Organizing a football squares pool involves setting up a simple grid where participants buy squares, and winners are determined based on the last digits of the teams' scores at different points in the game. Picture a 10×10 grid, creating 100 squares, where participants can purchase individual squares.
This popular game is easy to set up and understand, making it a fun way for fans to engage with a football game.
Setting Up the Grid
The foundation of the game is a 10x10 grid. This layout results in 100 individual squares that participants can claim. You'll need to label the grid clearly. Typically, one axis (either the rows or columns) represents one team playing in the game, and the other axis represents the opposing team.
Selling the Squares
Once the grid is ready, participants can purchase individual squares. The price per square and the total payout for winners are usually decided beforehand. Each participant writes their name or initials in the square(s) they buy.
Assigning the Numbers
This is a crucial step that adds randomness to the game. Each row and column is randomly assigned a number from 0 to 9, correlating to the last number of the score for each team playing in the game. It's essential that these numbers are assigned after all the squares have been sold (or after a set deadline), ensuring fairness as participants don't know which numbers they are buying squares under. You can use various methods for random assignment, like drawing numbers from a hat or using a random number generator.
For example, if Team A is assigned to the rows and Team B to the columns, the top row might be assigned '3', the next row '7', and so on, until all rows have a random number from 0-9. The same process is done for the columns for Team B.
Determining the Winners
Winners are determined at the end of each quarter based on the current score. To find the winner, you look at the last digit of each team's score at that specific point in the game.
- Take the last digit of the score for the team assigned to the rows.
- Find the corresponding row on the grid.
- Take the last digit of the score for the team assigned to the columns.
- Find the corresponding column on the grid.
- The person whose name is in the square where that row and column intersect is the winner for that quarter.
Example Winner Calculation:
Let's say at the end of the first quarter, Team A's score is 14, and Team B's score is 7.
| Team A Score Last Digit (Rows) | Team B Score Last Digit (Columns) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ...7... | ... | ||
| ...4... | → | WINNER SQUARE! |
You would look at the row labeled '4' (the last digit of Team A's score, 14) and the column labeled '7' (the last digit of Team B's score, 7). The person who owns the square at the intersection of Row 4 and Column 7 wins the prize for that quarter.
Prizes are typically awarded at the end of the 1st quarter, 2nd quarter (halftime), 3rd quarter, and the final score. The halftime prize is often the largest.
Organizing football squares is a straightforward process that adds an extra layer of fun to watching football games. By setting up the grid, selling squares, randomly assigning numbers, and clearly defining how winners are found using the score's last digits, you can successfully run a football squares pool.
