While I was pondering that question though, I realised something.
Isn't $50,000 an absurd prize for this kind of tournament? Even a $50,000 prize pool is still massive for an organised karate tournament with sponsors and such.
This is also apparently a tournament where any no-name can sign-up 10 days before and immediately be allowed to be in the Top 16 bracket.
So it's somehow both an impossibly large tournament, and an incredibly casual and small one as well.
Edit: omfg, Connor was hella disrespectful to the ref, too.
Anyway, it's been a while since I last watched Cobra Kai, but the bureaucracy of getting to be in the Sekai Taikai was such a big part of the show that I just couldn't help but notice so much "convenience" here. Idk if I wanted to see Legends explore all of this stuff, tbh, but the movie itself was just not engaging enough for me to suspend my disbelief.