Alliance is 15x IBJJF World Champion
The day after the World Championship. I’ve already done my morning training — because no matter the result, we must keep doing what makes us better every day. I sat down in my office to prepare for some meetings and to write about the historic achievement we’ve just accomplished. My heart is filled with joy and gratitude for everyone who has written and continues to write this story with us.
From our master, Jacaré, who started it all with a mission to carry forward what he had learned from Rolls Gracie (his teacher), to my longtime brother-in-arms, Gigi Paiva — more than 40 years of friendship — the three of us are still here, side by side, driven by the same purpose: to change lives through Jiu-Jitsu.
But the three of us alone could never have come this far. This legacy only exists because of an extraordinary team of athletes and instructors who live our values and spread our way of seeing and living Jiu-Jitsu across the world.
I had the honor of leading Alliance’s competition team for over a decade. We won a lot — including nine consecutive world titles — but more importantly, we built people. And today, those same people lead our team with the same excellence they once brought to the mats. That’s what legacy means: those who stand with you in the trenches of life. As Hemingway said, that’s more important than the war itself.
And speaking of war — the 2025 World Championship was exactly that. One of the toughest battles we’ve ever fought.
We had a rough start on Day 1. Only two points scored in the blue belt division — far below our standard. Our students fought well, but many lost in the quarterfinals, often in close matches or by referee decisions. That’s part of the game, but the truth is: it wasn’t a good day.
On Day 2, we had to turn things around. It was brown belt day — where many of our best athletes compete — but talent alone doesn’t guarantee results. We had to perform. And we did. We had champions and runners-up in two divisions, won the absolute, and scored points in several brackets. We also won a purple belt division late in the day, pulling even with Dream Art, who had been leading.
Now, let me pause here to clarify something. The “Dream Art” mentioned above is no longer the team that once emerged from inside our academy, luring athletes with promises of “professional Jiu-Jitsu.” That version seems to be gone. What we faced at this championship was the result of a merger — believe it or not — between Dream Art and Fratres, another team born from the same concept: offering easy paths to athletes while inflating the egos of their “owners.”
Meanwhile, the true Jiu-Jitsu teams — with admirable leadership and deep care for their students and athletes, despite all the challenges — were once again present, showing what this sport is really about.
Congratulations to Atos, led with excellence by Professor André Galvão. To AOJ, the Mendes brothers, Rafa and Gui, for their outstanding technical work. To Checkmat, led by Leozinho Vieira, who won three black belt finals and brought the crowd back to life. I hope this marks the end of an era where outside forces tried to dominate our sport without the merit or hard work that got us here. Let Jiu-Jitsu belong once again to the schools of Jiu-Jitsu, to the communities that train and grow together. That’s what this is really about — and where all our effort is directed.
Back to the championship — Day 3 saw black belts fighting for Sunday’s semifinals and more purple belt finals. We continued our close battle with the Dream Art/Fratres alliance and finally overtook them with strong purple belt performances. At that point, we were in the lead.
But right behind us was AOJ, with six athletes qualified for Sunday, while we had only three. Our lead was 35 points — a healthy margin — until something improbable happened: a featherweight purple belt (61 kg) signed up for the absolute and won. That gave AOJ 9 more points and closed the gap to 24.
Final day. And we had a crucial match right at the start: Jalen, our rookie black belt roosterweight, faced Thalyson from AOJ — a world champion. We won! One step closer to the title.
The day unfolded point by point. AOJ won two divisions, lost two finals, and two semifinals. We won one final, placed second in another, and had two bronze medals.
Final score: Alliance 86 – AOJ 74.
We are IBJJF World Team Champions for the 15th time.
More than numbers, this is the confirmation of a journey based on solid values, discipline, respect, and love for Jiu-Jitsu. We move forward, because this is our purpose.
Thank you to every athlete, professor, student, staff member, and supporter. This title belongs to all of us.
Fabio Gurgel
