After the Las Vegas spectacle, the CJI rivalry and a new era of professional grappling, ADCC returns to Europe this weekend. But instead of feeling like the sport’s biggest event, the build-up has left many fans wondering whether the tournament has taken a step backward.

ADCC 2026 takes place on September 12–13 at Tauron Arena in Krakow, Poland. The event will still feature some of the world’s best grapplers, and winning an ADCC gold medal remains one of the greatest achievements in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Yet the atmosphere surrounding this edition feels noticeably different from the excitement that accompanied the previous American events.

For longtime followers of the sport, the contrast is difficult to ignore. ADCC spent years transforming itself from a prestigious but relatively niche tournament into a major international spectacle. The Las Vegas editions, in particular, demonstrated how far professional grappling could go when elite competition was combined with ambitious production, strong promotion and a genuine sense of occasion.

Now, just days before the 2026 World Championships, the question is whether that momentum has been lost.

Dante Leon: “It Seems to Be a Little Bit Quieter This Year”

Four-time ADCC competitor Dante Leon recently addressed the change during an appearance on The FloGrappling Show. Preparing for the tournament in Krakow, Leon suggested that the absence of former head organizer Mo Jassim and other key figures may be contributing to the quieter atmosphere.

“The hype behind the event seems to be a little bit different. It seems to be a little bit quieter this year, just because I feel like Mo (Jassim) is not involved and some of the people aren’t involved like that.”

Leon also acknowledged that the Polish venue looks impressive, but said the overall presentation does not seem to carry the same impact as previous editions.

“As far as like the hype around the event, the cinematics, the kind of like wow factor of it, it doesn’t seem to be where it was at one time.”

His comments reflect a distinction that is important to make: the quality of the athletes and the quality of the event’s promotion are two different things. ADCC can still deliver world-class matches while failing to generate the excitement that once surrounded the tournament.

The Las Vegas Years Raised the Bar

To understand why the current build-up feels disappointing, it is worth remembering what ADCC achieved during its recent American run.

The 2019 World Championships in Anaheim represented a major step forward. The event attracted a crowd that would have been difficult to imagine during the earlier years of professional grappling, and it helped establish ADCC as something more than a tournament followed primarily by dedicated practitioners.

Leon recalled the significance of that period:

“And at the time in 2019 when it was in the convention center in Anaheim with like, you know what was 4500 to 5,000 people like that was crazy for ADCC times. That was a huge revolution.”

The subsequent Las Vegas editions pushed the presentation even further. Large arenas, elaborate entrances, cinematic production, major athlete announcements and extensive media coverage helped create the feeling that ADCC was becoming the grappling equivalent of a major combat-sports championship.

The sport was no longer simply asking fans to appreciate the technical level of the matches. It was presenting its athletes as stars and its World Championships as an event worth traveling across the world to attend.

That is the standard against which ADCC 2026 is now being judged.

Did CJI Change the Trajectory of ADCC?

The 2024 edition was also a turning point, although not entirely for the reasons ADCC had intended.

Craig Jones launched the Craig Jones Invitational on the same weekend as ADCC, creating an unprecedented direct competitor to the sport’s most established no-gi tournament. CJI’s million-dollar prize purses, free broadcast and aggressive promotional strategy immediately captured the attention of the grappling community.

The result was a divided weekend. Fans, athletes, sponsors and media attention were split between two major events, and ADCC no longer had the stage entirely to itself.

It would be too simplistic to attribute every attendance or promotional challenge in 2024 solely to CJI. However, the competing event undeniably changed the conversation around professional grappling. It challenged ADCC’s position as the automatic destination for the sport’s biggest names and forced the organization to compete for attention in a way it had never previously experienced.

For many fans, CJI also demonstrated that professional grappling could be presented differently: with substantial athlete compensation, accessible broadcasting and a promotional style designed to reach audiences beyond the traditional BJJ community.

ADCC’s response in 2024 helped create one of the most talked-about weekends in grappling history. But it also marked the beginning of a more fragmented professional landscape.

The Absence of Mo Jassim

A significant part of the discussion surrounding ADCC 2026 concerns Mo Jassim, who was closely associated with the organization’s rise during the previous editions.

Jassim became known for his willingness to invest heavily in the event, pursue major matchups and promote ADCC with the ambition of a mainstream combat-sports production. His approach was not without controversy, but the events under his leadership helped establish a new benchmark for what a grappling tournament could look like.

His departure after the 2024 edition has left a noticeable gap in the event’s public identity.

Leon’s comments suggest that athletes themselves recognize the difference. The issue is not simply whether the current organizers can stage a technically successful tournament. It is whether they can reproduce the sense of anticipation that made previous ADCC editions feel like the center of the grappling world.

That requires more than booking an arena and assembling a strong roster. It requires a coherent promotional strategy, compelling athlete stories, consistent communication and the ability to make fans feel that they cannot afford to miss the event.

A Return to the ADCC of the 2010s?

For those who followed ADCC during the 2000s and 2010s, the current atmosphere may feel familiar.

The tournament has previously been held in European locations such as Barcelona, Nottingham and Espoo, Finland. Those editions featured outstanding athletes and historic performances, but they took place in a very different media environment.

Professional grappling was smaller, social media was less developed, and the sport did not yet have the same commercial infrastructure or mainstream visibility. Fans often had to search for results, wait for footage or rely on specialist websites and forums to follow the action.

Those events were important to the history of ADCC, but they did not generate the same level of global anticipation that the later American editions achieved.

The concern surrounding Krakow is that the tournament appears to be returning to that older model at a time when the sport has already demonstrated that it can operate on a much larger scale.

There is nothing inherently wrong with hosting ADCC in Europe. In fact, bringing the World Championships to different regions is important for the international development of grappling. The issue is whether the event is being promoted and presented with the ambition expected of the sport’s premier championship.

A Strong Roster, but Several Major Names Are Missing

The changing professional landscape has also affected the field of competitors.

A number of prominent athletes who might previously have been expected to appear at ADCC are absent from the 2026 lineup. Some have moved toward UFC BJJ, others are focused on MMA, while injuries, retirement and personal circumstances have also affected the roster.

The absence of athletes such as Mica Galvão, Diogo Reis, Giancarlo Bodoni and several other established names inevitably changes the competitive picture. UFC BJJ’s growing roster has also created a situation in which some of the sport’s leading athletes are no longer available to compete freely across rival promotions.

That does not mean the eventual ADCC champions will be undeserving. Every athlete who wins in Krakow will have earned the title by defeating the opponents in front of them.

But it does mean that the professional grappling landscape is no longer as unified as it once was. ADCC can still crown elite champions, but the claim that every division contains all of the world’s best available athletes has become more difficult to make.

The Names That Could Still Make ADCC 2026 Explode

The strange thing about this year’s muted build-up is that the actual brackets are still loaded with elite talent.

At 66kg, the division is extremely deep even without defending champion Diogo Reis. The biggest names include Dorian Olivarez, Diego “Pato” Oliveira, Fabricio Andrey, Kennedy Maciel and Gianni Grippo. On paper, this may actually be one of the most entertaining divisions of the tournament.

At 77kg, the absence of Mica Galvão leaves the title wide open, but the bracket remains stacked. Dante Leon, Mateusz Szczeciński, PJ Barch, Vagner Rocha, Tommy Langaker, Oliver Taza, Taylor Pearman and UFC veteran Mateusz Gamrot are all involved. Szczeciński, competing at home in Poland, could receive one of the biggest crowd reactions of the weekend.

The 88kg division has also been completely reshaped by the absence of Giancarlo Bodoni. Jozef Chen, Pawel Jaworski, Gustavo Batista, Lucas Kanard and Chris Wojcik are among the names who could take advantage of a very open bracket. Jaworski arrives in Krakow with serious momentum after his recent submission win over Rafael Lovato Jr. at ONE Championship.

At 99kg, ADCC arguably has its strongest division. Kaynan Duarte returns as the major name, but he is surrounded by serious threats including Adam Wardziński, Luke Griffith, Declan Moody, Michael Pixley, Eoghan O’Flanagan, Achilles Rocha and Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu. Duarte is also scheduled to face Yuri Simoes in the traditional ADCC Super Fight.

The +99kg division features defending champion Felipe Pena, alongside Victor Hugo, Dan Manasoiu, Haisam Rida, Josh Saunders, Brandon Reed, Ruslan Abdulaev, Pouya Rahmani and Roosevelt Sousa. Pena versus Victor Hugo is one of the obvious potential dream matchups in the bracket.

The women’s divisions also have several major names.

At 55kg, Mayssa Bastos is probably the biggest attraction, with Ana Mayordomo and Jasmine Rocha among the leading threats. At 65kg, defending champion Ana Carolina Vieira returns, with Sarah Galvão emerging as one of the most dangerous challengers. And at +65kg, the division could produce a fascinating clash between Helena Crevar and Gabi Pessanha, two athletes who represent very different styles and physical profiles.

So the issue with ADCC 2026 is not that the tournament lacks world-class grapplers.

It clearly does not.

The problem is that compared with the last few editions, far fewer people seem to know — or care — that all of these athletes are competing this weekend.

And that may be the most concerning part.

ADCC spent years building itself into an event where the tournament felt almost as important as the athletes themselves.

In 2026, the athletes may have to create that excitement on their own.

The Rise of UFC BJJ: A New Threat to ADCC’s Position

Another major factor behind ADCC’s changing landscape is the rapid rise of UFC BJJ. By offering athletes exclusive contracts, regular competition opportunities and a more predictable income, the promotion is giving elite grapplers a professional alternative to the traditional tournament circuit. The impact is already visible in the 2026 lineup. Andrew Tackett, Nick Rodriguez, Ffion Davies and Adele Fornarino are among the prominent names absent from ADCC, while Fornarino, the Australian who won double gold at ADCC 2024, has publicly explained that athlete compensation, women’s opportunities and concerns over ADCC’s decision-making influenced her withdrawal. William Tackett has also stated that he is earning more through UFC BJJ than he would by competing at ADCC.

The issue is not simply that athletes are choosing one promotion over another: exclusivity can prevent the sport’s best competitors from meeting on the same stage. UFC BJJ executive Claudia Gadelha has said that some contracted athletes received exceptions for ADCC 2026, but that those exceptions will not continue from 2027. If that policy remains in place and UFC BJJ continues signing the sport’s biggest stars, it could increasingly control where elite professional grapplers compete. That would give athletes greater financial stability, but it also raises a serious question about the future of open competition and whether any single tournament can still claim to crown the world’s best.

Europe Is Not the Problem

One argument in favor of the Polish edition is that it makes ADCC more accessible to athletes and fans who have historically faced greater difficulties traveling to the United States.

Leon himself acknowledged that the change of location may create a fairer opportunity for some international competitors.

“It almost seems more fair because they obviously have a lot of very good grapplers.”

European athletes, including competitors from Poland and other parts of the continent, have become increasingly important to the highest levels of no-gi grappling. Hosting ADCC in Krakow gives those athletes a rare opportunity to compete on the sport’s biggest stage closer to home.

The problem, therefore, is not the decision to leave Las Vegas. It is the apparent failure to maintain the promotional momentum that made the previous editions feel so significant.

A European ADCC should be capable of generating enormous excitement. The sport has the athletes, the audience and the international reach to make that happen.

The Competition May Still Deliver

Despite his concerns about the build-up, Leon was careful not to confuse reduced hype with reduced competitive quality.

“But I think if you focus on that, it could be like some false hope because there’s obviously a very very well-versed, deep skilled bracket kind of in every single division.”

That is an important reminder.

ADCC has repeatedly produced unforgettable moments even when the promotional build-up was limited. The tournament’s ruleset, prestige and demanding brackets create a level of pressure that few other grappling events can replicate.

Krakow may still deliver outstanding matches, breakout performances and new champions who become major stars in the years ahead. A quieter build-up does not necessarily mean a disappointing tournament.

But the fact that the competition may be excellent does not excuse weaknesses in how the event is presented to the public.

ADCC Needs to Think Bigger Again

The central issue is that professional grappling has moved forward, and expectations have changed with it.

Fans have now seen what is possible when a major tournament combines elite athletes with serious production, substantial promotion and a clear vision for growing the sport. The Las Vegas editions helped establish that standard, while CJI demonstrated that alternative organizations are willing to challenge it.

ADCC remains one of the most prestigious titles in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Its history, ruleset and competitive legacy cannot be replaced overnight.

However, prestige alone is no longer enough to guarantee that an event will dominate the attention of the grappling community.

The 2026 World Championships may prove to be a success once the athletes step onto the mats. But the build-up has raised legitimate questions about the organization’s direction, its promotional strategy and whether it is still committed to pushing the sport forward at the same pace as before.

For longtime fans, the hope is that Krakow does not represent a permanent return to the quieter ADCC era of the past.

The sport has already shown how big it can become. The challenge now is making sure its most prestigious tournament continues to grow with it.

Maybe ADCC 2026 will prove everyone wrong once the first matches begin. The talent is absolutely there. But the fact that a tournament containing Kaynan Duarte, Felipe Pena, Dante Leon, Mateusz Szczeciński, Jozef Chen, Mayssa Bastos, Gabi Pessanha and so many other elite grapplers can arrive with this little mainstream BJJ buzz should be a warning sign for the organization.

What do you think: has ADCC simply been poorly promoted this year, or has professional grappling moved beyond the point where one tournament can still feel like the undisputed center of the sport?

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