There are a whole lot of changes coming to the 2025 season, starting with a reduction of athletes heading to the Games.

1 For planning purposes at the affiliate level, the most important information in this announcement are the dates of the 2025 CrossFit Open.

We now know that the Open will take place from February 27 to March 17 and will serve as the first stage of the qualifying process for the Individual, Team, and Age Group Divisions. (The Adaptive Division will compete in the WheelWOD, which will take place simultaneously.)

Important Dates for the 2025 CrossFit Games season:

Open Registration Begins – January 15
2025 CrossFit Open – February 27-March 17
Open Workout 25.1 – 12 p.m. PT Feb. 27 – 5 p.m. PT March 3
Open Workout 25.2 – 12 p.m. PT March 6 – 5 p.m. PT March 10
Open Workout 25.3 – 12 p.m. PT March 13 – 5 p.m. PT March 17

While CrossFit’s announcement starts with "we’re making a few changes," there are some pretty major changes coming, including:

No Quarterfinals.
A "virtual in-affiliate Semifinals."
A set of in-person qualifying events for the Individual Division.
A 25% reduction in the Crossfit Games field for the elite men and women.

3 Things That Will Stay the Same:

All divisions will start with an "Open" and proceed to a mid-season qualifying stage (even though the details of that stage are different).
The CrossFit Open will remain three weeks long. The Adaptive Division will compete in the WheelWOD Open on the same dates as the CrossFit Open.
The CrossFit Games will conclude the 2025 season in August for the Individual and Team Divisions. The Teenage, Masters, and Adaptive CrossFit Games will conclude the season for those divisions at dates yet to be determined.

A World of Changes for 2025:

There is a lot to unpack here, so let’s start with the CrossFit Games and work back.

CrossFit Games:

For the Individuals, the 2025 field is being reduced by 25 percent from 40 Men and 40 Women to 30 each.

A similar reduction is seen on the Team’s side. The total field for Teams is reduced by 33% from 30 teams to 20 total teams.

Semifinals:

The Semifinals, specifically in the Individual Division, are now split into two parallel paths to qualify for the CrossFit Games.

There is now a "virtual in-affiliate Semifinal," which, for individuals, will be the first weekend of May. The Age Groups and Teams will compete in their Semifinals in April and Adaptive the weekend after the Individuals.

Quarterfinals:

The Quarterfinals are gone across all divisions.

2 Things That Are Brand New:

The Community Cup: CrossFit will now give athletes the opportunity to extend their seasons by first completing the Open. Then, after receiving a ranking or "Level," the athlete can compete against their peers at affiliates in June.
Pairs: This is an in-person competition hosted by the Masters Fitness Championship in October 2025. While the details are sparse so far, CrossFit has provided an overall framework that gives a high level of the qualification process and who can compete.

The Bottom Line on the 2025 CrossFit Games Season:

As announced, the season looks a lot like we speculated it would earlier this week. This streamlined, three-part qualification process is more uniform across all divisions than previous systems, which makes following the season easier as a whole.

Conclusion:

For some, this could be freedom from a nonstop seven-month season that takes them from the Open to the Quarterfinals to the Semifinals and finally to the Games. This may give them more opportunities to choose their path to the Games on their terms. For others, this could be a tipping point. Too much; too late.

FAQs:

What is the reduction in the Crossfit Games field for the elite men and women?
- The field will decrease from 40 men and 40 women to 30 each.
What is the reduction in the Team’s field?
- The total field for Teams is reduced by 33% from 30 teams to 20 total teams.
What is the Community Cup?
- The Community Cup is an opportunity for athletes to extend their seasons by first completing the Open and then competing against their peers at affiliates in June.
What is Pairs?
- Pairs is an in-person competition hosted by the Masters Fitness Championship in October 2025.