VJBL grading sorts every team into a division before the championship season. For 2026/27, Phase One starts on 20 November 2026 and Phase Two on 29 January 2027, with cross-over games after each. Every finishing place and cross-over result sends a team to a set pool, game or division, and the map below follows those paths for your team.
Last updated 21 October 2026.
Basketball Victoria ranks every nominated team before grading, using past performance and its qualifying competitions, then seeds the teams into Phase 1 pools. Pool 1 holds the top 24 seeds in six groups of four. The pools below it hold 16 teams each in four groups of four. The last pool in an age group can be smaller or bigger, and some are ranked by the VJBL as one group.
Each group plays three games, and where a team finishes in its group decides what happens next. In Pool 1, the six group winners go straight into the Victorian Championship. Most other places lead to a cross-over game on Friday 11 December against a team from a different pool.
Phase 2 starts after the summer break with new pools, named Pool AA, Pool BB and so on. Three more rounds, then two cross-over rounds in February. After that every team has its division, and the championship season starts on Friday 5 March 2027.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Fri 20 Nov, 27 Nov and 4 Dec 2026 | Grading Phase 1, three rounds |
| Fri 11 Dec 2026 | Cross-over round |
| 18 Dec 2026 to 22 Jan 2027 | School holidays, no games |
| Fri 29 Jan, 5 Feb and 12 Feb 2027 | Grading Phase 2, three rounds |
| Fri 19 Feb 2027 | Cross-over round 1 |
| Fri 26 Feb 2027 | Cross-over round 2 for VJL and Regional League. A bye for every VC team |
| Fri 5 Mar 2027 | Championship season, round 1 |
The paths come from Basketball Victoria's grading maps for 2025/26, the latest it has published. When we checked on 21 October 2026, BV's VJBL resources page still listed the 2025/26 maps and no 2026/27 maps were out. We'll switch to the new maps as soon as BV publishes them.
The number of pools depends on how many teams each age group nominates, so the 2026/27 maps can have a different number of pools and divisions. Treat the paths as a guide to how grading works, not a promise for this season.
Every map also carries the same warnings. The VJBL may change games based on team performance or location, may change pools based on team performance, and may adjust pools for travel.
Some steps are the VJBL's call, not a result. The two best 4th-placed teams in Pool 1 go straight to Pool AA, the top Phase 2 pool, as decided by the VJBL. Lower down, several divisions are filled by the best ranked remaining teams from a set of games, so two teams with the same results can land in different divisions.
Basketball Victoria's rules also let the VJBL add a special extra game in Grading Phase 2 for an undefeated team that is very likely to be under-graded, judged by the margin of its wins.
And none of it is a verdict on your child. Grading places a team, based on the games that team played, in a particular week, against particular opposition.
Your team manager or coach will know your pool once the grading draw is released. Fixtures, pools and results then appear on PlayHQ and in the MyHoops app.
Once Basketball Victoria publishes the 2026/27 draw, we'll load every team into the search box at the top of this page, so you can find yours by name or association.
If something looks wrong, go through your association. Basketball Victoria's handbook says parents and players should not contact the VJBL directly, and that all enquiries must go through your association's authorised representative.
Under 20 doesn't follow these maps. Under 20 Victorian Championship has no grading phase: it plays seven rounds from Saturday 30 January 2027, then knockouts from 14 March.
Under 20 VJL grades over six Sundays, with Phase 1 on 21 and 28 February and 14 March, and Phase 2 on 21 March, 11 April and 25 April 2027. Its VJL season starts on 2 May.
Grading Phase One is on Fridays 20 November, 27 November and 4 December 2026, with a cross-over round on 11 December. Phase Two is on 29 January, 5 February and 12 February 2027, with cross-over rounds on 19 and 26 February. The championship season starts on 5 March.
A game against a team from a different pool. Basketball Victoria's rules define a crossover game as one where a team plays an opposing team from a different pool. There are no draws: if the scores are level, three minutes of extra time are played, and again if needed, until there is a winner.
On the 2025/26 maps, yes, from Pool 2. Pool 2 group winners, and runners-up who win their cross-over, go into Pool AA, where the four group winners and four cross-over winners join the Victorian Championship. From Pool 3 down, the best finish on the map is VJL1.
No. Each Victorian Championship takes 20 teams and Pool 1 starts with 24. The six group winners and the six cross-over winners are in after December. Everyone else goes through Phase 2, and on the 2025/26 maps a Pool 1 team can drop as far as VJL3 at Under 12 or VJL5 in the older age groups.
For players, partly. To play finals a player needs at least 40% of the team's games. Basketball Victoria's rules say Grading Phase 1 games are not included in that total, while Grading Phase 2 and championship games are.
Your association. Basketball Victoria's handbook says parents and players should not contact the VJBL directly, and that all enquiries must be submitted through your association's authorised representative.
If you have a question that you want answered and it isn't here - talk to head coach Cameron and he can talk you through the question that you have.
More on tryouts and season
Next questions parents ask
Every competition in this guide
Facts on this page were compiled from the official sources below and written up in our own words. Dates, fees and venues change every season, so confirm anything you are relying on with the association directly.
This page was last updated October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
