The 2026 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship heads to Krakow, Poland on September 12-13, with all eight reigning champions returning to defend their titles. Here is the full guide to the biggest event in submission grappling.
Reviewed by BJJ Gyms · Updated 2026-07-27
ADCC 2026 is the first World Championship held in Poland. Sources: ADCC Official; FloGrappling 2026.
ADCC, the Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championship, is widely considered the most prestigious no-gi grappling competition in the world. Unlike IBJJF tournaments, ADCC awards points only for takedowns and near-submissions, not for sweeps or guard pulls, which creates a different and often more scramble-heavy style of match than Brazilian jiu-jitsu competition. Submissions win matches outright at any point. The result is a format that rewards athletes who can both take people down and finish them.
The tournament runs on a two-year cycle, meaning each ADCC World Championship represents the culmination of two years of competition, qualification trials, and invitations based on performance at major events. Champions from the previous ADCC receive direct invitations to defend, as do high performers at the major intervening events. The field at the world championship represents the genuine elite of no-gi grappling from across multiple disciplines, including jiu-jitsu, wrestling, sambo, and catch wrestling.
For anyone training Brazilian jiu-jitsu or interested in the grappling arts, ADCC serves as a benchmark. The techniques that win at ADCC, the leg locks, back takes, wrestling-to-guard transitions, and pressure passing games, reliably show up in gym training within a year of the event. Watching ADCC is essentially watching a preview of where the sport is going.
ADCC 2026 will be held at the Tauron Arena in Krakow, Poland on September 12 and 13, 2026. This is the first time Poland has hosted the ADCC World Championship, making it a historic edition of the event. The Tauron Arena is a large indoor venue that can accommodate a significant live crowd, which has historically generated an electric atmosphere for ADCC events.
Five male divisions will compete with sixteen athletes each, across weight classes that span from under 66kg to over 99kg plus the absolute (open weight). Three female divisions with eight athletes each will also compete. The combination of deep talent pools in every division, with defending champions, ADCC trials winners, and invitation-based athletes all in the bracket, means that first-round matches can feature world-class competitors.
All eight reigning ADCC champions are confirmed to return for Krakow, which sets up potential title-defense storylines across every division. Whether any of those champions can replicate their previous performance against a fresh set of challengers who have spent two years specifically preparing to beat them is one of the compelling questions the event will answer.
Half the athletes in each ADCC division earn their spot through performance: reigning champions, previous ADCC finalists, and top performers at ADCC-sanctioned events receive direct invitations. The other half must qualify through the ADCC Trials process. In the 2026 cycle, eight trials events were held across multiple continents, each producing a set of qualifiers who earn the right to compete at the world championship.
The trials system means that athletes without existing name recognition can earn a spot at ADCC through performance on the mats, not through reputation or invitation. Some of the most memorable ADCC moments have involved trials qualifiers defeating heavily favored champions or invitation athletes. The bracket includes that unpredictability by design.
This also means the Krakow field is genuinely international. ADCC draws elite grapplers from Brazil, the United States, Russia and Central Asia, Eastern Europe, Australia, and increasingly from Asian jiu-jitsu nations. The combination of styles, from the Brazilian no-gi BJJ athletes to the Eastern European freestyle wrestlers to the American wrestlers cross-trained in submission grappling, creates match dynamics that no single regional circuit can replicate.
You do not have to be competing at any level to benefit from watching ADCC. For practitioners at every rank, from white belt to black belt, ADCC provides a masterclass in what the highest-level players do with pressure, positioning, and submission chains. The no-gi format is particularly informative for practitioners of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu and similar systems that prioritize no-gi grappling, because the ADCC format rewards the same skills: flexibility, leg locks, back control, and the ability to maintain pressure without a gi to grab.
After watching ADCC, many practitioners find that their next class or open mat has a different energy. Specific positions you watched competitors execute, guard entries you saw used successfully at the highest level, or finishing sequences you had not considered become part of your active mental library. The event functions as inspiration and as education simultaneously.
If you are not yet training and ADCC has sparked your curiosity about what submission grappling looks like, a BJJ gym near you is the place to find out. Most offer a free first class. The combination of the physical discipline, the technical depth, and the community that a good gym provides is genuinely unlike almost any other activity. ADCC 2026 streams on FloSports starting September 12.
Whether you compete at a high level, train recreationally, or are just getting curious about submission grappling, ADCC 2026 is worth your attention.
BJJ Gyms is an independent directory, not a gym. We feature 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu as our recommended no-gi system. Always take a free trial and vet any academy yourself before committing.
ADCC 2026 streams exclusively on FloSports. A subscription to FloSports or FloGrappling provides access to the live event and replay coverage.
Half the field in each division is invited based on performance at ADCC and related events, including being a reigning champion. The other half must qualify through ADCC Trials events held around the world.
ADCC is no-gi submission wrestling that awards points only for takedowns and near-submissions. IBJJF is gi-based and awards points for positions including sweeps and guard passes. The scoring systems reward different skills and create different competitive styles.
Most BJJ gyms offer no-gi classes that develop the same skills rewarded at ADCC. Gyms affiliated with 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu are entirely no-gi focused. Finding a gym near you and trying a free class is the best starting point.