Team rankings and weekly opponents are determined by the match results of all teams. Teams move up the ladder when they win a match and move down when they lose a match. The number of places a team moves up or down on the ladder is determined automatically by algorithms. There is no manual intervention, except for any necessary relocation of teams following the first week of matches to correct bad initial placement.
How far up or down a team moves is determined by the game scores of the match, if the match went two games or three, and importantly, how the teams above and below scored.
A team that wins or loses a match 11-0, 11-0 moves up or down more than a team that wins or loses a match 11-9, 9-11, 11-9. The maximum mathematical move up or down is three positions; however, teams can move up or down more, or not move at all, depending on the movements of the other teams on the ladder.
Match scores have roughly twice the impact on ladder movement compared to winning or losing the match. The algorithms use the following method:
Game Score Differential (1.75 possible positions maximum): This is the difference between the opponents’ average points scored per game per match. Ladder rank improves or decreases by 0.15909 positions for each average point difference. For example, if a team wins or loses by an average of 11 points per game per match (i.e. 11-0, 11-0), its ladder position improves or decreases by the maximum of 1.75 ladder positions (i.e. 0.15909 x 11).
Game Wins (1.25 possible position maximum): A team that wins or loses in two games moves up or down 1.25 ladder positions, while a team that wins or loses in three games moves up or down 0.8333 positions (i.e. (1.25÷3) x 2).
Ladder Movement Calculation: The Game Score Differential and the Game Wins calculation is added to determine the Ladder Movement Calculation for each team. How this number is applied depends on whether teams are playing adjacent ranked teams or non-adjacent ranked teams. Teams only play non-adjacent teams to avoid playing duplicate opponents.
For adjacent ranked teams, teams separated by one ladder position, (i.e. Ladder #1 vs. Ladder #2, Ladder #3 vs. Ladder #4, etc.) the Ladder Movement number is added or subtracted to each team’s current ladder position.
For non-adjacent teams that have been re-ordered to avoid playing duplicate opponents, the following calculations are used: the higher ranked team retains its actual ladder position even if it is not playing in that position on the ladder; the lower ranked team assumes a temporary ladder rank equal to half the distance between its actual ladder rank and its opponent’s ladder rank. For example, if Ladder #3 is playing Ladder #5, Ladder #3 remains Ladder #3 and Ladder #5 is treated as Ladder #4 when the Ladder Movement Calculation is applied following the match. This methodology provides a weighted result for lower ranked teams playing higher ranked teams.
Total Ladder Movement: Every team’s mathematical ranking is calculated after every match, and each team’s actual placement on the ladder is determined by every other team’s mathematical ranking. For example, a team may lose, and move down the specified number of places, but a team below on the ladder may win and move up into the same place. In such cases, the algorithm arranges teams based on decimal values from highest to lowest. Therefore, a team that individually should move up or down two places can easily move up or down three or more places, or only move up or down one place, depending on the results of other matches.
Last Updated: 10/7/2024