Gracie Barra Jiu Jitsu North America
YOUR
PATH TO PURPOSE
STARTS HERE
Discover how Gracie Barra can help turn your passion for Jiu-Jitsu into a life of purpose, leadership, and service.
The Leadership Lens
THE NEXT GENERATION IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY
“Make the world better.” Grandmaster Carlos Gracie Jr. gives us a clear purpose for the work we do.
Legacy begins with the time we give today. When we teach, we commit that time to helping our Students improve. They recognize our care through the attention and effort we give to their development.
As School owners, we put that responsibility into practice in every class. The work we do with our Students today can benefit the next generation.
news
upcoming events
JUNE 14
Ownership Orientation — Virtual
Zoom · 10:00 AM EST · Free to attend
JUNE 14
Ownership Orientation — Virtual
Zoom · 10:00 AM EST · Free to attend
JUNE 14
Ownership Orientation — Virtual
Zoom · 10:00 AM EST · Free to attend
JUNE 14
GB Leadership Summit — Austin, TX
JW Marriott · 2-day event · Owners only
Behind The Red Shield
THE VIEW FROM THE OTHER SIDE
Most conversations about growth happen inside a single School. This one happens on the other side of the table.
Dave Weber sits down with Professor Flavio Almeida and Professor Michael Leonardi to talk about what the organization owes the people who sign on.
Not tips for running our mats. The thinking behind the standard, why it does not bend, and what a franchisor is actually responsible for when a School is having a hard year.
Decisions get made above the level most owners ever see. That turns out to matter more than any single tactic.
The episode is up. Clips are going out through the month.
The Lives we transform
A roof. A table. A dream.
"I have the opportunity to see some of my dreams come true."
Professor Ignacio Neto describes his Jiu-Jitsu journey in cycles. Student. Professional athlete. Instructor. Then School owner.
Each cycle was preparation for the next. He names what carried him through them: hard work, integrity, professionalism.
Then he names two things we tend to treat as one. He knew he was capable. He was willing. Capable and willing are not the same thing.
Which tells us where to look. Not at whether we are ready to own a School. At which cycle we are in right now.
"Gracie Barra didn't just give me a curriculum they gave me a system for building something I could be proud of for the next thirty years."
Special Segment
Building a Future in Jiu-Jitsu
We build a future in Jiu-Jitsu by developing the people who will carry it forward. That means serving new communities, helping instructors earn a sustainable living, and preparing them to become School owners.
Our growth depends on giving people a future they can see themselves in. Business education, mentorship, and Brotherhood give that future a foundation.
Growth With Support
Our Schools need qualified instructors and leaders who understand the work. Connecting instructors with career opportunities and developing regional leadership helps us meet those needs.
Growth with quality requires practical support and regular communication with our Schools. We have to stay close to what each community needs.
From Black Belt to School Owner
A black belt in Jiu-Jitsu does not automatically prepare us to run a School. We become beginners again.
Finance, marketing, sales, and leadership require study and consistent practice. When we make time for that work, we build the financial stability to support our instructors, serve our Students, and keep our Schools operating.
The Student Experience
Good technique is only part of the Student experience. We are responsible for the rest: how our Schools look, how Students learn beyond class, and how consistently we put Gracie Barra standards into practice.
Digital training, School design, and shared resources give us tools to improve. Our responsibility is to use them in the daily work of serving Students.
Growing Together
Our growth begins with a future people can see themselves in. In Arizona, mentorship and ownership opportunities gave instructors a path to become partners and School owners.
We serve more communities by developing the people who will lead them. When their ambitions and our shared purpose move together, we have a stronger foundation for growth.
Connection at the GB Campus
Brotherhood needs time together. At the Gracie Barra North American Campus, we train, learn, and exchange ideas across our Schools and entity teams. Those relationships help us preserve the personal connections that become harder to maintain as we grow. We carry that learning back to our communities.
Our path to School ownership begins with learning alongside the people doing the work.
“A campus … inspires connection, inspires learning, inspires innovation.”
Professor Flavio Almeida
Your School
Your Legacy
Purpose Built. Community Driven.
School ownership is not a choice between purpose and business. The right structure can hold both. Gracie Barra provides a franchise path for turning a life in Jiu-Jitsu into leadership, service, and a business of your own.
A Standard That Has Stood For 40 Years
Forty years in Jiu-Jitsu education have made one thing clear: standards matter. They protect the legacy, develop leaders, and give each School a foundation strong enough to serve its community. The future is not built by abandoning that standard. It is built by carrying it forward.
A Global Network That Shows Up for You
School ownership should not mean building alone. Across the Gracie Barra network, shared experience becomes practical support. Your School stays local. The standard travels with it.
School Ownership Program
don't take our word for it...
"...it's definitely changing the game"
I envisioned my wildest dreams , the perfect jiu-jitsu facility for my taste, and also taking in consideration the great high standards format.
"There's always help and support in all ways from GB"
These students are the reason why we exist and we must do everything that we can to get their experience to be the best as possible.