Are You All In for the Open?
Are you a coach at a CrossFit affiliate that thrives on the energy of the Open — tracking progress, hosting unforgettable events, and uniting your community around the shared goal of becoming fitter every year? If so, the Community Cup is the perfect addition to your gym’s calendar. This exciting event not only amplifies your gym’s camaraderie but also provides another opportunity for your members to challenge themselves, celebrate their progress, and deepen their connection to your community.
To help you get started, we’ve put together a Q&A packed with everything you need to know to bring the Community Cup to life at your gym and inspire your members to get involved. Feel free to use this information in your affiliate newsletter, on a flyer in your gym, or when you speak with your individual clients/members.
What is the Community Cup?
The Community Cup is a virtual competition that will take place in CrossFit affiliates around the world. Registration begins May 12, 2025.
The competition runs for one week from June 9-15. There are three workouts to complete during that week, which can be completed in any order.
To be eligible, you must complete the 2025 Open and submit a score by the deadline for all three workouts.
Register for the 2025 Open here.
Why is CrossFit adding this event to the competition season?
In 2021, the Games introduced the Quarterfinals, a second stage of online competition before athletes qualified for Semifinals. From 2021-2023, only the top 10% moved on to the Quarterfinals. In 2024, this expanded to the top 25% qualifying for Quarterfinals. A huge number of athletes participated with the expanded qualifying percentage, a clear indicator that it’s not just athletes hoping to qualify for the Games who want an outlet for their fitness. But that still left out the other 75% who clearly have some interest in competition. So, the Community Cup was developed as an opportunity for athletes of all abilities to take another shot — a refocusing on the awesome parts of competition that have nothing to do with Games qualification.
Why did CrossFit take the Quarterfinals away?
At first glance, it might seem that way, but what’s really happening is that CrossFit hasn’t reduced the number of athletes competing — it’s expanded opportunities to potentially over 260,000 more athletes this year.
Consider this: If your 2024 Open results made it possible for you to compete in Quarterfinals last year, you competed at your affiliate, validated your scores, and checked the leaderboard to see if you earned a coveted Semifinals spot. If you were one of the very tip-of-the-spear athletes, you earned your ticket. Congratulations!
If you didn’t make the cut, you likely still tracked your placement and shared your achievements with friends and fellow athletes. That experience hasn’t changed — you still compete, rank on the leaderboard, and measure your progress. What’s improved is the precision. Now, you can proudly say you ranked 111th out of 37,000 in the Advanced Tier, offering a clearer picture of your performance.
It’s also worth noting that CrossFit still hosts the largest global leaderboard of participating athletes. While local competitions are valuable for testing your progress, and we hope you continue to do them, CrossFit now offers more than just the Open to see where you stand worldwide. With the introduction of the Community Cup, you have another opportunity to measure your growth, compete on a global stage, and push your limits.
Why should I participate in the Community Cup?
The Community Cup is your chance to take your CrossFit journey to the next level and experience the magic of competition tailored to your skill level. Unlike the Open, which lets you see how you measure up worldwide, the Community Cup creates an even playing field by grouping athletes into tiered competitions based on their Open performance. Whether you’re a Pro-level competitor or just starting out, you’ll face others at your level, making every rep and lift meaningful and achievable. But it’s not just about testing your fitness — it’s about celebrating progress, bonding with your affiliate community, and having fun while pushing your limits. Plus, it sets the stage for new goals to strive for next year. Think of it as the CrossFit Affiliate Games: a chance to challenge yourself, connect with others, and be part of something bigger. Don’t miss this opportunity to grow, compete, and thrive with the CrossFit community!
Why do I have to pay another entry fee to CrossFit when I just paid for the Open?
The Open and the Community Cup are separate events. Just as you would pay the fee for a 10K event that happens at a running festival on Friday and a separate fee if you also want to run the marathon that happens on Sunday, CrossFit allows you to choose whether you’re in for just the Open or both, and then pay the entry fees accordingly. Fortunately, participating in both the Open and the Community Cup is still cheaper than nearly any other single sporting event registration out there.
Can I participate in the Community Cup if I don’t do the Open?
No. You MUST register and submit scores for each of the three Open workouts to be eligible to compete in the Community Cup — that’s how you get your level for the Community Cup.
What are levels?
Levels allow athletes of every fitness and ability level to compete against others of a similar level. Each athlete who registers for the Open and accurately submits their scores for the three workouts will receive a level based on their performance. This level will be displayed on their athlete profile. Once assigned a level, the athlete will be eligible to compete in one of five tiered competitions in the Community Cup between June 9-15, 2025.
How and when will I know what my level is?
Once leaderboards for the Open are final, athletes can find their level on their athlete profile. CrossFit will also send invites to athletes at each competition tier. Any athlete wishing to participate must register for their respective tier competition before the close of the first score submission window. Athletes will only be able to register for the competition they are invited to.
How many athletes per level get to compete?
There’s no limit to the number of athletes who can compete in the Community Cup. Each tier will have a leaderboard, and whether you are a Level 1 or Level 10, you will be able to see where you stack up with others worldwide who are at a similar level as you.
How many workouts are there?
The Community Cup consists of three workouts. All workouts will be announced on Monday, June 9, at 12 p.m. PT, and athletes have until Sunday, June 15, at 5 p.m. PT to complete them. Scores for all three workouts MUST be submitted before Sunday at 5 p.m. PT. There will be no exceptions for late scores.
Each of the three workouts will be programmed with modifications to challenge each tier appropriately.
What if my affiliate doesn’t participate in the Community Cup? What options do I have?
Community Cup workouts must be completed at an affiliate and judged by a coach or member who has passed the 2025 Judges Course. So, you have a few options.
- Grab a friend who has passed the 2025 Judges Course and have them judge your workouts during your affiliate’s open gym hours.
- Find an affiliate in your area participating in the Community Cup, and ask if you can drop in during the times they are doing the workouts and join the party.
- Find an affiliate in your area participating in the Community Cup, and ask if you and your judge can drop in during their Open Gym hours.
- Bonus: Ask your affiliate if they’d be open to participating. There’s very little they need to do to support the Community Cup. Maybe you could even offer to help them out.
For more on CrossFit’s 2025 Community Cup, watch Chase Ingram and Bill Grundler’s conversation with Adrian Bozman on Get with the Programming here.
Haven’t signed up for the Open yet? Go all in today!
about the author
Eric O’Connor is a Content Developer and Seminar Staff Flowmaster for CrossFit’s Education Department and the co-creator of the former CrossFit Competitor’s Course. He has led over 400 seminars and has more than a decade of experience coaching at a CrossFit affiliate. He is a Certified CrossFit Coach (CF-L4), a former Division 1 collegiate wrestler, and a former CrossFit Games athlete.
Comments on Ask a Coach: What is the Community Cup and Why Should We Participate?
Allowing athletes to participate in the Open outside of an affiliate, but not the Community Cup, seems odd to me. They're part of the greater CF community, seems like they should be able to compete in this the same way they did for the Open.
Forcing them to find an affiliate that's also participating, since not every affiliate might be, is a lot of extra hoops to jump through when trying to grow community participation.
Could you provide more clarity on how the 55* masters levels will be assigned? Also, this chart differs from the other charts that have been posted.
Are we able to use WODproof for the judging?
What do athletes actually get from the community cup? Are there prizes? Can you increase your level based on your scores during the cup? Since competing is not earned through exclusivity like quarters was, what do atheles actually achieve by participating?
What are coaches supposed to do when these workouts are programmed for the classes and there are 2-4+ people in class who "need" a judge?
This should be a fun event for affiliates and open participants to take part in, to do a workout that's specifically designed for their skill level. And, given that no awards were mentioned in this article, there should no need for a judge. The class experience should remain unaltered for everyone who isn't participating and expecting the same quality class at their normal class time on a normal day.
Hi Javier,
You're correct; this should be a fun event for affiliates and Open participants to take part in! There are a lot of ways these workouts can be accomplished:
- If they are class workouts, judges can focus on the few who need them, which shouldn't disrupt the class.
- You could choose to have one class time each day that does the workout, and if people don't want judges to be in their class, they can be sure to attend a different time.
- If you don't want to do the Community Cup workouts during regular classes, you could invite people to do them during your open gym hours, if you offer them.
- If you don't want to do the Community Cup workouts at your gym or don't have open gym times, you could inform your athletes about other affiliates in the area who would welcome them for those three workouts.
Will CAP program the Community Cup workouts or would we have to subsitute the programming that week?
Yes, Matt! CAP will give you everything you need to pull off all of the workouts successfully for all of your members.
Nice idea to expand the opportunities to compete
What a patently obvious money grab.
Ask a Coach: What is the Community Cup and Why Should We Participate?
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