How do Super Bowl squares work? Most Super Bowl squares are played on a 10x10 grid with a 'home' team row on top and the 'visitor' column on the side: An empty board starts with 100 'squares' to. Super Bowl squares is a common office pool or party game played during the game, and because of the COVID-19 pandemic the game will be more prominent online in 2021. It’s a game of chance and each player draws two “numbers” but it can make the Super Bowl experience more rewarding if your favorite team isn’t playing.

Super Bowl squares are a mainstay at Super Bowl parties across the country each year, as it’s an easy way to involve everyone in the game and keeps people cheering for more scoring right up until the end of the game. We look at how to play and offer up some tips to go along with our printable Super Bowl squares grid.

How do Super Bowl squares work?

Also known as football squares, the game has a 10×10 grid, which creates 100 individual squares – or boxes. If you’re looking for a Super Bowl squares template for this year, feel free to use this:

Download Squares Template (make sure you print in landscape)

Before the Big Game begins, each box is assigned an equal cost – usually $.50, $1, $5 or whatever value your group decides. We’ll use $1 here as our working example. At $1, the full board value is $100.

Super Bowl squares pro tip #1

Have someone in your group act as the bank to collect everyone’s money. In the chaos before a game begins, it’s easy for money not to be accounted for.

Super Bowl squares participants claim open boxes on the board by putting their name or initials in each box they choose randomly until all 100 boxes have been claimed.

Let’s say I take 10 boxes, I’d then have to contribute $10 to the pot in this case.

Super Bowl squares pro tip #2

If you have a large party, you might want to set a maximum number of squares available so everyone has a chance to participate and a few people don’t wipe out available squares too fast. We usually start with a max of five squares per person and then players can buy more after everyone has had a chance to participate if spots remain.

Once the board has been filled out completely, randomly assign numbers 0-9 to each of the 10 rows and columns. Make sure each row has a unique number and the same for the columns. We usually pick these numbers out of a hat to avoid any potential conflicts of interest. If you’re looking to print out numbers, utilize this:

Download 0-9 number sheet

Each axis will represent one of the teams. Generally, we run with the AFC (Kansas City Chiefs) on the columns and the NFC (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) on the rows – but it really doesn’t matter.

To determine a winning square at the end of each quarter, you’ll be using the last digit of each team’s score at that point in the game.

How winning squares are determined

To determine a winning square you will be using the last digit of each team’s score at the end of each quarter.

Example: At the end of the first quarter, the Chiefs have 17 points and the Buccaneers have 14 points.

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Go to the Chiefs’ column of numbers and find the number 7 (the ones digit in 17) then go to the Buccaneers’ row of numbers and find the number 4 (the ones digit in 14). Find where these two numbers intersect on the grid and the name in that square wins the first quarter.

Repeat this process for all four quarters (the 4th quarter and overtime would be counted as one if OT comes into play).

A winning square is eligible to win in additional periods, too.

Super Bowl Squares 2021 Template

Suggested squares prize structure

1st quarter: 15% of pot ($15 on $1 squares)2nd quarter: 20% of pot ($20 on $1 squares)3rd quarter: 25% of pot ($25 on $1 squares)4th quarter/Overtime

How Do The Super Bowl Squares Work

: 40% of pot ($40 on $1 squares)

Super Bowl squares pro tip #3

Bring four empty envelopes with you, mark each one for each quarter and put the appropriate prize money in each. It makes it easier distributing the prizes during the game. Whoever you made the “banker” earlier can handle this chore.

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How Do Super Bowl Squares Work

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