Host your own community tournament

If you run a chess club, a Discord server, a stream or any group of people who play together, you can host a tournament for them on Dream Games. You choose the game, the entry fee, the size and the start time. We run everything else: the entries, the draw, the clocks, the results and the payouts. When a hosted tournament settles, you receive 5% of its prize pool.

This article explains who can host, how to set one up, the rules your players will see, and exactly how the host's share works.

Who can host

Hosting is open to approved affiliates. You apply on the Become an affiliate page, telling us where you would promote Dream Games: a club, a channel, a community. We review every application by hand. Once yours is approved, tournament hosting is switched on for your account and we email you to say so.

You will also need an X handle on your profile. Every hosted tournament says who hosts it at the top of its page, and players should be able to see who they are playing for.

Setting one up

A hosted tournament has four settings:

• The game. Any game we offer for a stake, from chess and draughts to Othello and Hex.
• The entry fee. More than zero and up to 1,000 USDC. Hosted tournaments are always paid.
• The size. Thirty two or sixty four seats.
• The start time. Entries close 15 minutes before it.

You can have up to three hosted tournaments open at once. If you need to call one off, you can cancel it before the draw, and every player is refunded in full.

The rules your players see

A hosted tournament plays exactly like one of ours: a group stage, then a knockout with a third place match, 5 minutes on each player's clock, and the prize pool shared by the top three. Two rules are different, and both exist to protect your players.

It is fill or kill. A hosted tournament runs only if every seat is taken. If even one seat is empty when entries close, it is cancelled and every entry is refunded in full. Your players never end up in a half empty event, and nobody's fee is ever at risk in a field smaller than the one you advertised.

Pull-outs close early. Players can withdraw with a full refund until 1 hour before entries close. After that, the fee comes back only if the tournament is cancelled. That window gives everybody a settled field to plan around.

Players confirm these terms before they enter, so nobody is surprised by them.

How the host's share works

Every entry fee goes into one pool. When the tournament settles, the top three receive 90% of it between them, split 50%, 25% and 15%. The remaining 10% is our fee for running the tournament. Your 5% comes out of our 10%, never out of the prizes. Your players receive exactly what they would receive in a tournament we ran ourselves.

An example. A full thirty two seat tournament with a 10 USDC entry has a pool of 320 USDC. First place receives 160 USDC, second 80 USDC and third 48 USDC. Of the remaining 32 USDC, your share is 16 USDC and ours is 16 USDC. Your share is paid when the tournament settles, into your affiliate balance, and you can move it to your playing balance.

A few honest limits on that number:

• A tournament that does not fill is cancelled and pays nobody, including you. With fill or kill, an empty seat costs the whole event.
• The share is paid only while your affiliate account is active.
• Your 5% is of the pool, not of the field you hoped for. A smaller fee or a smaller field means a smaller share.

Treat it as a share of a fee when a full tournament finishes, not as money you can count on.

Hosting and referrals are separate

Approved affiliates can also earn from referrals: a share of our fee on the matches played by people who joined through your link, for a fixed period after they join. The Become an affiliate page shows the current rate and period. Tournament games do not count towards referral earnings. A hosted tournament earns you its host's share and nothing else.

Promoting it well

The players you bring are the reason a hosted tournament fills, so how you talk about it matters. A few rules apply to everyone who promotes Dream Games:

• Never promise winnings. Most players in any tournament will not finish in the top three, and they should know that before they enter.
• No countdowns, no pressure and no talk of winning money back.
• Never aim it at anybody under 18.
• Say where it is allowed. Playing for money is not lawful everywhere, and players must check the rules where they live.

The strongest pitch is the honest one: a fair field, a known prize split and a game your community already enjoys.

Getting started

Pick a game your players know well. If they are new to it, point them to practice first, which is free. Choose an entry fee your community is comfortable losing, and a size you are confident you can fill: thirty two seats filled is better than sixty four seats cancelled. Then set a start time with enough notice for people to plan, share the link, and let the tournament page do the rest.