I remember the first time I saw the little grey dog icon pop up next to my name when queuing for a Gem Grab match with my cousin, who’s been playing Brawl Stars since its global launch. I thought the game was penalizing me for playing with someone way higher rank than me, so I avoided joining his lobbies for weeks until I finally looked up what the icon meant. I lost out on dozens of extra trophies in that time, all because I didn’t understand a core quality-of-life mechanic. If you’ve been asking what is underdog in Brawl Stars, this guide breaks down everything you need to know, from how it triggers to the perks it offers, and how to use it to your advantage without frustrating yourself.
What is Underdog in Brawl Stars, and When Does It Trigger?
The underdog mechanic is a system Supercell added in 2021 to make cross-rank play feel fairer for lower-skilled players, rather than punishing them for grouping up with more experienced friends. It only applies to public 3v3 match modes, so you won’t see it pop up in Showdown, Power League, friendly matches, or limited-time modes like Big Game or Robo Rumble. There are three specific scenarios that will trigger underdog status for you or your entire team:
It’s important to note that status only applies to the lower-ranked players in any given lobby. If you’re the highest rank on your team, you won’t get the underdog icon even if the rest of your team is 3 tiers below you. You can only get underdog status if you are the lower-ranked player in the matchup, so higher-ranked players never get the extra perks associated with the system. You’ll see the small dog icon next to your name on the pre-match loading screen if you qualify, so you’ll always know when you have active bonuses.
What Perks Do You Get for Having Underdog Status?
The whole point of the underdog system is to reward lower-ranked players for taking on more challenging matches, so the perks are focused on reducing the penalty for losing and boosting the reward for winning. The first and most valuable perk is adjusted trophy gains and losses. You get 2 extra solo trophy points for every win you get while underdog, and you lose 1 fewer trophy than you normally would if you lose the match. That might not sound like a lot at first, but those extra points add up fast, especially during double trophy weekends.
On top of adjusted trophy gains, you also have a 15% higher chance to get bonus coins, star points, or even brawler mastery XP when you pull off an underdog win. These bonuses stack with any active event rewards, so you can earn a huge haul if you play well during limited-time bonus events. I once got 8 trophies for a single underdog Siege win during a double trophy weekend, which pushed me from Gold 1 to Gold 3 in just two matches. That’s a way faster climb than I would have gotten playing in my normal bracket, even with the double bonus.
It’s important to remember that these perks only apply to the player with underdog status. The trophy bonuses only apply to your individual count, not your teammates'. If you’re queuing with two higher-ranked friends, they’ll get their normal trophy gains and losses, while you get the adjusted underdog rates. There’s no downside to your higher-ranked friends for playing with you, either, so it’s a win-win for everyone involved if you can hold your own in the match.
Common Misconceptions About the Underdog Mechanic
There are a lot of false rumors floating around the Brawl Stars community about how the underdog system works, and most of them lead to players missing out on free rewards. The most common myth I see is that underdog status means the game is rigged to make you lose. A lot of new players complain in match chat that the game gave them underdog status to force them to lose, but that’s never been the case in my 3 years of playing. The matchmaker already balances teams based on average rank, so the only difference is your trophy reward, not the difficulty of the opponent.
Another common myth is that you can farm underdog bonuses by queuing with high-rank friends on purpose to get easy wins. That’s the fastest way to lose a ton of trophies, because the matchmaker will match your team against opponents close to the average rank of your team, not your individual rank. If you’re a Silver player queuing with two Master rank friends, you’ll be matched against Master rank opponents, who will almost always wipe the floor with you before you can even collect 3 gems. Attempting to farm underdog trophies will usually backfire, because you will be matched against far more skilled opponents than you would normally face.
The last big misconception is that underdog status applies to all game modes. As we mentioned earlier, it only works in public 3v3 modes like Gem Grab, Brawl Ball, Siege, and Hot Zone. You won’t get underdog perks in Showdown, even if you’re a Bronze player matched against all Master rank opponents, and you won’t get it in Power League, since that mode already has strict rank-based matchmaking. You also won’t get it in friendly matches, since there are no trophies on the line in those lobbies.
How to Use Underdog to Your Advantage Without Wasting Time
You don’t have to go out of your way to chase underdog status, but when it pops up, there are a few easy ways to make the most of it. First, only queue with friends who are 2 ranks higher than you if you’re already comfortable with the brawler you’re using. Don’t use underdog matches to test out a brand new brawler you just unlocked, because you’ll be going up against more skilled players who will punish every mistake you make. Stick to brawlers you already have a 50%+ win rate with, and you’ll have a much better chance of getting those extra trophy wins.
Use underdog matches to practice higher-skill play patterns you wouldn’t face in your normal rank bracket. When you play against better players, you’ll pick up new positioning tricks, combo moves, and team play strategies that you can bring back to your regular rank matches. I learned how to properly counter Mortis in Gem Grab from playing against high-rank Mortis players in underdog matches, and that trick alone pushed my win rate in my normal Gold bracket up by 20%.
If you’re close to ranking up and don’t want to risk losing a lot of trophies if you lose, queuing with a slightly higher rank friend can give you underdog loss protection, so even if you lose you only drop 1 trophy instead of 2 or 3. Just make sure your friend is only 2 ranks higher than you, not 5 or 6, so you don’t get matched against opponents you have no chance of beating. If you’re trying to learn a new brawler that’s weak in your current rank, underdog matches can also be a low-stakes way to test it out, since the reduced trophy loss means you can mess up and try new strategies without setting back your rank grind too much.
At the end of the day, the underdog mechanic is one of Brawl Stars’ most player-friendly systems, designed to make playing with friends of different skill levels feel rewarding instead of frustrating. Now that you know what is underdog in Brawl Stars, you can decide when to seek out those high-stakes matches with your higher-ranked friends, and when to stick to your regular bracket to grind ranks comfortably. You don’t have to go out of your way to chase underdog status, but when it pops up next to your name on the loading screen, you’ll know exactly what perks you get, and how to make the most of the match no matter the outcome.