View source for One-game playoff

{{Short description|Tiebreaker in some sports}}
{{distinguish|Play-in game}}
A '''one-game playoff''', sometimes known as a '''pennant playoff''', '''tiebreaker game''' or '''knockout game''', is a [[tiebreaker]] in certain sports—usually but not always professional—to determine which of two teams, tied in the final standings, will qualify for a post-season tournament. Such a playoff is either a single game or a short series of games (such as best-2-of-3).

This is distinguished from the more general usage of the term "[[playoff]]", which refers to the post-season tournament itself.

== Major League Baseball ==
{{See also|List of Major League Baseball tie-breakers|Major League Baseball tie-breaking procedures}}

One-game playoffs were used in [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) through the 2021 season. When two or more MLB teams were tied for a division championship or the [[Wild card (sports)#Major League Baseball|wild card]] playoff berth (1995–2011, or starting in 2012, the second only) at the end of the regular season, a one-game playoff was used to determine the winner.

If a tie were (from 1995 to 2011) a two-way tie for a division championship and both tied teams' have records higher than those records of the second-place teams in the other divisions, or (from 2012) between the two division non-champions with the untied best record, no one-game playoff was played. In this scenario, the winner of the season series between the two teams wins the tiebreaker for purposes of playoff seeding.<ref name="rule33">{{cite press release | title = 2003 postseason tiebreakers: Excerpts from Major League Rule 33 and Major League Rule 34 | publisher = [[Major League Baseball]] | date = September 8, 2003 | url = http://www.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20030908&content_id=517243&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb | access-date = September 28, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070822145652/http://www.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20030908&content_id=517243&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb | archive-date = August 22, 2007 | url-status = dead }}</ref> Through the [[2008 Major League Baseball season|2008 season]], home-field advantage for one-game playoffs was determined by a [[coin flipping|coin flip]], but effective from {{mlby|2009}}, home advantage was based on a set of performance criteria, with the first tiebreaker being head-to-head record.<ref name="2009 changes">{{cite press release | title = Ownership approves two major rules amendments | publisher = [[Major League Baseball]] | date = January 15, 2009 | url = http://mlb.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20090115&content_id=3745318&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb | access-date = January 15, 2009 | archive-date = February 21, 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090221151131/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20090115&content_id=3745318&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb | url-status = dead }}</ref>

For statistical purposes, one-game playoffs were considered part of the regular season. In a 162-game regular season, a one-game playoff was often referred to as “game 163”. The result of the playoff was included in the regular season standings and individual player statistics were included along with the statistics for the rest of the season. One significant playoff-like deviation from normal regular season games in force {{As of|2007|lc=on}} was that six-man [[umpire (baseball)|umpire]] crews were used (as opposed to the four-man crews of the regular season).<ref>[http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2007_10_01_sdnmlb_colmlb_1 Official boxscore for the 2007 playoff names a six man umpiring crew] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012173923/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2007_10_01_sdnmlb_colmlb_1 |date=October 12, 2007 }}</ref> Also, television broadcasting rights for all were negotiated by MLB – from 2012 to 2021, the network owning the rights to the [[Major League Baseball Wild Card Game|Wild Card Game]] for a particular league has also had the rights to any tiebreaker(s) that might occur in that league.

MLB scheduling practices stipulated a break of at least one day between the scheduled end of the regular season and the start of the postseason. The schedule was designed to maximize the probability that tiebreakers could take place on the day after the scheduled end of the regular season with no alterations to the postseason schedule needing to be made as a result. Nevertheless, the schedule could have been disrupted if rain-outs or other such events disrupted the schedule near the end of the season or on the day set aside for tiebreakers, and the tie-breaking procedure and scheduling would have become more complicated if three or more teams had tied.<ref name="rule33" /> That would have required a series of one-game playoffs, taking more than one day. A series of one-game playoffs would have also been necessary if teams had tied for their division title also tied for the second wild card – in such a case, the division title would have been settled first, with the loser of that game then contesting a tiebreaker for the last wild card berth. There have been several occasions where such scenarios were possible as late as the last game of the season, but it never happened. To provide some additional flexibility in case of make-up games and/or complicated playoff scenarios, an additional break of one day was always scheduled between the wild card game and the start of the [[Division Series]] in each league. 

Starting in 2012, with the Wild Card game between the top two teams who did not win their division, if two teams tie for a division title and both are in the playoffs, a one-game playoff was held because it would determine which team advances to the Division Series, and the loser would play in the wild card game only if its regular-season record since it was among the league's two best records for non-division-winners. When two teams tied for the top two wild card positions, an extra game was not held – performance-based criteria were used in that case to determine the home team for the Wild Card Game.

Finally, although tiebreaker games counted in the regular season standings and ultimately reflected in the team’s final records, they did not count for the purposes of determining subsequent postseason qualification, seeding, and home-field advantage. For example, if two teams had tied for their division title and also tied with the runner-up of another division for the wild card, the loser of the division tiebreaker would have still hosted the team tied for the wild card (whether in another tiebreaker for the second wild card or in the Wild Card Game itself) based on performance-based criteria, even though in that scenario though they would have technically lost one more regular season game and therefore be a half [[games behind|game behind]] in the standings. However, if a team in such a scenario had lost a divisional tiebreaker and then won a tiebreaker for the second wild card, it would have actually finished a half game behind the division winner and a half game ahead of third place in the wild card standings. 

Avoiding any confusion with the term "Playoffs" as the often used but unofficial name of MLB's post-season tournament, the term "Tiebreaker" was MLB's preferred term for a one-game playoff.

Beginning with the 2022 season, MLB eliminated tiebreakers while expanding the postseason to six teams per league.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/what-the-new-12-team-mlb-playoffs-will-look-like-and-how-it-would-have-looked-in-recent-years/|title=What the new 12-team MLB playoffs will look like, and how it would have looked in recent years|work=CBS Sports|date=March 10, 2022|accessdate=March 12, 2022}}</ref> 

=== History ===
Through the 2013 MLB season, there have been 14 occasions where a tiebreaker was needed in a league, division, or wild card race. Of these tiebreakers, ten have been one-game playoffs and the other four were best-of-three playoffs. Prior to the advent of divisional play in 1969, the National League broke ties for its league championship with a best-of-three-games playoff – incidentally, all four of these series were ultimately won by the team that won the first game. The American League has always used one-game playoffs.

Prior to the advent of the wild card playoff system in 1994, all five pennant playoffs in the National League had involved the [[Los Angeles Dodgers|Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers]] (who won the coin toss for home field advantage all five times, yet lost every year except 1959), and both American League playoffs had involved the [[Boston Red Sox]] (who hosted both and lost both).

The 2018 season was the first to see two one-game playoffs, both for division titles (the NL Central and NL West) – the first time divisional one-game playoffs were needed at all since the MLB postseason expanded to ten teams. Both were in the National League and meant that the Game 163 winners won the division and advanced to the LDS, while the losers met each other in the [[2018 National League Wild Card Game|Wild Card Game]]. Under the pre-2012 format, only the NL West tiebreaker would have been played since the NL Central runner-up would have been assured the Wild Card. It was the first time that the loser of a tiebreaker game still qualified for the postseason.

=== No playoff needed ===
Since the advent of the wild card in 1995, there have been three occasions on which a tiebreaker was not played as the two teams that were tied for a division lead and the wild card. In [[2001 Major League Baseball season|2001]], the [[2001 Houston Astros season|Houston Astros]] and [[2001 St. Louis Cardinals season|St. Louis Cardinals]] tied for first in the [[National League Central]] with records of 93–69. In [[2005 Major League Baseball season|2005]], the [[2005 New York Yankees season|New York Yankees]] and [[2005 Boston Red Sox season|Boston Red Sox]] each finished 95–67 in the [[American League East]]. In [[2006 Major League Baseball season|2006]], the [[2006 San Diego Padres season|San Diego Padres]] and [[2006 Los Angeles Dodgers season|Los Angeles Dodgers]] finished tied with records of 88–74 in the [[National League West]]. The team with the better head-to-head record (the 2001 Astros, 2005 Yankees, and 2006 Padres) was declared the division champion, thus receiving a better seed in the postseason. The other team was seeded as the wild card.

Since 2012, when the [[Major League Baseball Wild Card Game|Wild Card Game]] was introduced, if two teams are tied for the first Wild Card spot, no tie-breaking game was played. Rather, both teams simply played each other in the Wild Card Game, with the team winning the regular season series hosting the Wild Card Game.{{Efn|Note that when the head-to-head matchup was a draw, home-field advantage in all scenarios listed below went to the team with the superior intradivision record or, failing that, the team with the better intraleague record.|name=renamed_from_1_on_20220224033720|group=note}} This has occurred in 2012 ([[2012 Baltimore Orioles season|Baltimore Orioles]] and [[2012 Texas Rangers season|Texas Rangers]] were both 93–69; Texas hosted the game due to winning the season series 5–2), 2014 ([[2014 Pittsburgh Pirates season|Pittsburgh Pirates]] and [[2014 San Francisco Giants season|San Francisco Giants]] were both 88–74; Pittsburgh hosted due to winning the season series 4–2), 2016 ([[2016 Baltimore Orioles season|Baltimore Orioles]] and [[2016 Toronto Blue Jays season|Toronto Blue Jays]] were both 89–73; Toronto hosted due to winning the season series 4–3; also [[2016 San Francisco Giants season|San Francisco Giants]] and [[2016 New York Mets season|New York Mets]] were both 85–77; New York hosted due to winning the season series), and 2021 ([[Yankees–Red Sox rivalry|New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox]] were both 92–70; Boston hosted due to winning the season series 10–9). Previously, these matchups would have served as tiebreaker games.

=== Make-up games ===
On some occasions a previously postponed game may be made up at the end of the season to settle entry into the playoffs.  Although such a game is technically a mere regular-season game, it can have the effect and feel of a playoff.

On September 23, 1908, [[Johnny Evers]] of the [[Chicago Cubs]] [[Merkle's Boner|capitalized on a base-running mistake]] by young [[Fred Merkle]] of the [[New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]] to invalidate a game-ending winning run.  As thousands of fans were on the field and darkness was approaching, the game did not immediately resume.  As it turned out, the [[1908 Chicago Cubs season|Cubs]] and [[1908 New York Giants season|Giants]] ended the season in a tie for the pennant, and the postponed game was replaced by a new game played on October 8, 1908, at the [[Polo Grounds]]. The Cubs prevailed 4–2, and advanced to the [[1908 World Series]].

In [[2008 Major League Baseball season#Weather|2008]], the [[2008 Chicago White Sox season|Chicago White Sox]] ended the season {{frac|1|2}} game behind the [[2008 Minnesota Twins season|Minnesota Twins]] for the [[American League Central]] division title. The fractional difference was due to the September 13 game between the White Sox and the [[2008 Detroit Tigers season|Detroit Tigers]], which had been rained out and not yet rescheduled. To determine whether, if the game had not been rained out, there would have been a tie between the Twins and White Sox, the White Sox and Tigers played the make-up game at the end of the season on September 29. The White Sox won, resulting in a tie that necessitated playing a one-game playoff in Chicago, which the White Sox won 1–0. Make-up games were also played after the season's end in [[1973 in baseball#October–December|1973]] and [[1981 in baseball#October–December|1981]].

Between 1901 and 1938, during a time when games were more often delayed by darkness and not always made up, there have been at least nine occasions on which making up postponed games might have resulted in a different pennant outcome, but the games were not made up.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dugoutcentral.com/blog/?p=1910 |title=Makeups and Tiebreakers That Never Happened |work=DugoutCentral.com |author=Kerry Whisnant |date=October 3, 2008 |access-date=October 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006023859/http://www.dugoutcentral.com/blog/?p=1910 |archive-date=October 6, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Even today, make-up games that cannot be played before the scheduled end of the regular season are only played if there is a possibility their results could affect postseason qualification.

==National Football League==
The [[National Football League]] (NFL) now has an elaborate formula for breaking ties in the qualification for its playoffs, and in the highly unlikely event that two teams are tied in all enumerated statistical criteria, the rules stipulate that a [[coin toss]] settles the tie, meaning one game playoffs are no longer possible. 

However, before the [[AFL–NFL merger|merger]] of the NFL and the [[American Football League]] (AFL) in {{nfly|1970}}, it was possible to have a playoff game if two teams tied for a division title. The NFL had nine of these playoffs occur between [[1941 NFL playoffs|1941]] and [[1965 NFL playoffs|1965]], and the AFL, whose records were fully integrated with the NFL's upon merger, had two such playoffs ([[1963 American Football League Championship Game#Eastern Division playoff|1963]], [[1968–69 American Football League playoffs|1968]]). The [[All-America Football Conference]] (AAFC), which [[1950 NFL season#The AAFC–NFL merger|merged]] with the NFL after the {{nfly|1949}} season, also held a playoff tiebreaker game in [[All-America Football Conference#1948|1948]], but unlike the AFL's playoff games, the AAFC's records are not recognized by the older league.

The [[1932 Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears]] and the [[1932 Portsmouth Spartans season|Portsmouth Spartans]] of the NFL tied for first place at the end of the {{nfly|1932}} season, and as both their games ended in ties, they held an extra game to determine the champion. Unlike subsequent post-season playoffs, this [[1932 NFL Playoff Game|game]] was considered part of the regular season, as per baseball tie-breaking playoff games described above.

The great interest generated by the 1932 playoff game led the NFL to split into two divisions in {{nfly|1933}}, and began playing a single post-season [[NFL Championship]] game. If two teams in a single division tied for first place, the rules also provided for a one-game tie-breaking playoff to determine which team would advance to the league championship game. 

The NFL did have at least one tiebreaker prior to this, one that came into play for determining the [[1921 NFL Championship controversy|1921]] title; if two teams tied each other in the standings and played twice, each winning one, then the winner of the second game won the title. This was of no use in 1932 because the Bears and Spartans had tied each other in their two matchups that year, and the NFL abandoned it.

This was the practice from 1933 through {{nfly|1966}}; unlike the 1932 contest, these tiebreakers were not part of the regular season's standings. 

The league's last one-game playoff occurred in 1965; in {{nfly|1967}}, when it split into four divisions, it was deemed unfeasible to continue the traditional one game playoffs since the [[Super Bowl|World Championship Game]] against the AFL was scheduled for a specific day at a neutral site. Since then the NFL has used a set of [[NFL playoffs#Breaking ties|tiebreaking rules]] to break ties.

The&nbsp;AFL did not immediately follow suit since it was still a two division league, therefore there was room in the schedule to accommodate a divisional tiebreaker. The last tiebreaker game in professional football was played in the [[1968 American Football League season|1968]], when the [[Oakland Raiders]] defeated the [[Kansas City Chiefs]] to win the [[AFC West|West]] and set up a rematch of the famous [[Heidi Game]] against the [[New York Jets]]. The Jets, who had won the [[AFC East|East]] outright, defeated the Raiders and went on to stun the heavily favored NFL champion [[Baltimore Colts]] in [[Super Bowl III]].

Besides simply dismissing the Jets' win as a "fluke" NFL loyalists, smarting from the shock defeat to the Jets, complained that the Jets had benefited from an "unfair" advantage since they were the only playoff team in professional football with a bye in the Divisional round. Under pressure from NFL Commissioner [[Pete Rozelle]] (whom the AFL had recognized as the overall chief executive of pro football when the merger was first agreed in 1966), the AFL agreed to adopt tiebreakers until its [[1969 American Football League season|final season]] before the merger, and also to grant division runners-up a playoff berth, so as to ensure the NFL and AFL champions would play an equal number of games. Ultimately, there were no ties in the 1969 AFL season for first or second place, and the AFL champion Chiefs (who were AFL West runners-up) nevertheless defeated the [[Minnesota Vikings]] to win [[Super Bowl IV]].

Today in the NFL, division winners and playoff qualifiers are technically determined by [[winning percentage]], not by number of wins. 

Prior to {{nfly|1972}}, ties did not count for the purposes of this calculation. So, for example, if one team finished 11–3 and another 10–2–2, there was no tiebreaker, as the team with two ties would have been deemed the outright division winners. This made tie games, a fairly common occurrence in football before [[overtime (sports)|overtime]] was introduced in {{nfly|1974}}, somewhat more valuable to teams compared to the half-win they are considered today. 

Today, two ties are of exactly equal strength to a win for the purpose of breaking ties since, unlike many other North American leagues, the current NFL tiebreaking criteria do not prioritize one win over two ties (or vice versa) in any way. However, since the introduction of overtime beginning with the 1974 regular season this has been essentially an academic point since no team has ever tied more than once in a season during the overtime era.

Both the NFL and AFL had provisions prior to their merger to allow for two weeks of one-game playoffs if three or four teams tied for a division title. Despite the relatively high probability of such a tie happening in a 12 or 14-game schedule compared to a longer season, this scenario never took place prior to the abolition of one-game playoffs.

The closest a three-way tie for a division came to happening was in {{nfly|1957}} when the [[1957 Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions]], [[1957 San Francisco 49ers season|San Francisco 49ers]], and [[1957 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]] all entered the final week of the season with identical 7–4 records. With none of those three teams playing each other in the last week, a three-way tie seemed likely until the Colts lost<!-- their final game-->, leaving the Lions and 49ers to contest the [[1957 NFL playoffs|playoff]] between themselves; the Lions went on to win the [[1957 NFL Championship Game|NFL championship]], their last as of 2024. A somewhat similar situation occurred in [[1950 NFL playoffs|1950]],  when there was a tie in both divisions, requiring two playoffs.

While there are no one-game playoffs in the NFL today, current scheduling practices (which include exclusively intradivisional matchups at the end of the season), combined with the NFL's short schedule, make it possible that the last week of the regular season will include a winner-take-all game between two teams, which has the effect and feel of a one-game playoff. Typically, such games will be scheduled for prime time under the NFL's flexible scheduling policy (provided their result does not carry potential playoff implications for other teams; the NFL's current scheduling rules dictate that games with mutual playoff implications in the final week of the season must start at the same time).

For example, the [[New York Giants]] and [[Dallas Cowboys]] entered the final week of the [[2011 NFL season]] tied at 8–7 for first place in the [[NFC East]]. The teams, scheduled to play in Dallas, were both out of contention for a wild card berth, meaning the winner of the game would win the division, while the loser would miss the playoffs altogether. The Giants defeated the Cowboys and went on to win [[Super Bowl XLVI|the Super Bowl]]. 

===NFL tiebreaker playoffs===
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division{{efn|group=C|While tie-breaker games were in use, NFL teams were grouped into two divisions ({{nfly|1933}}–{{nfly|1966}})}}<!-- Point differential was introduced in 1967, which eliminated the Baltimore Colts (11-2-1) that season.-->
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Score
!Championship Game
|-
|[[1941 NFL season|1941]]
|West
|'''[[1941 Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears]]'''
|[[1941 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]]
|33–14
|'''Bears''' defeated the [[1941 New York Giants season|New York Giants]], [[1941 NFL Championship Game|37–9]]
|-
|[[1943 NFL season|1943]]
|East
|[[1943 Washington Redskins season|Washington Redskins]]
|'''[[1943 New York Giants season|New York Giants]]'''
|28–0
|Redskins lost to the '''[[1943 Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears]]''', [[1943 NFL Championship Game|41–21]]
|-
|[[1947 NFL season|1947]]
|East
|[[1947 Philadelphia Eagles season|Philadelphia Eagles]]
|'''[[1947 Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers]]'''
|21–0
|Eagles lost to the '''[[1947 Chicago Cardinals season|Chicago Cardinals]]''', [[1947 NFL Championship Game|28–21]]
|-
|rowspan="2"|[[1950 NFL season|1950]]
|American
|'''[[1950 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]]'''
|[[1950 New York Giants season|New York Giants]]
|8–3
|rowspan="2"|'''Browns''' defeated the Rams, [[1950 NFL Championship Game|30–28]]
|-
|National
|'''[[1950 Los Angeles Rams season|Los Angeles Rams]]'''
|[[1950 Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears]]
|24–14
|-
|[[1952 NFL season|1952]]
|National
|'''[[1952 Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions]]'''
|[[1952 Los Angeles Rams season|Los Angeles Rams]]
|31–21
|Lions defeated the '''[[1952 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]]''', [[1952 NFL Championship Game|17–7]]
|-
|[[1957 NFL season|1957]]
|West
|[[1957 Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions]]
|'''[[1957 San Francisco 49ers season|San Francisco 49ers]]'''
|31–27
|'''Lions''' defeated the [[1957 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]], [[1957 NFL Championship Game|59–14]]
|-
|[[1958 NFL season|1958]]
|East
|'''[[1958 New York Giants season|New York Giants]]'''
|[[1958 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]]
|10–0
|'''Giants''' lost to the [[1958 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]], [[1958 NFL Championship Game|23–17 {{small|(OT)}}]]
|-
|[[1965 NFL season|1965]]
|West
|'''[[1965 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]]'''
|[[1965 Baltimore Colts season|Baltimore Colts]]
|13–10 {{sup|<small>(OT)</small>}}
|'''Packers''' defeated the [[1965 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]], [[1965 NFL Championship Game|23–12]]
|}
:*<small>Home teams in '''bold'''</small>
{{notelist|group=C}}

=== AFL tiebreaker playoffs ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Score
!Championship Game
|-
|[[1963 American Football League season|1963]]
|align=center|[[1963 American Football League season#Regular season|East]]
|[[1963 Boston Patriots season|Boston Patriots]]
|'''[[1963 Buffalo Bills season|Buffalo Bills]]'''
|align=center|26–8
|Patriots lost to the '''[[1963 San Diego Chargers season|San Diego Chargers]]''', [[1963 American Football League Championship Game|51–10]]
|-
|[[1968 American Football League season|1968]]
|align=center|[[1963 American Football League season#Regular season|West]]
|'''[[1968 Oakland Raiders season|Oakland Raiders]]'''
|[[1968 Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs]]
|align=center|41–6
|Raiders lost to the '''[[1968 New York Jets season|New York Jets]]''', [[1968 American Football League Championship Game|27–23]]
|}
:*<small>Home team in '''bold'''</small>

=== AAFC one-game playoff ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Score
!Championship Game
|-
|[[All-America Football Conference#1948|1948]]
|align=center|East
|[[Buffalo Bills (AAFC)|Buffalo Bills]]{{efn|group=a|Not to be confused with the present-day [[Buffalo Bills]] or [[Indianapolis Colts]], the latter of whom were originally based in Baltimore and joined the NFL three years after the [[All-America Football Conference|AAFC]] Colts folded, while the current Buffalo Bills joined the NFL (from the [[American Football League|AFL]]) 20 years after the AAFC team folded.}}{{spaces|7}}
|'''[[Baltimore Colts (1947–50)|Baltimore Colts]]'''{{spaces|3}}
|28–17
|Bills lost to the [[1948 Cleveland Browns season|Cleveland Browns]], 49–7
|}
:*<small>Home team in '''bold'''</small>
{{notelist|group=A}}

==Canadian Football League==
Like in the NFL, one-game tiebreaking playoffs were a regular feature in the early years of the provincial competitions that were eventually consolidated into today's [[Canadian Football League]] in 1958. They were abandoned in the mid-1930s as Canadian football evolved from consisting of provincial leagues to two regional conferences (the [[Interprovincial Rugby Football Union]] and [[Western Interprovincial Football Union]]). Previously, the regional Eastern and Western champions that played in the [[Grey Cup]] were determined by playoffs between the winners of each region's leagues. These regional playoffs were sufficiently popular (and the teams were so dependent on gate receipts in the then-short season available to play football in Canada) that the regional conferences implemented a format that ensured playoffs were contested every season as opposed to only those where ties needed to be broken.

The current tiebreaking criteria are substantially different in the CFL compared to the NFL, although like the NFL it culminates in a coin toss in the highly unlikely event all specified performance-based criteria cannot break a tie at the end of the regular season. Also unlike the NFL (which determines its standings strictly by winning percentage only), the CFL and its antecedent competitions have always awarded "points" in the standings in the same manner as is done in [[ice hockey]] (which is by far Canada's most popular sport) as well as other codes of football especially [[Rugby football|rugby]] from which the gridiron codes evolved. Teams receive two points for a win and one for a tie. Starting in 2000, the CFL also experimented with awarding a point for an overtime loss as is typically done in hockey today, but dropped the "OTL" point after only three seasons. A tie has therefore always effectively counted as a "half-win" in the standings in Canadian football, with the caveat that in all tie-breakers in force since the end of tiebreaking playoffs, the first tiebreaker (other than for determining a crossover team) has always been number of wins (same as in hockey) whereas, as mentioned earlier, number of wins compared to ties has never been a tiebreaking criterium in the NFL.

==National Basketball Association==
In its early years, the [[National Basketball Association]] held tie-breaker games at the end of the season, if necessary. The first two games (a three team playoff) were played during the 1947–48 season, the league's second year in existence, when it was still known as the [[Basketball Association of America]]. The second of these, however, was only used to determine the playoff seeding for the [[Chicago Stags]] and [[Baltimore Bullets (1944–54)|Baltimore Bullets]]. In fact, five of the eight one-game playoffs in NBA history were used for seeding purposes, and both teams advanced to the playoffs despite the outcome.

The [[American Basketball Association]], which formed in 1967, did not hold a tie-breaker game in its first season, when the [[Kentucky Colonels]] and [[New Jersey Americans]] (later known as the New York Nets, New Jersey Nets, and currently as the [[Brooklyn Nets]]) tied for fourth place in the Eastern Division with a record of 36–42. A game was scheduled between the two teams in New Jersey, but the [[Teaneck Armory|Americans' facility]] was booked and the [[Long Island Arena|replacement site]] picked by the team was in such poor condition that they were forced to forfeit the game by the league office. The Colonels were given the playoff spot despite going just 4–7 against the Americans during the regular season. The next time two teams finished tied for the final playoff spot in a division, the ABA did hold a tie-breaker game. The ABA would later [[ABA–NBA merger|merge]] with the NBA, with four teams from the ABA joining the NBA: the [[Denver Nuggets]], [[Indiana Pacers]], New York Nets and [[San Antonio Spurs]].

=== NBA one game playoffs ===

Home team in '''bold'''.

{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Score
!Afterward
|-
|rowspan=2|[[1947–48 NBA season|1947–48]]
|West tie-breaker
|'''[[Chicago Stags]]'''
|[[Washington Capitols]]
|74–70
|rowspan=2|Second game was for seeding purposes only, and both teams advanced to the playoffs. <br />Stags lost to the Bullets in the semifinals. <br />Bullets defeated the [[Philadelphia Warriors]] in the BAA Finals.
|-
|West 2nd place
|[[Baltimore Bullets (1944–54)|Baltimore Bullets]]{{efn|group=B|Not to be confused with the modern day [[Washington Wizards]], who were known as the Baltimore Bullets from 1965 to 1973}}
|'''[[Chicago Stags]]'''
|75–72
|-
|[[1949–50 NBA season|1949–50]]
|Central 1st place
|[[Minneapolis Lakers]]
|'''[[Rochester Royals]]'''
|78–76
|This game was for the division title only, and both teams still advanced to the playoffs. <br />Royals lost the [[Fort Wayne Pistons]] in the Central Division Semifinals. <br />Lakers defeated the [[Syracuse Nationals]] in the NBA Finals.
|-
|rowspan=2|[[1955–56 NBA season|1955–56]]
|East 3rd place
|'''[[Syracuse Nationals]]'''
|[[New York Knicks]]
|82–77
|Nationals lost to the [[Philadelphia Warriors]] in Eastern Division Finals.
|-
|West 2nd place
|[[Minneapolis Lakers]]
|'''[[St. Louis Hawks]]'''
|103–97
|This game was for seeding purposes, and both teams advanced to the playoffs.<br />Lakers lost to the Hawks in the Western Division semifinals.<br />Hawks lost to the [[Fort Wayne Pistons]] in the Western Division Finals.
|-
|rowspan=2|[[1956–57 NBA season|1956–57]]
|West tie-breaker
|'''[[St. Louis Hawks]]'''
|[[Fort Wayne Pistons]]
|115–103
|rowspan=2|These games were for seeding purposes, and all three teams advanced to the playoffs.<br />Pistons lost to the Lakers in the Western Division Semifinals<br />Lakers lost to the Hawks in the Western Division Finals.<br />Hawks lost to the [[Boston Celtics]] in the NBA Finals.
|-
|West 1st place
|'''[[St. Louis Hawks]]'''
|[[Minneapolis Lakers]]
|114–111 <small>(OT)</small>
|}
{{notelist|group=B}}

=== ABA one game playoffs ===

Home team in '''bold'''.

{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Score
!Afterward
|-
|[[1968 ABA Playoffs|1967–68]]
|East 4th place
|[[Kentucky Colonels]]
|'''[[New Jersey Americans]]'''
|1–0 forfeit
|Colonels lost to the [[Minnesota Muskies]] in the Eastern Division Semifinals
|-
|[[1971 ABA Playoffs|1970–71]]
|West 4th place
| [[Texas Chaparrals]]
|'''[[Denver Rockets]]'''
|115–109
|Chaparrals lost to the [[Utah Stars]] in the Western Division Semifinals
|-
|[[1974 ABA Playoffs|1973–74]]
|West 4th place
| [[San Diego Conquistadors]] 
|'''[[Denver Rockets]]'''
|131–111
|Conquistadors lost to the [[Utah Stars]] in the Western Division Semifinals
|-
|[[1975 ABA Playoffs|1974–75]]
|East 1st place
|'''[[Kentucky Colonels]]'''
|[[New York Nets]]
|108–99
|Colonels defeated the [[Memphis Sounds]] in the Eastern Division Semifinals, the [[Spirits of St. Louis]] in the Eastern Division Finals, and the [[Indiana Pacers]] in the ABA Championship Series.  Nets lost to the Spirits of St. Louis in the Eastern Division Semifinals
|}

The New Jersey Americans (now the [[Brooklyn Nets]] of the NBA) forfeited the 1968 playoff game to the Kentucky Colonels when the [[Commack Arena]] on [[Long Island]], where the game was scheduled to be played, was deemed unsuitable due to a wet floor from a leaky [[ice hockey]] surface.

==National Hockey League==
Though the [[National Hockey League]], currently the only major professional [[ice hockey]] league in North America, has never actually held a one-game playoff in its century long existence, its current playoff qualification rules explicitly allow for the possibility. Under current rules, a tie between two teams for a conference's final playoff berth (this being the second wild card seed of a conference under the current format) can only be broken by the following tie-breakers:

# The greater number of ''regulation wins'' only (used since the [[2019–20 NHL season]], reflected by the RW statistic).
# The greater number of ''regulation and overtime wins'', excluding shootouts (used since the [[2010–11 NHL season]], reflected by the ROW statistic).
# The greater number of total wins, including shootouts.
# The greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs. head-to-head results,<ref>In cases where NHL teams play an odd number of games between each other in the regular season, the first home game of the team which hosted more games is excluded for the purpose of determining the better head-to-head record</ref>
## If two clubs are tied, and have not played an equal number of home games against each other, the points earned and available in the first game played in the city of the club that had the greater number of home games in games between the two are not included.
## If more than two clubs are tied, the higher percentage of available points earned in games among those clubs, and not including any "odd" games, are used to determine the standing. The "odd" games are identical to those mentioned in the previous paragraph, that is, the first game in the city of the club that has had more home games in games between each club in the tie. Note that, because of this procedure, if two teams in the multi team tie (also applicable in a two team tie) have only played once against each other, the points earned in that game are not included.
# The greater differential between goals for and goals against during the entire regular season.
# The greater number of goals for (used since the [[2019–20 NHL season]], reflected by the GF statistic).
# If two clubs are still tied on all six tiebreakers listed above, a one-game playoff is played under Stanley Cup playoff rules.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|date=April 6, 2018|title=Flyers, Panthers could have play-in game to determine final playoff berth|url=https://www.nhl.com/news/philadelphia-flyers-florida-panthers-could-need-play-in-game/c-297737130|access-date=April 7, 2018|publisher=NHL.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407053645/https://www.nhl.com/news/philadelphia-flyers-florida-panthers-could-need-play-in-game/c-297737130|archive-date=April 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Skiver |first=Kevin |date=April 6, 2018 |title=NHL announces possible Game 83 if Flyers and Panthers tie in standings |url=https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/nhl-announces-possible-game-83-if-flyers-and-panthers-tie-in-standings/ |access-date=2023-04-16 |website=CBSSports.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Hackett |first=Tim |date=April 6, 2018 |title=Here's the Crazy Scenario That Would Result in an NHL Tiebreaker Game |url=https://www.si.com/nhl/2018/04/06/nhl-playoff-picture-tiebreaker-game-scenario-flyers-panthers}}</ref>

Prior to the 2005 introduction of the shootout in the NHL, ROW was simply referred to as "wins" for tiebreaker purposes. The right to host such a game would be determined by a random draw.

Like in MLB, such a game in the NHL is considered a regular season game for statistical purposes except that the points earned ''do not'' count for playoff seeding purposes – in other words, the winner would enter the playoffs as the second wild card even if the two points they earned nominally caused them to otherwise tie or overtake other qualifying teams in total points, and the loser would be eliminated even if they lost in overtime and the single point they earned nominally allowed them to do the same in that manner. The other main difference from an ordinary regular season game is that [[Stanley Cup playoffs|playoff overtime rules]] (that is, 5-on-5, unlimited 20-minute overtime periods with no shootout until one team scores) would be used if necessary.

A one-game playoff is not held simply to determine playoff seeding and/or draft lottery position for non-playoff teams; league rules in these cases mandate a more exhaustive set of tiebreakers culminating in a random drawing to determine playoff seeding and/or final regular season standing. The more exhaustive set of tiebreakers is also used in the extremely unlikely event of three or more teams in a conference tied in points, RW, ROW, all wins, head-to-head results, overall goal differential, and overall goals scored. In this case, the more exhaustive criteria would be used to determine the club(s) which would qualify (in case of two available berths) or not qualify (in case of one available berth) without playing a one-game playoff, which would then be held between the two remaining teams if and only if they were also tied between each other in the criteria listed above, (e.g., intra-divisional and intra-conference record). It is therefore impossible for there to be two or more one-game playoffs in a conference in a particular season.

===Recent scenarios===

In its modern era, the NHL has provisionally scheduled a one-game playoff near the end of the regular season on two occasions. Neither such playoff proved to be necessary.

In [[1999–2000 NHL season|2000]], the [[Buffalo Sabres]] and [[Montreal Canadiens]] entered the final weekend of the regular season with the possibility of being tied for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and deadlocked on all relevant tiebreakers (wins, head-to-head results, and overall goal differential). The league announced that, if necessary, a tiebreaker game would be played the day after the regular season,<ref>{{cite web|title=Jagr's OT goal sinks Sabres|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jagrs-ot-goal-sinks-sabres/|website=CBS News|access-date=April 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407053440/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jagrs-ot-goal-sinks-sabres/|archive-date=April 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> but the Canadiens' loss in their final game, in regulation, rendered the point moot.

Likewise, in [[2017-18 NHL season|2018]], if the [[Florida Panthers]] had won their last two games via shootout and the [[Philadelphia Flyers]] lost their last game by exactly two goals, the teams would have been equal in all tiebreaker criteria, and they would have contested a play-in game for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> This was avoided when the Flyers won their final game of the regular season and clinched the last playoff berth in the conference, eliminating Florida from playoff contention.

===World Hockey Association===
The NHL's most significant rival in its modern era, the [[World Hockey Association]], actually held a one-game playoff. The playoff was hastily added at the end of the inaugural regular season after two teams, the Alberta Oilers (now [[Edmonton Oilers]]) and the [[Minnesota Fighting Saints]] tied for points, wins and head-to-head record, these being the only tie-breakers stipulated in WHA rules. The Fighting Saints defeated the Oilers in the game, which was played in [[Calgary]]. The [[ad hoc]] nature of the game was controversial. Had the NHL tiebreakers been in effect, the Oilers would have qualified for the playoffs since they had superior [[goal differential]] — critics argued that the real reason the league ordered the playoff was that they wanted to give the Fighting Saints an extra chance to qualify because they were playing in a [[St. Paul Civic Center|large, brand new arena]] whereas the Oilers were playing in a [[Edmonton Gardens|small and antiquated facility]].

As a footnote, the Fighting Saints went on to play the [[Winnipeg Jets (1972-96)|Winnipeg Jets]], who defeated them four games to one. This would turn out to be the only hockey playoff series between any two professional teams representing these two relatively nearby geographical cross-border locales until the [[2018 Stanley Cup playoffs]]. The 1972–73 season remains the only time a tiebreaking game has been played in a major North American hockey league. The WHA would later [[NHL–WHA merger|merge]] with the NHL, with four WHA franchises switching leagues: the Oilers, the [[Hartford Whalers]] (now the [[Carolina Hurricanes]]), the [[Quebec Nordiques]] (now the [[Colorado Avalanche]]), and the Jets (now the [[Arizona Coyotes]] and unrelated except in name and league affiliation to the [[Winnipeg Jets|current Winnipeg franchise]]).

=== WHA one game playoff ===

{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Division
!Winning Team
!Losing Team
!Site
!Score
!Afterward
|-
|[[1972–73 WHA Season|1972–73]]
|West 4th place
|[[Minnesota Fighting Saints]]
|[[Edmonton Oilers|Alberta Oilers]]
|[[Stampede Corral]], [[Calgary, Alberta|Calgary]]
|4–2
|Saints lost to the [[Winnipeg Jets (1972–96)|Winnipeg Jets]] in the Western Division Semifinals.
|}

===Western Canada Hockey League===
The [[Edmonton Eskimos (ice hockey)|Edmonton Eskimos]] and [[Regina Capitals]] ended the [[1921–22 season|1921-22 season]] of the [[Western Canada Hockey League]] with identical records of 14–9–1 with the sole tie being between the two teams.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Lowe|first1=Kevin|author-link1=Kevin Lowe|last2=Fischler|first2=Stan|author-link2=Stan Fischler|last3=Fischler|first3=Shirley|title=Champions: The Making Of The Edmonton Oilers|publisher=Prentice-Hall|location=Scarborough, Ontario|year=1988|isbn=0-132-35623-6|p=17}}</ref> To decide first place, it was agreed to replay the tie game. Edmonton won the rematch 11–2 to place first. Subsequently, the Capitals defeated the [[Calgary Tigers]] 2–1 (1–0, 1–1) in a two-game totals-goals series to determine second place. The Capitals then went on to beat first place Edmonton 3–2 (1–1, 2–1) in the league's first championship series. Regina then advanced to play the [[Pacific Coast Hockey Association]] champion [[Vancouver Millionaires]] in the [[1922 Stanley Cup playoffs|Stanley Cup playoffs]] for the right to play in the [[1922 Stanley Cup Finals]].

==Ivy League basketball==
In recent decades in [[College basketball|U.S. college basketball]], both men's and women's, most conferences have held tournaments to determine a winner who is awarded an automatic berth in the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]]'s postseason tournament.  The [[Ivy League]], however, was the last holdout in [[NCAA Division I]]—through the 2015–16 season, it continued to award its automatic NCAA tournament berth to the team with the best regular-season record in conference play.  In case of a tie at the top of the standings, rules called for a one-game playoff, with the winner claiming the conference's automatic bid. If more than two teams were tied, a series of one-game playoffs was held. The Ivy League held its first postseason tournaments for both [[Ivy League men's basketball tournament|men]] and [[Ivy League women's basketball tournament|women]] at the end of the 2016–17 season, with the top four teams in the conference standings participating at a predetermined site.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://ivyleaguesports.com/information/general_releases/2015-16/releases/The_Ivy_League_Adds_Mens-Womens_Basketball_Tournaments_Beginning_in_2017 |title=The Ivy League Adds Men's, Women's Basketball Tournaments Beginning in 2017 |publisher=Ivy League |date=March 10, 2016 |access-date=March 10, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311041901/http://ivyleaguesports.com/information/general_releases/2015-16/releases/The_Ivy_League_Adds_Mens-Womens_Basketball_Tournaments_Beginning_in_2017 |archive-date=March 11, 2016 }}</ref>

In men's basketball, nine seasons ended in such a playoff, with the last being the [[2014–15 Ivy League men's basketball season|2014–15 season]] in which [[2014–15 Harvard Crimson men's basketball team|Harvard]] and [[2014–15 Yale Bulldogs men's basketball team|Yale]] finished tied.<ref name="2015 Ivy playoff">{{cite press release |url=http://www.ivyleaguesports.com/sports/mbkb/2014-15/releases/2015_Mens_Basketball_Playoff_Details_Announced |title=2015 Men's Basketball Playoff Details Announced |publisher=Ivy League |date=March 9, 2015 |access-date=March 15, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150315014417/http://www.ivyleaguesports.com/sports/mbkb/2014-15/releases/2015_Mens_Basketball_Playoff_Details_Announced |archive-date=March 15, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The only time more than two teams finished tied atop the regular season standings was in the [[2001–02 Ivy League men's basketball season|2001–02 season]], when Yale beat [[Princeton Tigers men's basketball|Princeton]] in the first one-game playoff, before losing to [[Penn Quakers men's basketball|Penn]].<ref name="2015 Ivy playoff"/>  The last three-way playoff in women's basketball was in the 2007–08 season, in which [[Cornell Big Red|Cornell]], [[Dartmouth Big Green|Dartmouth]], and Harvard all finished at 11–3 in league play. It was determined that Dartmouth would play Harvard in the first playoff game, with the winner facing Cornell. Dartmouth won the first playoff game, with Cornell winning the playoff final.

==Curling==

Tie-breaker games are the traditional method of resolving meaningful ties in [[round-robin tournament|round robin]]-style curling tournaments. This is a fairly common occurrence as such round robins rarely involve more than twelve games per team. However, unlike most other sports it is common for curling teams to play two or even (more rarely) three games in a day and tournaments are typically played in a single venue. Therefore, scheduling even multi-team tie-breakers is relatively easy to arrange in a typical [[bonspiel]] compared to many other league-based competitions.

===Canadian championship curling===

Canadian championship curling tournaments, of which the premier [[bonspiels]] are the [[Tim Hortons Brier|Brier]] (for men) and the [[Scotties Tournament of Hearts|Tournament of Hearts]] (for women) use tie-breaker games when teams tie between qualifying and non-qualifying positions in the [[round-robin tournament|round robin]] standings. While the tie-breaker has always been a one-game playoff in cases where two teams have been tied, when the Brier was first held in the 1920s (long before the introduction of automatic playoffs) the tie-breaker would consist of an additional mini-round robin if more than two teams tied for the title. Later, as the Brier field became fixed as consisting of teams representing every province plus Northern Ontario, the tie-breaker evolved to consist of "semi-final" and "final" stages in cases of ties involving three or more teams. The last tie-breaker games for a Brier title before the introduction of automatic playoffs took place in [[1971 Macdonald Brier|1971]] when three teams tied for first place.

Prior to the introduction of automatic playoffs, tie-breaker games were only used to when needed to determine the champion. Since the introduction of automatic playoffs, tie-breaker games have only been used where qualification for the next stage of the tournament is at stake. Otherwise, the teams' best last stone draw records are compared to determine playoff seeding and final pool or tournament ranking. Since the introduction of [[group stage|pool play]] in 2018, one-game playoffs occur if teams are tied between fourth and fifth place in the pool stage (which determines qualification for the Championship Pool) and again if teams are tied between fourth and fifth place in the Championship Pool (which determines qualification for the playoffs). Unlike other pool stage games, tie-breaker results are not carried over by the winning team(s) to the Championship Pool.

Since the introduction of pool play, if the [[quotient]] of number of teams tied for multiple qualifying berths divided by the number of qualifying berths available is less than two, then the teams' last stone draw records are used to determine which team(s) advance(s) without having to play (a) tie-breaker game(s). For example, in case of a three-way tie for third, fourth and fifth then last stone draw records determine which team finishes third, leaving the remaining two teams to play a tie-breaker. On the other hand, teams ''cannot'' be eliminated solely on account of last stone draw records and as many tiebreakers as necessary will be played to determine which team(s) advance(s). In case of any tie-breaker involving three or more teams, last stone draw records are used to determine seeding which in turn determine (except in case of any sort of four-way tie) which team(s) receive(s) (a) bye(s).

Due to the relative frequency of tie-breakers, they are incorporated into the tournament schedule and played on the morning of the first day of the playoffs (typically a Saturday in the presently-used schedule). In case of any two-round tie-breaker, the final tie-breaker will be played at the same time as the "1 vs 2" game in the afternoon.

==Use in the Philippines==
In the [[Philippines]], the one-game playoff is also called a "knockout game". In all instances, all games are held in mostly neutral venues, since the home-and-away system is not used in most leagues or competitions.

===Philippine Basketball Association===
As opposed to the usage in North America, in which one-game playoffs are held to determine a champion, in the [[Philippine Basketball Association]] (PBA), one-game playoffs are held when teams are tied in a last qualifying seed in the team standings. An extra game will be played to determine which team would be eliminated and which team will advance.

With the restructuring of the playoffs starting at the [[2004–05 PBA season|2005–06 season]], one game playoffs are also held which do not merit automatic elimination. When two teams are tied on the last qualifying seed for a stage (such as the No. 2 seed for the last semifinal berth), a classification game will be played to determine which team will clinch the higher seed. If the two teams are not tied on the last qualifying seed (such as the No. 1 seed where both teams are in the semifinals already), the points difference between the tied teams will be used to determine which team clinches the higher seed. Consequently, one-game playoffs that don't eliminate the loser are called "knockdown games."

Playoffs such as those after the 2004 restructuring are common due to the low number of games played in the regular conference or group stage (historically 14–18 games, but since the [[2014–15 PBA season|2014–15]] season, there are 12). In fact, each conference was able to feature at least one playoff game, until the [[2007–08 PBA Philippine Cup]] where even though there were tied teams, the team's positions are not critical so they were resolved on the [[goal difference|point differential]] among the tied teams' games. Only the playoffs for the last playoffs berth are included in the table below, where one team is eliminated from contention.

{|class=wikitable
|-
!Season !! Conference !! Winning team !! Losing team !! Score !! Afterward
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[1983 PBA season|1983]]
|[[1983 PBA Reinforced Filipino Conference|Reinforced Filipino]]
|[[San Miguel Beermen]]
|Sunkist Juice Lovers
|119–103
|Eliminated in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[1983 PBA Open Conference|Open]]
|[[Tanduay Rhum Masters|Tanduay Rhum Makers]]
|[[Toyota Super Corollas|Toyota Silver Corollas]]
|111–110
|Eliminated in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[1986 PBA season|1986]]
|[[1986 PBA All-Filipino Conference|All-Filipino]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Milkmen]]
|[[Philippines men's national basketball team|Philippine national team]]
|100–96
|Eliminated in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[1987 PBA season|1987]]
|[[1987 PBA Open Conference|Open]]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers|Formula Shell Spark Aiders]]
|[[Philippines men's national basketball team|Philippine national team]]
|120–111
|Eliminated in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[1989 PBA season|1989]]
|[[1989 PBA Open Conference|Open]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Milkmen]]
|[[Barangay Ginebra San Miguel|Añejo Rum 65ers]]
|133–120
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
| rowspan="3" |[[1992 PBA season|1992]]
|[[1992 PBA First Conference|First]]
|[[Pop Cola Panthers|Swift Mighty Meaty Hotdogs]]
|[[Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs]]
|123–117
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[1992 PBA Third Conference|Third]]
|[[San Miguel Beermen]]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers|Shell Rimula X Zoomers]]
|115–102
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
|[[Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Milkmen]]
|119–110
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
|[[1994 PBA season|1994]]
|[[1994 PBA Governors' Cup|Governors']]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers|Shell Rimula X Turbo Chargers]]
|[[Barangay Ginebra San Miguel|Tondeña 65 Rhum Masters]]
|125–123 ([[Overtime (sports)#Basketball|OT]])
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[1996 PBA season|1996]]
|[[1996 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs]]
|[[Pop Cola Panthers|Sunkist Orange Juicers]]
|89–76
|Eliminated in the semifinals
|-
|[[1996 PBA Governors' Cup|Governors']]
|[[Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs]]
|[[Sta. Lucia Realtors]]
|81–76
|Eliminated by San Miguel in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[1999 PBA season|1999]]
|[[1999 PBA All-Filipino Cup|All-Filipino]]
|[[Barangay Ginebra Kings]]
|[[Sta. Lucia Realtors]]
|77–74 
|Eliminated by Shell in the semifinals
|-
|[[2000 PBA season|2000]]
|[[2000 PBA All-Filipino Cup|All-Filipino]]
|[[Barangay Ginebra Kings]]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers|Shell Velocity]]
|71–68
|Eliminated by Tanduay in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2001 PBA season|2001]]
|[[2001 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[Mobiline Phone Pals]]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers]]
|71–56
|Eliminated by San Miguel in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2002 PBA season|2002]]
|[[2002 PBA All-Filipino Cup|All-Filipino]]
|[[Sta. Lucia Realtors]]
|[[Shell Turbo Chargers|Shell Velocity]]
|70–69
|Eliminated by Coca-Cola in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2008–09 PBA season|2008–09]]
|[[2009 PBA Fiesta Conference|Fiesta]]||[[Coca-Cola Tigers]]||[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Aces]]|| 81–74 || Eliminated by Sta. Lucia in the wildcard phase
|-
|[[2013–14 PBA season|2013–14]]
|[[2013–14 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Aces]]
|[[Meralco Bolts]]
|94–91
|Eliminated by Barangay Ginebra in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2015–16 PBA season|2015–16]]
|[[2016 PBA Governors' Cup|Governors']]
|[[Phoenix Fuel Masters]]
|[[Rain or Shine Elasto Painters]]
|105–94
|Eliminated by TNT in the quarterfinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[2016–17 PBA season|2016–17]]
|[[2016–17 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[2016–17 Rain or Shine Elasto Painters season|Rain or Shine Elasto Painters]]
|[[2016–17 Blackwater Elite season|Blackwater Elite]]
|103–80
|Eliminated by San Miguel in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2017 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[2016–17 GlobalPort Batang Pier season|GlobalPort Batang Pier]]
|[[2016–17 Alaska Aces season|Alaska Aces]]
|107–106
|Eliminated by Barangay Ginebra in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2017–18 PBA season|2017–18]]
|[[2017–18 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[2017–18 TNT KaTropa season|TNT KaTropa]]
|[[2017–18 Phoenix Fuel Masters season|Phoenix Fuel Masters]]
|118–97
|Eliminated by San Miguel in the quarterfinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[2019 PBA season|2019]]
|[[2019 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Aces]]
|[[NLEX Road Warriors]]
|88–80
|Eliminated by Phoenix in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2019 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[Alaska Aces (PBA)|Alaska Aces]]
|[[2019 Meralco Bolts season|Meralco Bolts]]
|108–103 ([[Overtime (sports)#Basketball|OT]])
|Eliminated by TNT in the quarterfinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[2021 PBA season|2021]]
|[[2021 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[Barangay Ginebra San Miguel]]
|[[Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters]]
|95–85
|Eliminated by TNT in the quarterfinals
|-
|[[2021 PBA Governors' Cup|Governors]]
|[[Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters]]
|[[NorthPort Batang Pier]]
|101–98
|Eliminated by Magnolia in the quarterfinals
|-
| rowspan="1" |[[2022-23 PBA season|2022–23]]
|[[2022-23 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[Rain or Shine Elasto Painters]]
|[[NLEX Road Warriors]]
|110–100
|Eliminated by Bay Area in the quarterfinals
|-
| rowspan="1" |[[2023-24 PBA season|2023–24]]
|[[2024 PBA Philippine Cup|Philippine]]
|[[Terrafirma Dyip]]
|[[NorthPort Batang Pier]]
|104–96
|Eliminated by San Miguel in the quarterfinals 
|-
| rowspan="1" |[[2024-25 PBA season|2024–25]]
|[[2024-25 PBA Commissioner's Cup|Commissioner's]]
|[[Magnolia Hotshots]]
|[[NLEX Road Warriors]]
|112–81
|Eliminated by NorthPort in the quarterfinals 
|}
Previously, the PBA also had one-game playoffs to determine the Finals participant. This happened when the semifinals is a round robin format, and where there are two or more teams tied for the second seed, or if a team won a certain number of semifinal games, but did not finish in the top two berths. Each season had at least one such game. In the [[1993 PBA Governors' Cup]], there were two such games: to break the deadlock for the second seed, in which the winner faced the team with the best semifinals record.

===College basketball===
Starting at the reformation of the playoff structure of the [[UAAP]] [[NCAA Basketball Championship (Philippines)|basketball tournament]] in 1993 (actually first used in 1994 since [[UST Growling Tigers|UST]] won all elimination round games and were named automatic champions in 1993), where the top 4 teams qualify for the semifinals, with the top 2 teams clinching the twice-to-beat advantage, i.e., unilateral [[double elimination]], a playoff will be held if two teams were tied for the fourth and last semifinal berth. The [[National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines)|NCAA]] used this format starting in 1997.

When three or more teams are tied, all three teams undergo a series of one-game playoffs to determine the top seed and which team is eliminated.

Both leagues have used tiebreaker playoffs such as these in their previous tournament formats. The UAAP had used one league table for most of its history, with a playoff being made if two or more teams were tied for second (before 1993, the top two teams qualify to the Finals, with the #1 seed possessing the twice-to-beat advantage). The NCAA used a [[split season]] format, with winners of either half of the season playing in the Finals; if two teams were tied for the "pennant", a playoff will be held.

Men's playoff results include:
{|class=wikitable
|-
!Season !! League !! Winning team !! Losing team !! Score
!Afterward
|-
|[[UAAP Season 61|1998]] || [[UAAP]] || [[UST Growling Tigers basketball|UST]] || [[UP Fighting Maroons men's basketball|UP]] || 80–72
|Eliminated by La Salle in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 63|2000]] || [[UAAP]] || [[UST Growling Tigers basketball|UST]] || [[UE Red Warriors basketball|UE]] || 65–61
|Eliminated by La Salle in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 64|2001]] || [[UAAP]] || [[NU Bulldogs basketball|NU]] || [[UE Red Warriors basketball|UE]] || 108–102 ([[Overtime (sports)#Basketball|2OT]])
|Eliminated by La Salle in the semifinals
|-
|[[NCAA Season 80|2004]] || [[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]] || [[San Beda Red Lions basketball|San Beda]] || [[Mapua Cardinals basketball|Mapua]] || 59–52
|Eliminated by Perpetual in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 70 men's basketball tournament|2007]] || [[UAAP]] || [[UST Growling Tigers basketball|UST]] || [[FEU Tamaraws basketball|FEU]] || 80–69
|Eliminated by Ateneo in the stepladder semifinals first round
|-
|[[NCAA Season 84 basketball tournaments|2008]] || [[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]] || [[Mapua Cardinals basketball|Mapua]] || [[San Sebastian Stags basketball|San Sebastian]] || 63–54
|Eliminated by San Beda in the semifinals
|-
|[[NCAA Season 88 basketball tournaments|2012]] || [[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]] || [[Perpetual Altas basketball|Perpetual]] || [[JRU Heavy Bombers basketball|JRU]] || 73–68
|Eliminated by San Beda in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 75 basketball tournaments|2012]] || [[UAAP]] || [[De La Salle Green Archers basketball|La Salle]] || [[FEU Tamaraws basketball|FEU]] || 69–66
|Eliminated by Ateneo in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 77 basketball tournaments|2014]] || [[UAAP]] || [[NU Bulldogs basketball|NU]] || [[UE Red Warriors basketball|UE]] || 51–49
|'''Won championship against FEU'''
|-
|[[NCAA Season 91 basketball tournaments|2015]] || [[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]] || [[Mapua Cardinals basketball|Mapua]] || [[Arellano Chiefs basketball|Arellano]] || 93–75
|Eliminated by Letran in the semifinals
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[NCAA Season 93 basketball tournaments|2017]]
|[[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]]
|[[San Sebastian Stags basketball|San Sebastian]] || [[Letran Knights basketball|Letran]] || 74–69
|Eliminated by San Beda in the stepladder semifinals second round
|-
|[[NCAA (Philippines)|NCAA]] || [[Letran Knights basketball|Letran]] || [[Arellano Chiefs basketball|Arellano]] || 70–68
|Eliminated by San Sebastian in the elimination playoff second round
|-
|[[UAAP Season 81 basketball tournaments|2018]] || [[UAAP]] || [[FEU Tamaraws basketball|FEU]]|| [[De La Salle Green Archers basketball|La Salle]] || 71–70
|Eliminated by Ateneo in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 85 basketball tournaments|2022]]
|[[UAAP]]
|[[Adamson Soaring Falcons basketball|Adamson]]
|[[De La Salle Green Archers basketball|La Salle]]
|76–80
|Eliminated by Ateneo in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 86 basketball tournaments|2023]]
|[[UAAP]]
|[[Ateneo Blue Eagles men's basketball|Ateneo]]
|[[Adamson Soaring Falcons basketball|Adamson]]
|70–48
|Eliminated by UP in the semifinals
|-
|[[UAAP Season 87 basketball tournaments|2024]]
|[[UAAP]]
|[[Adamson Soaring Falcons basketball|Adamson]]
|[[UE Red Warriors basketball|UE]]
|68–55
|Eliminated by La Salle in the semifinals
|}
In [[NCAA Season 93 basketball tournaments|2017]], there were three teams tied for No. 4 in the NCAA, leading to two rounds of playoffs for No. 4. In [[NCAA Season 91 basketball tournaments|2015]], three teams were tied for No. 3, and two rounds of playoffs were held: the first round for the No. 4 seed (loser is eliminated), and the second round for the No. 3 seed (loser is No. 4 seed).

Ties may also broken when two teams are tied for third, second and first seeds, although the competing teams still qualify for the playoffs when they lose; a playoff game for the No. 2 seed serves as a ''de facto'' game 1 of a best-of-three series. The UAAP had depreciated for playoffs for the Nos. 1 and 3 seeds.

The UAAP has also used this format for the volleyball tournaments.
==Association football==
<!-- "Spareggio" redirects here, please take this into consideration if renaming or removing this section -->
A one-game playoff is at least theoretically possible in [[association football]] league competitions, where two teams competing for a significant prize are tied in all tie-breaking criteria. Most association football leagues only consider points, then [[goal difference]] and then goals scored when determining final standing.<ref name = "premier league">{{cite web |url=http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/news/news/2012-13/may/arsenal-and-chelsea-may-meet-in-play-off.html |title=Arsenal and Chelsea may face play-off |work=Premier League |date=May 15, 2013 |access-date=May 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130607183449/http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/news/news/2012-13/may/arsenal-and-chelsea-may-meet-in-play-off.html |archive-date=June 7, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> A few leagues also consider such criteria as head-to-head records, but this is not the norm. One-game playoffs are typically held in a [[neutral venue]], often a [[national stadium]] especially for playoffs involving teams with large fanbases. The games are not counted in the regular season tables.
Historically, a drawn one-game playoff would often result in a [[replay (sports)|replay]] a few days later, although there have been occasions (such as in [[1890–91 in Scottish football|Scotland in 1891]]) where a draw resulted in the participants being declared joint champions. Today, most league competitions will use [[extra time]] and/or a [[Penalty shoot-out (association football)|penalty shootout]] to settle drawn one-game playoffs if needed.

For example, the [[Premier League]] announced that there would be a one-game playoff for third place between [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] and [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]] if the two teams had finished exactly level at the end of the [[2012–13 Premier League|2012–13]] season.<ref name = "premier league"/> This would have been necessary because third place conferred automatic qualification for the group stage of the [[2013–14 UEFA Champions League]], whereas fourth place only led to a place in the final qualifying round of that competition.<ref name = "premier league"/> Before tiebreak rules such as goal difference were utilised, the [[list of Scottish football champions|Scottish league championships]] in [[1890–91 in Scottish football|1891]] and [[1904–05 in Scottish football|1905]] were determined by one game playoffs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tabless/scotchamp.html |title=Scotland – List of Champions |work=[[RSSSF]] |date=August 9, 2013 |access-date=October 6, 2013 |first=James M. |last=Ross}}</ref>

Until the 2004–05 season, the Italian [[Serie A]] had a one-game playoff called ''Spareggio'', to determine the league champion if teams were tied in points at the end of the season, and also for the relegation. As of the 2022-23 season, Serie A has recovered the one-game playoff to decide the champion and relegation, and the one-game is without [[extra time]], it goes straight to a [[penalty shoot-out]]. <ref>[https://www.eurosport.it/calcio/serie-a/2022-2023/rivoluzione-serie-a-ufficiali-lo-spareggio-scudetto-dalla-stagione-2022-203-e-anche-quello-salvezza_sto9009824/story.shtml RIVOLUZIONE SERIE A: UFFICIALI LO SPAREGGIO SCUDETTO DALLA STAGIONE 2022/203 E ANCHE QUELLO SALVEZZA]</ref>

Another example of a one-game playoff in association football would be a [[2009 Egypt v Algeria football matches|2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying football match]] between [[Algeria national football team|Algeria]] and [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]].

=== Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup ===

When the 2011 Premier Development League qualifiers in a region could not be settled by the four-stage qualifier of points, then wins, then goal difference, and goals scored, for the final position, the two teams, Kitsap Pumas and Portland Timbers U23's, agreed to discard the traditional lottery draw for the final slot and replace it with the result of their next scheduled game in the league also a one-game playoff to determine the final slot in the U. S. Open Cup.  If the game ended in a tie, penalty kicks would be used to determine the U. S. Open Cup qualifier, but not for PDL standings.

== See also ==
* [[Play-in game]], played regardless if teams are tied

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:One-Game Playoff}}
[[Category:Sports terminology]]
[[Category:Tie-breaking in group tournaments]]