Defining a new user role and designing a live stats capture flow for large-scale sports tournaments

Brackets is a web and mobile platform for sports tournament management. Administrators use the web tool to manage categories, teams, schedules, and results. Athletes follow game dates, results, standings, and live stats on the mobile app (iOS and Android).

Humberto and I co-founded Brackets in 2015. We paused the product and relaunched in 2026, after validating through tournament administrators that the tools available in the market were still generic, not user-friendly, and inaccessible to athletes, families, and friends.

We relaunched with a different focus: larger, semi-professional tournaments with hundreds of teams and full operations teams running the event.

Through conversations with administrators, we found partners who shared the same goal: improving the athlete experience as a real business objective. That alignment led us to two tournaments:

• ANUIES 2026 - National university basketball championship, 32+ teams
• Elite - One of the largest annual tournaments in Mexico, ~570 teams across 14 categories, played in Monterrey

The original admin tool was built for one person doing everything on their own time. At this scale, that model breaks down.

Larger tournaments have a dedicated scorekeeper who sits courtside and captures points and stats during the game. The old tool wasn't designed for that role, that pace, or that environment.

The product needed a new user, a new flow, and a new way of capturing stats.

As co-founder and product designer, I own the full design process on Brackets. For this work, I focused on:

• Understanding the scorekeeper's role and the operational context of large tournaments
• Designing a live stats capture flow for real-time game updates
• Designing the Digital Sheet, an offline version for venues with connectivity constraints
• Collaborating with Humberto (co-founder and developer) to align on feasibility and ship

We had a couple of conversations with the tournament administrator to understand their workflow and how scorekeepers work. These conversations helped us learn the different roles:

I worked with Humberto to define what the scorekeeper could and couldn't do inside Brackets. This wasn't just a UI decision, it was a product decision about access, management and responsibility.

Because this role was needed for ANUIES 2026, we defined a first journey for the scorekeeper:

The live capture flow needed to work for someone sitting courtside, focused on the game, capturing points, fouls, rebounds, steals and blocks as they happen. Every interaction needed to be fast and clear enough to keep up with the pace of play.

I designed the flow around:

• Recording a basket (1, 2, or 3 points) in the fewest clicks/taps possible
• Logging fouls per player without leaving the main capture screen
• Correcting a mistake on the spot, without interrupting the live flow
• Showing the live score for both teams, so the scorekeeper could self-check against what they were seeing on the court

We validated the flow live at ANUIES 2026 (May 2026), with real scorekeepers at the scoring table. Enrique, Humberto's brother and part of the Brackets team, was on site observing across multiple games.

What we learned mattered more than what we assumed.

Day 1 surfaced two real problems:

• Scorekeepers couldn't find their assigned game. The original flow required navigating through Games, finding the right one, editing it, then going live. Kiki had to personally guide scorekeepers through their first game at nearly every table.
• Fast sequences caused missed plays. During quick exchanges, scorekeepers fell behind by one or two actions. A narrator seated next to them helped catch what was missed in real time.

By Day 2, something important happened: the friction disappeared. Once scorekeepers had one game of practice, they moved through the flow with no questions and no negative feedback. One scorekeeper described it as "very user-friendly," another said "I picked it up right away."

Across the full tournament, there were only 4 discrepancies between the paper backup and Brackets, out of every point and stat captured live.

The Day 1 navigation friction was the clearest, most fixable signal from the tournament. Scorekeepers didn't need more training, they needed a shorter path to their game.

We defined a new flow and limited the scorekeeper's access. A scorekeeper:

• Can only see and capture the games assigned to them
• Can only start a game at the correct date and time
• Cannot edit a finished game, that stays an admin-only action
• Cannot access any tournament administration functions

Administrator also can define the scorekeepers court, so they will be able to see only their games for that day.

Our hypothesis: this keeps tournament data safe, and gives administrators confidence in the new role.

I designed a dedicated scorekeeper home screen showing only their assigned games right after login. No searching, no admin menus, no need for guidance.

This single change removes the exact friction that required hands-on support at ANUIES, and sets up Brackets to scale without needing a team member at every table.

After ANUIES, we regrouped as a team to discuss what went well and what we needed to fix to build a better product for all our users, administrators, scorekeepers, and athletes.

A few weeks later, we started conversations with the administrator for Elite. Elite is a different environment: around 570 teams, 14 categories, and a venue with limited connectivity. Live capture couldn't depend on a stable connection, so we designed an offline version, the Digital Sheet.

Unlike live capture, the Digital Sheet doesn't update stats in real time. The scorekeeper captures the game offline, and once it ends and a connection is available, it syncs and becomes visible to everyone.

Key decisions:

• Data saves locally during capture, so closing the tab or a device shutting down doesn't lose the game
• The scorekeeper can exit and return mid-game, resuming exactly where they left off
• The system confirms a successful sync, so the scorekeeper knows the data reached the server
• Once synced, the result looks identical to a live-captured game, so athletes and fans get the same experience either way

This flow is what makes Brackets usable at Elite's scale, where the venue's limits would otherwise block live capture entirely.

• The Elite tournament starts in July 2026. We are excited to test the Digital Sheet with real scorekeepers, in a venue with limited connectivity.
• At the same time, we are improving the athlete app across web, iOS, and Android. Fixing visual inconsistencies. Improving information architecture and hierarchy.
• Elite tournament is also a research opportunity. We plan to talk to athletes, coaches, and family and friends during the tournament. This is a rare chance to reach real users at a semi-professional level, and learn what matters most to them.

Brackets means designing for people on both sides of the game. For administrators, less manual work and clearer communication with teams. For athletes, real stats and game details in one place. Recognition for their effort. For family and friends, a live game to follow, and results the moment they happen. Adding the scorekeeper was never just a feature. It changed how the tournament runs, and it's the piece that makes the rest of the product work.

If Elite goes well, we believe Brackets can grow fast from here. There is a lot more we want to build.