Blog ·
Mexicano vs Americano: which format for your club tournament?
Both are “everyone plays everyone, nobody gets knocked out” formats; the difference is how the pairings are made. Americano fixes the draw in advance, Mexicano looks at the standings after every round. Which one works better depends on the group — and this article helps you make that call.
Common ground
In both formats players compete as individuals, play with a different partner and different opponents every round, each match runs to a fixed number of points (16, 21, 24, 32), and every point won goes onto the player’s own tally. The serve rotates every 4 points, draws are possible, and at the end the player with the most points wins. The details of these shared rules are in the Americano guide. Both formats also fit the same evening: four players per court, rounds of roughly 15–20 minutes, and a final table everyone can read at a glance. The only difference lies in one question: who plays with whom in the next round? It sounds like a detail, but it changes how the evening feels for the weakest player on court and for the strongest one.
Americano: the draw is set from the start
Players are given numbers and a pre-built schedule decides the pairings for every round. With 8 players, over 7 rounds everyone partners everyone once. Results do not affect the schedule: whether you win a lot or a little, your next opponents are already known. Many clubs print the schedule and pin it to the fence before the first ball is hit, and players simply look up their number at the start of each round.
Strength: fairness and predictability. Everyone plays the same people the same number of times; there is no “I always got the strong ones” complaint. It can be run on paper, and because nothing depends on the results, a late arrival or a forgotten score never breaks the schedule.
Weakness: in a group with a wide range of levels you get lopsided matches. If the two best players land on the same team, the match ends 20-4; since the standings are based on points won, that pulls the players on the weaker team right out of the tournament. Over an evening the strongest player can also end up with a comfortable lead simply because the schedule happened to hand them good partners.
Mexicano: the standings make the pairings
The first round is random. In every round after that the current standings are used: 1st and 4th pair up and play against 2nd and 3rd; 5th–8th, 9th–12th and so on are grouped the same way. That balances the total strength on each court and puts players of a similar level on the same court. The leader is always playing with the weakest member of their group of four, so nobody can ride a strong partner for long: to stay on top you have to carry your team.
Strength: within a few rounds the levels sort themselves out; matches get tight and 12-12 finishes become common. By the end of the evening everyone has played “in their own league”. Ideal for groups that have just met and whose levels are unknown, and for the open club night where a beginner and a former tournament player have both signed up.
Weakness: because the pairings depend on results, the luck of the first round matters; whoever loses the first match stays on the lower courts for a while (though they can collect points there and climb). It is hard to run by hand: after every round you have to work out the standings and rebuild the groups of 4; beyond 12 players, mistakes on paper are inevitable, and every minute spent calculating is a minute the courts stand empty.
Side by side
| Americano | Mexicano | |
|---|---|---|
| Pairings | Fixed schedule in advance | By standings every round |
| Does everyone partner everyone? | Yes (given enough rounds) | Not guaranteed |
| Wide range of levels | Lopsided matches | Balances itself out |
| Luck of the first round | No effect | Matters briefly |
| Running it on paper | Easy (up to 8 players) | Hard |
| Social mixing | Highest | Within level groups |
| Winner decided by | Total points | Total points |
Which format for which group?
- A group of friends, similar levels, everyone should mix: Americano. The social mixing is highest and nobody can avoid anybody; with 8 players and 7 rounds, everyone has partnered everyone by the end of the night.
- The club’s open tournament, levels unknown, 12–24 players: Mexicano. It sorts itself out in two rounds, and the rest is fun; the top court ends up playing a genuinely competitive final round while the bottom court is just as close.
- A tournament with prizes, where a fair ranking is essential: Americano’s fixed schedule keeps complaints down; or run Mexicano with a seeded first round (the organiser groups players by level in advance), which removes most of the first-round luck.
- Too many players, too few courts: in both formats someone sits out; in Mexicano, picking the players who sit out from the lower end of the standings does not upset the balance.
- Fixed pairs: Team Americano (pairs fixed, opponents rotate) or Team Mexicano (pairs fixed, opponents by standings). Practical for a league night, or for couples and regular partners who want to play together rather than be split up.
Hybrid versions
Some clubs play the first two rounds as Americano and then switch to Mexicano: first everyone mixes, then the levels separate. Another common set-up is “Mexicano, but no repeat partners”: pairings are made by standings, but players who have already partnered are not paired again if it can be avoided. Rules like these cannot be managed on paper; that is a job for an app. If you do try a hybrid, tell the players in advance when the switch happens, so nobody feels the draw changed on them halfway through.
Points and tie-breaks: the same in both formats
The standings are based on total points. In the event of a tie: matches won first, then points difference, then the head-to-head result; if still level, a single golden point or a coin toss. Announce it at the start of the tournament; a tie-break rule made up at the prize table is the fastest way to sour an otherwise good evening.
In the app
Tournament mode comes with all four formats ready to go: Americano, Mexicano, Team Americano and Team Mexicano. It builds the Mexicano pairings itself at the end of every round, distributes the players sitting out fairly, applies the tie-break rules, and spectators follow the standings live at scoresay.com/t/CODE. The organiser picks the points target, the serving rule and the number of prizes while setting up the tournament, so the rules are on the screen for everyone before the first round starts.