Knockout deciders

A knockout match can't end level: there'd be nobody to advance, and the next round would sit waiting forever. The engine now refuses to finalize a drawn result in any stage that can't take draws — you'll see "this stage cannot end level — decide it by extra time or a shootout" instead of a silently stuck bracket.

To make a winner reachable, put the decider on the knockout stage's config: { "shootout": true } and/or extra time. Group stages in the same division keep drawing normally — the setting is per stage, not per division. This works the same in every sport whose rules forbid drawn knockouts.

If a match genuinely can't be finished (abandonment, walkover), use the abandon/forfeit flows — those record an outcome the bracket can advance from.