In a recent social media post that has garnered significant attention from the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community, Norwegian black belt Tommy Langaker has raised concerns about what he perceives as biased coverage during the 2025 European IBJJF Championships. His criticism specifically targets Flograppling’s commentary and post-match presentation, sparking a broader discussion about media coverage in the sport.
Langaker’s main points of contention centered around two high-profile matches at the tournament. The first involved a match between Diogo Reis and Shoya Ishiguro, where Langaker noted that the commentators appeared to focus predominantly on Reis while giving minimal attention to his opponent’s technical performance. He emphasized that both athletes demonstrated high-level guard passing and control techniques, arguing that the coverage should have reflected this more balanced reality.
The second issue involved the framing of Kennedy Maciel‘s victory over Cole Abate. Langaker took issue with how the win was characterized as Maciel “surviving” the match, arguing that this diminished what was actually a clear victory by a highly accomplished athlete. He stressed that such framing undermines the achievements of winning competitors and doesn’t accurately represent the level of competition.
The criticism has resonated with several prominent figures in the BJJ community. Tainan Dalpra, a respected competitor himself, supported Langaker’s assessment, noting that biased media coverage has been a persistent issue in the sport. Other notable black belts have joined the conversation, sharing similar experiences with what they perceive as unbalanced coverage.
A particular point of controversy emerged regarding the post-match presentation at the event, with reports of inconsistent music choices and event production that seemed to favor certain competitors over others. The community’s response highlights growing concerns about the impact of media bias on athlete recognition and career development, especially for up-and-coming competitors.
Josh Hinger, Alan Finfou, and more prominent BJJ black belts agreed. Tainan Dalpra claimed he was affected by bias in the past. Meanwhile, Roger Gracie black belt Charles Negromonte said he unfollowed Flograppling years ago.
Negromonte isn’t alone in this sentiment. Back in 2020, Leo Vieira said the following:
“Honestly, I don’t really know because I haven’t followed it anymore. I canceled my subscription a long time ago. I don’t have it on my phone, and I don’t like the shows, especially with situations that aren’t really like IBJJF tournaments.”
“I’m not following the tournaments so much, even when I’m training a lot of the athletes.”
Several athletes emphasized the importance of unbiased coverage in building the sport’s credibility and ensuring fair representation for all competitors.
The debate over the state of gi jiu-jitsu was first reignited several days ago when BJJ athlete Gutemberg Pereira criticized Marcelo Garcia‘s statement that gi tournaments have lost their prestige. Pereira defended gi competitions, praising their dynamic matches and emerging talent. There’s a decline in popularity of the gi in the U.S. compared to the booming no-gi market. Previously, high-profile figures like Gordon Ryan and Joe Rogan have critiqued gi matches for being less entertaining, with Ryan claiming only his participation could revitalize the format. On the other hand, Brazilian athletes like Felipe Pena and Mica Galvao stress the gi’s traditional and technical significance, even as they concede that no-gi’s simplicity, wrestling emphasis, and spectator-friendly style dominate modern promotions. Ultimately, while gi BJJ retains its cultural and technical relevance, the financial and entertainment-driven focus has clearly shifted toward no-gi. And that leaves Flograppling in an awkward position. Flograppling is losing their market share by the day with major players entering the scene.
UFC has announced a major move into grappling, besides the existing ONE FC events, CJI and several other promotions. Flograppling is barely holding on to their relevance – by trying to keep a grasp on the Brazilian audience. If they’ve shown anything in the last decade, it’s their utter failure to market the sport. The rise of Nogi is a byproduct of their nonexistent ‘coverage’ for the most part. And not it seems they’re incapable to catering to the only audience they have the market cornered on – Gi fans.
