Can I check if that is a chess reference, mate?
Yes, it is. Swiss pairing is very common in chess tournaments when there are too many competitors/not enough rounds for an all-play-all, and that is most competitions.
In a Swiss-paired chess event, most are seeded, so for round 1 you put your players in order of perceived strength and then the top half plays the bottom half, in which colours (B or W) are alternated. For subsequent rounds you divide them into score groups and then repeat the procedure for each score groups.
The pairing rules are as follows:
no two players are allowed to play twice;
as far as possible opponents are in the same score group. Where this is not possible (an odd number in a score group) the "floating" player takes an opponent from the next score group down;
pairings are made to try to equalise the number of whites and blacks (for football, you could substitute home and away);
pairings are made to try to alternate the number of whites and blacks.
There are other lesser rules, eg the controller will try to avoid pairing relatives or members from the same club, although this will not apply in later rounds when prize money is at stake.
