The Unione Italiana Jiu Jitsu (UIJJ) have just announced that they will be hosting their first ever grand slam series of events starting this year. It’s a tried and tested method across many sports; linking together multiple events creates an even greater accomplishment that competitors can strive for. Any elite competitor is capable of winning a single tournament but only the very best around can win four different tournaments across a period of months. For the UIJJ’s new grand slam, this also brings together the Jiu-Jitsu community from all across Europe and gives grapplers a real goal to aim for within their own continent.
As with many initiatives by the UIJJ, there’s a really clear goal of developing the sport in Europe and over time; this will undoubtedly lead to a higher level of competition in every country. Not only is this because European grapplers will now have access to bigger events than ever before, but they’ll also have the opportunity to win some prize money that can help them build a professional career. For each of the 4 events on the UIJJ grand slam calendar gold medallists in both gi and no gi will take home €300, and anyone who is able to complete a perfect grand slam run will win the €5,000 grand prize.
The grand slam has also been designed in part to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the UIJJ as it comes next year. The organization has been working tirelessly since 2012 to push the sport to higher levels and they’ve already managed to raise the standard across Europe. In fact their most recent professional product, the Ocean BJJ Pro Championship, has proven to be a huge move for European Jiu-Jitsu. That has allowed them to create a new avenue for professional competition, while the grand slam now allows them to build competitors from the ground up.
The grand slam circuit starts in 2026 with the Milan BJJ Challenge on November 28th and 29th before moving on to the Rome BJJ Challenge on December 13th. After that is the Bologna BJJ Challenge in 2027 and the grand finale at the Italian BJJ Open 2026. It will take a really impressive series of performances for anyone to win all four events, especially with the level of talent that this prize money will attract. We can expect to see some of the best competitors from the UK and many other nearby countries making the trip to compete, just like they have been for the Ocean BJJ Pro Championship Trials.
For more information on the UIJJ Grand Slam, click here.
And to sign up for the Milan BJJ Challenge and start your grand slam run, click here.