advances. If the score is tied 4–4 after four matches, the winner is decided by the average PR across those four matches only.
Final Best of 5 · First to 6 points
The Final is played as up to five 7-point matches. The first player to reach 6 points (1 point per match win + 1 point per PR win) is crowned UBC Contender Stockholm and earns the European seat in Monte Carlo. If both players finish on the same total, the tiebreaker is match wins in the Final — not PR average. The Final is scheduled at a time agreed between the finalists and the tournament director.
Knockout Bracket

Seeding & Progression

Quarter-Finals
1 vs 8
4 vs 5
3 vs 6
2 vs 7
Semi-Finals
W(1v8)
vs
W(4v5)
W(3v6)
vs
W(2v7)
Final
W(SF1)
vs
W(SF2)
→ Monaco Final 4

The 8 qualifiers are seeded by their PR average from the preliminary phase and placed into a standard bracket (1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6, 4 vs 5). QF and SF: up to four 7-point matches, first to 5 points advances. Final: best of five 7-point matches, first to 6 points wins.

Schedule

Day-by-day programme

Day 1 Tuesday, 30 June
11:00
Start of play — Rounds 1–6
Each round approx. 90 minutes · 6 rounds · Day ends after Round 6
Day 2 Wednesday, 1 July
11:00
Start of play — Rounds 7–12
Completion of the preliminary round robin · Qualification decided at end of day
Day 3 Thursday, 2 July
11:00
Quarter-Finals (up to 4 × 7-pt matches · first to 5 points advances)
17:00
Semi-Finals (up to 4 × 7-pt matches · first to 5 points advances)
Tiebreaker for QF/SF: average PR from those matches
Final Date to be agreed
TBC
Final — best of 5 matches · first to 6 points wins
The Final is scheduled on a separate day, at a time mutually agreed between the two finalists and the tournament director · Tiebreaker: match wins