DreamHack Atlanta 2026 - FATAL FURY
The DreamHack Atlanta 2026 tournament for Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is considered one of the premier major opening events in the fighting game community (FGC), as it holds significant importance for qualifying for the largest global arenas.
Format
Tournament Format: Double-Elimination
A Double-Elimination tournament format means that a competitor must lose two match series to be completely eliminated from the tournament. It is divided into two main sections: the Upper Bracket (Winners Bracket) and the Lower Bracket (Losers Bracket).
1. Upper Bracket (UB)
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All players start their finals run in this bracket.
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Winners advance to the next round of the Upper Bracket.
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Losers drop down into a specific round of the Lower Bracket, where they get a second chance to stay in the tournament.
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Example from the image: Fenritti won against TheGio (3−1) in the UB Semifinals, advanced to the Upper Bracket Final to defeat Dany "El Maza" (3−0), and qualified directly for the Grand Final without losing a single series.
2. Lower Bracket (LB)
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This bracket is for players who have lost once in the Upper Bracket or have survived previous elimination rounds.
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A loss in the Lower Bracket results in immediate and permanent elimination from the tournament.
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Example from the image: Vxbao started from Lower Bracket Round 1, winning consecutive elimination series against Supergrenas, TheGio, and RB to reach the Lower Bracket Final.
3. Grand Final
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The winner of the Upper Bracket (Fenritti) faces the winner of the Lower Bracket (Dany "El Maza").
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To win the entire tournament, the Lower Bracket finalist typically needs to win two consecutive match series (known as "resetting the bracket"), because they already carry one loss. Meanwhile, the Upper Bracket finalist only needs to win one match series to claim the championship.