Italy’s UIJJ has rolled out a new Grand Slam format for the 2026/27 season built around a simple but demanding premise: win four consecutive events in the same division and complete the run. Pull it off and the payout is real, up to €10,000 for a black belt who manages to sweep both the Gi and No-Gi campaigns.
The structure breaks down into two separate €5,000 tracks. Completing the Grand Slam in Gi pays €5,000, and completing it in No-Gi pays another €5,000, meaning an athlete who runs the table in both disciplines walks away with €10,000 total across the four-event series.
UIJJ, for those unfamiliar with the organization, is the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition circuit run by the BJJ sector of FIJLKAM, overseeing competition, technical standards, referee development, belt certification and coach education throughout Italy. The Grand Slam arrives as the organization marks 15 years since its founding in 2011, and it’s being framed as just the first of several new initiatives on the way.
The four-event run kicks off at the Milano BJJ Challenge on November 28-29, followed by the Roma BJJ Challenge, the Bologna BJJ Challenge, and finally the Italian BJJ Open. To complete the Grand Slam, an athlete has to win the same weight division at every single one of those four events.
The payout structure is what makes the format especially interesting. A division win at each of the first three events pays €300 per discipline, or €600 if an athlete wins their weight category in both Gi and No-Gi at the same event. Arrive at the Italian BJJ Open still undefeated and win there too, and that final victory adds another €4,100, bringing the total to €5,000 for that discipline. Sweep both Gi and No-Gi across all four events, and the maximum climbs to €10,000.
Money already banked along the way isn’t at risk either. If an athlete wins in Milan and Rome but loses later in the series, the prizes already collected from those earlier wins stay theirs. Gi and No-Gi are also run as entirely separate campaigns, so a loss in No-Gi doesn’t disqualify an athlete who’s still undefeated in Gi, and the reverse holds true as well.
There are a handful of important catches. The Grand Slam is limited to athletes competing in the Adult black belt division, though competitors who would normally fall into a Master age bracket are still eligible as long as they enter and compete as Adults for the entire run. There’s also no jumping in partway through the season, Milan is mandatory, and only athletes who win their division at that opening event remain in contention for the rest of the series. An empty bracket doesn’t count either; a competitor has to actually contest and win at least one match for it to count toward the Grand Slam.
There’s no separate entry fee or additional registration required to take part. Eligible black belts simply enter the regular UIJJ event in Gi, No-Gi, or both, and as long as they meet the requirements, their Grand Slam campaign begins automatically from there.
The new format is part of a broader push from UIJJ, which has indicated that a wider rundown of upcoming projects, some aimed well beyond Italy and toward athletes across continental Europe, will be shared soon through its social channels. For now, though, the Grand Slam is the first initiative already on the table, and whether Europe’s established black belts decide to chase it should become clear over the next several months. Anyone hoping for a shot at the €5,000, or the full €10,000, has one place to start: Milan, November 28-29.
A freelance journalist with more than seven years of experience covering a wide range of topics, with a focus on delivering accurate, engaging, and well-researched reporting. He studied at the University of Birmingham, where he developed a strong foundation in journalism and communications. Martin is a 10th Planet BJJ brown belt and has been training for approximately 10 years and a keen follower of submission grappling.
