Gracie Barra LeaderCon UK 2026: From Our Roots to Our Future
On 4 October, Gracie Barra leaders from across the UK will come together in Birmingham for LeaderCon UK 2026, a day to share experiences, reconnect and look ahead.
The event brings together school owners, professors, instructors and staff who play an active role in developing their schools and passing on the values of Gracie Barra to the next generation.
But LeaderCon is about more than running better schools. It is about coming together with people who understand the journey, share the same challenges and believe in the same mission.
FROM OUR ROOTS TO OUR FUTURE
The Gracie Barra journey in the UK began with a vision and a small group of people who believed in the power of Jiu Jitsu to change lives.
One of the people at the centre of that early journey was Professor Victor Estima. Working closely with the Gracie Barra organisation from the beginning, Victor played a leading role in establishing and developing GB in the UK before helping drive its growth across Europe.
Those early years were about building foundations. One school at a time. One student at a time. There was no guarantee of how far Gracie Barra would grow, but there was a clear belief in the mission and in what Jiu Jitsu could bring to people's lives.
Much has changed since then.
Today, Gracie Barra UK is a growing community of schools, students, professors and leaders. Many people have contributed to that growth over the years, and every school that has opened its doors has become part of the wider story.
What exists today was built by people who were willing to take responsibility for what came next.
That is what makes LeaderCon UK 2026 particularly meaningful. We are coming together in the UK to reflect on that journey, but also to think about our own responsibility for the next chapter.
DEVELOPING STRONGER SCHOOLS
No two Gracie Barra schools are exactly the same. Every school has its own community, its own challenges and its own personality.
But the responsibility is shared: to create an environment where students can learn, improve and enjoy their Jiu Jitsu journey, while building teams that can support them along the way.
LeaderCon gives school owners, professors, instructors and staff an opportunity to step back from the day-to-day running of their schools and look at the bigger picture.
What can we do better?
What is working in other schools?
How can we develop our teams?
And, perhaps most importantly, how do we continue to create schools that reflect what Gracie Barra stands for?
These conversations are valuable because they come from experience. From people who are dealing with many of the same situations every week, often from very different parts of the country.
As Gracie Barra continues to grow, staying connected becomes increasingly important. Growth brings opportunity, but it also makes it more important that we remain aligned with the values and purpose that brought us here in the first place.
LEADERSHIP AND CONNECTION
Leadership at Gracie Barra is about more than running a successful school.
It is about people.
It is about the students who walk through the door, the instructors who teach them, the staff who support the school and the culture we create every day.
LeaderCon creates space to think about that responsibility and to learn from people who are living many of the same experiences.
For Professor Lewis from GB Harrogate · Happerley Bridge · York, one of the most valuable parts of LeaderCon is precisely that opportunity to connect with other school owners and leaders:
“I choose to attend LeaderCon because it is an opportunity to connect with the wider Gracie Barra team. It is really important to me to meet and share my challenges as a school owner with other school owners and leaders. I find it extremely useful.
It is always great to see so many people sharing similar challenges and being able to come together to find solutions. It is also great to meet other school owners outside of the regular school environment.
After LeaderCon, I feel more aligned and more aware of the purpose and mission we are trying to achieve. For me, it is very important to go back and share that with my team, making them aware of the vision and getting them on board.
That is how I see the benefits on the mats after the event. We are all looking in the same direction and working towards our goals. After the event, we all feel closer and more united.”
That feeling of connection is one of the things that makes LeaderCon different.
Running a school can sometimes feel like an individual journey. There are decisions to make every day, problems to solve and a team depending on you. Having the opportunity to step outside that environment and talk openly with people who understand it can make a real difference.
Sometimes the most useful idea you take home is not something from a presentation. It is a conversation you had with another professor over coffee, or a problem you realised you are not the only one facing.
LOOKING AHEAD
On 4 October, Birmingham will bring together Gracie Barra leaders from across the UK.
For one day, we will have the chance to step away from our usual routines, look at where we are now and think about where we want to go next.
The real value of LeaderCon, however, begins after the event.
The conversations we have, the ideas we exchange and the perspective we gain can influence the way we lead our teams, develop our schools and support our students long after we leave Birmingham.
That is why coming together matters.
Gracie Barra was built through people working together around a shared mission. The responsibility now belongs to all of us to keep that moving forward.
GRACIE BARRA LEADERCON UK 2026
Date: 4 October 2026
Location: Birmingham, UK
For: School owners, professors, instructors and staff
From the people who helped establish the Gracie Barra journey in the UK, including Professor Victor Estima, to the leaders shaping its future today, every generation has a part to play.
LeaderCon UK 2026 is a chance to recognise how far we have come, learn from one another and, most importantly, continue building what comes next.
We look forward to bringing the Gracie Barra UK community together in Birmingham.
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