Football squares is one of the easiest games to run for a single game, and the reason it works at a Super Bowl party is that nobody needs to know anything about football to have a real chance. You claim a square on a grid, the numbers are drawn at random, and the score decides the rest.
The Grid
A standard board is a 10x10 grid: one hundred squares. One team runs along the top and the other down the side. Each side is labeled with the digits 0 through 9, in a random order. Every square sits where one row and one column meet, so each square is a pair of digits, one for each team.
There is also a smaller 5x5 board, twenty-five squares. Because there are only five rows and five columns, each side gets the ten digits as five random pairs, and each square covers four score combinations instead of one. It fills faster and works well for a small group.
Claiming Squares and Drawing the Numbers
Players claim their squares first, while the grid is still unlabeled. Only after that are the numbers assigned, by a random draw. That order is the point: nobody can choose a square because it already carries a good digit. On Sunday Survivor the draw happens automatically when the last square is claimed, or at kickoff if the board is not full by then, and the board shows when it happened.
Once the numbers are drawn, players can't give their squares back. Until kickoff, only the organizer can hand a square to someone else, and the board shows every move.
How a Winner Is Read
At the end of each quarter, look at the last digit of each team's score. Find that digit on the top and on the side, and the square where they meet wins that quarter. A score of 17 to 10 reads as 7 and 0, so whoever holds the square at 7 and 0 wins.
A board has four results: the end of the first quarter, halftime, the end of the third quarter, and the final. The final is the final score of the game, including overtime. The score changes as the game goes on, so one square can win more than once.
Some digits show up more than others, because touchdowns and extra points make 0, 3, 6, 7 and 4 common endings. A square like 0 and 0 or 7 and 0 is easy to like. But the numbers are drawn at random, so no square is better than another when you claim it.
What Happens to an Empty Square
On a board that does not fill, some squares stay empty, and sooner or later a quarter's result will land on one. The organizer chooses what happens when they set the board up.
Rolls to the next quarter is the default. A quarter that lands on an empty square moves its share on to the next quarter, and so on. If the Final lands on an empty square, its share is split among the winners of the earlier quarters, one share for each quarter won. If no earlier quarter had a winner, it goes to the organizer.
Goes back to the organizer is the other option. A quarter that lands on an empty square simply goes to the organizer.
Either way, the board says what happened.
If a game is called off or cut short, any result that never gets played goes to the organizer, and the results already decided stand.
Super Bowl Squares
Super Bowl squares are the same game on the biggest game of the year. Because so many people are watching, a board fills quickly, and the four results give everyone in the room a reason to care about the score from the opening kickoff through the final.
Running a Board With Friends
On Sunday Survivor, anyone with an account can start a board for any upcoming NFL or college game. You pick the game, choose a 10x10 or 5x5 grid, and set the board's rules. Starting a board costs $5. You get a link to send to your group, and everyone picks their own squares, first come, first served.
Anyone with the link can look at the board, and claiming a square needs an account. The board shows the live score, the quarter and clock, and which square is winning right now.
A few settings are worth deciding up front: how many squares one player may take, what happens to an empty square, and how the four results are split. Who collects and pays out is up to the organizer, and Sunday Survivor doesn't collect, hold, transfer or distribute participant funds. If you would rather skip money altogether, a board is just as good played for fun.
Start a squares board at sundaysurvivor.com →
Frequently Asked Questions
How do football squares work?
A squares board is a grid for one game. Players claim squares, then the digits 0 to 9 are drawn at random along each side. At the end of each quarter, the square where the last digits of the two scores meet wins that quarter.
When are the numbers assigned?
After the squares are claimed, so nobody can pick a square knowing which digits it carries. They are drawn at random once the last square is taken, or at kickoff if the board is not full by then.
What happens if the winning square is empty?
It depends on the board's rule. By default an empty square's quarter rolls to the next quarter. The organizer can instead set the board so it goes back to the organizer.
Can a board be played just for fun?
Yes. A board works as a game on its own. Any arrangement about money is between the organizer and the players.
Read the Squares Terms for how boards are run.