Open a Carlson Gracie School
Carlson Gracie Team affiliates schools around the world. This page explains what affiliation offers a school, what the Team asks of the instructor applying, and how to start that conversation from Amsterdam.
It is written for instructors and school owners. If you are looking for somewhere to train rather than somewhere to teach, the free trial class and the schedule are the pages you want.
Who Carlson Gracie Team is
Carlson Gracie was one of the most influential figures in his family's lineage. He competed at the top of his generation, but the larger mark was made as a teacher: the team he built produced generation after generation of champions in Jiu-Jitsu and in MMA, and his teaching shaped nearly the whole of the current generation of coaches who lead the sport's major teams.
Carlson Gracie Team is the international organisation that carries his name. It is made up of masters, instructors, students, athletes and hundreds of schools, with a presence on five continents.
Where the academy in Amsterdam sits in that history: the lineage.
What affiliation gives a school
The name
- Carlson Gracie Team is an established name in the market.
- A century of experience in the discipline stands behind it.
- That credibility attaches to your school as a teaching institution.
- The growth of the brand as a whole is your growth as well.
The system
- A method already tested and approved by hundreds of teachers and thousands of students.
- A common standard, so that the brand's visual identity and your own organisation are presented consistently.
- A framework for setting goals and working towards them.
The support
- The help of an experienced team.
- Training and support.
- Support for expanding your school.
What the Team asks
The Team's affiliation form sets out what it wants to know. One of the items is a condition you have to accept. The rest are questions about you and your school.
The condition
- Distance. There must be no official Carlson Gracie school within 2 km of the address where you intend to open. The form asks you to confirm that you are aware of this.
What the Team asks about
- Your rank in Jiu-Jitsu. The options are black belt, brown belt, or business owner.
- Federation registration. CBJJ, IBJJF, both, or not yet registered.
- The size of your school. From no students yet, through 10–20 and 30–50, to more than 50.
- Your city. Whether it already has an official Carlson Gracie school.
- The address of the school you want to open.
- Your history in Jiu-Jitsu, in your own words.
- Your contact details and where you are based.
These are the questions asked. Answering them is not the same as qualifying: each application is considered on its own terms.
Costs are not published. Ask when you get in touch.
How it works
Affiliation is granted by Marcos Flexa together with Master Carlson Gracie Junior.
Everything starts with a conversation — whether it makes sense for your school, what you will be asked, what happens next. Message Marcos Flexa on WhatsApp.
Talk to Marcos Flexa
Marcos Flexa received his black belt from Master Carlson Gracie on 18 November 1997, and was the first Carlson Gracie lineage black belt to come to the Netherlands. He has taught Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Amsterdam since 2004, and eighteen black belts have been developed at Carlson Gracie Amsterdam.
WhatsApp +31 6 81911917. Messages are answered Tuesday–Friday 10:00–17:00 and Saturday 12:00–16:00.