How is a jiu-jitsu (ne-waza) match won, and what is golden score?
B · Beginner · The match · 2 of 6A match is won by submission, on points or by the opponent's disqualification or withdrawal. If points are level at time, the athlete with more advantages wins, then the one with fewer penalties. If all three are level there is golden score, with no time limit: the first to earn even an advantage wins.
How it works
- Submission: a legal technique that brings a sign of surrender, or unconsciousness.
- Points: the higher score at time.
- Then: more advantages.
- Then: fewer penalties.
- Golden score: if all three are level. There is no time limit, and no referee decision.
- Golden score ends: with a submission, with any action that earns points or an advantage, with a penalty or when an athlete cannot go on.
- Passivity in golden score: the referee is strict. Penalties given to both at once do not end it.
- Disqualification: for a major foul or the final penalty. Both athletes can be disqualified, with no winner.
- Walk-over: the opponent is not there after three calls over three minutes.
- Withdrawal: the opponent stops, runs out of medical time or cannot continue.
The glossary has the ways to win (ne-waza), the golden score, the advantage, the tap-out, the fusen-gachi and kiken-gachi and the medalists and repechage.
Tricky cases
Both athletes have 2 points and 1 advantage, and one has a penalty. Who wins?
The athlete without the penalty.
In golden score, one athlete nearly passes the guard but does not hold it. Is that the win?
Yes. An action that earns an advantage is enough, and the referee may end the match without waiting for points.
Do the referees ever decide a level match by vote?
No. There are no referee decisions to break ties. Level matches go to golden score.
Both athletes are penalised for passivity at the same time in golden score. Who wins?
Nobody yet. Penalties given to both at once for passivity do not end the match.
Why the rule exists
Ranking advantages ahead of penalties keeps the tie-break on the side of attacking. Golden score with no time limit, ended by the first advantage, means a level match is decided by the next real attack and never by a referee's opinion.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Time up | Points, then advantages, then fewer penalties | JJIF Ne-Waza 12.2 |
| All level | Golden score, no time limit | JJIF Ne-Waza 12.4 |
| Referee decision | None | JJIF Ne-Waza 5.12 |
| Ju-jitsu fighting | Extra rounds of two minutes | JJIF Fighting 8.3 |
| Medical time | Two minutes in all, then withdrawal | JJIF Ne-Waza 13.2; 14.1 |
From the rule book
Ju-Jitsu International Federation and Ju-Jitsu Asian Union, Jiu-Jitsu (Ne-Waza) Rulebook (version 2.7, reviewed 2024), Sections 5.12, 12, 13 and 14. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the federation's Jiu-Jitsu (Ne-Waza) Rulebook.