wildcard round
Surprise qualifier phase
A wildcard round is the first playoff round in certain sports leagues, where teams that qualified without winning their division compete for advancement.
In American football and baseball, wildcard teams earned enough wins to reach the postseason but must play an extra round: The Bills host the Broncos in the wildcard round.
- playoffContest deciding advancement
- bracketSupport or category
- playoff berthQualification for elimination rounds
- underdogPresumed loser beforehand
- dark horseUnlikely but possible winner
giant killer · upset · elimination · tournament · seeding · matchup · postseason · unexpected · do or die · one and done · surprise · contender · road team · home field · berth · qualifier · knockout · divisional
wildcard roundmain draw
Chief attraction
top seed · division winner · conference champion · regular season · qualifying round
wildcard roundfinals
Concluding tests or matches
grand final · championship game · final round · Super Bowl · World Series
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