The Brazilian National Championship by Teams was held for the first time back in 1995, at the Gama Filho University gymnasium, in Rio de Janeiro. Since then, the event has become one of the main attractions of the CBJJ annual calendar. Most of this success is due to the fans and supporters who attend the event; after all they have the chance to follow their teams/academies in a really exciting competition format.

This team format is considered to be the most exciting there is – athletes and fans agree with that. Each team is made of seven competitors; five of each are starters while two are reserve fighters. When it is time to face an opposing team, each team coach privately numbers their fighters from 1 to 5. Fighters who are given the same numbers will fight each other (1 against 1, 2 against 2 and so on). The team that scores three wins out of five matches advances in the competition.

It is easy to understand the success of this formula, after all it allows an athlete to move on in the competition even if he loses his match. It all depends on the numbers a coach gives to his athletes round after round, which make it possible for a weaker team to defeat a stronger team. The highlight, however, is the feeling of union and team work that grows among the athletes. Everyone focuses on supporting their teammates so that they all can advance in the competition. It is quite common to witness battles where a team starts losing by 2 x0 but manages to recover and bounce back with three wins in a row. The fans also get a different feeling out of their cheering, since it’s team against team – or in this case, school versus school – just like in any other team sport such as football, basketball or ice hockey.