Question 1

How does Survivor work?

Accepted Answer

Each week, pick ONE team you think will WIN their game — straight up, no spread. If your team wins, you survive to the next week. If they lose, you’re out. Outlast everyone else and you win the pool. Results are scored automatically from live NFL data, so eliminations and standings update within minutes of each game going final.

Question 2

Does my team have to win outright?

Accepted Answer

Yes — Survivor is straight up, with no spread. Your team simply has to win their game. NFL ties are vanishingly rare, but under the classic rule one eliminates you; commissioners can enable the ties survive option when creating the pool. Your pool’s rules screen shows which rule applies.

Question 3

When do Survivor picks lock?

Accepted Answer

Each game locks at its own kickoff, and everything from the Sunday afternoon slate onward locks together — so a Thursday game closes first and the rest of the week closes with the slate. You can change a pick as often as you like until the game it involves locks. Picks are revealed game by game as they lock, not all at once.

Question 4

Can I use the same team twice in a season?

Accepted Answer

No — each team can be used once per season. With 32 teams and 18 weeks the slate never runs out, but byes hit 9 of the 18 weeks, taking up to 6 teams off the list at once — so the teams you can actually pick change week to week.

Question 5

What happens if my team’s game is postponed or abandoned?

Accepted Answer

Your pick is voided: you survive the week, and the team goes back onto your slate as if you’d never used it. A postponement never eliminates anyone.

Question 6

What if I forget to make a Survivor pick?

Accepted Answer

If the week locks and you haven’t picked, you’re eliminated — that’s the game. Pools with auto-picks enabled have a safety net: shortly before the week locks, FootballPools automatically submits the strongest team left on your slate (by record). Auto-picks are marked as such, and you can replace them with your own choice any time before kickoff. Missed it completely? Ask your commissioner — they can reopen the week just for you, for a window they choose. You’ll only be able to pick from games that haven’t kicked off yet, so ask early.

Question 7

Can I join a Survivor pool after the season has started?

Accepted Answer

Yes — if the commissioner has enabled mid-season joining. You’re only responsible from the week you join: earlier weeks don’t count against you, and you can’t be eliminated for weeks you weren’t in the pool.

Question 8

How do rebuys work?

Accepted Answer

Rebuys are an optional rule set by the commissioner. If they’re enabled and you’ve been eliminated, you can buy back in: you re-enter alive from the next open week, and your used-team history carries over. The rebuy fee is collected by the commissioner like any entry fee — it goes into the pot and is tracked in the pool’s Finances tab. Rebuys close once the pool has been decided.

Question 9

Who wins a Survivor pool?

Accepted Answer

Last one standing: when only one member is left alive, they’re the champion. Everyone out together: if every remaining member goes out in the same week, your pool's tie rule decides. By default a member who made a valid pick beats one who made none; the commissioner can instead have them all share the pot as co-champions. Whichever rule the pool was created with is shown in Pool Info. Season ends: if more than one member is still alive after Week 18, they share the title.

Question 10

How does Pick'em work?

Accepted Answer

Each week you pick any 5 games from that week’s slate and take a side against the spread. If all 5 of your picks cover, you’ve hit a perfect card and win — or share — that week’s pot. A push counts as a loss, so a perfect card means five clean covers. Every week is a fresh card, so one bad week never knocks you out. Picks lock at each game’s own kickoff (everything locks by the Sunday 1:00 PM ET slate), and you can edit your card freely until then.

Question 11

Are there limits on which games I can pick?

Accepted Answer

None — take any 5 games on the week’s slate, favorites or underdogs, in any combination. The spreads come from ESPN and are frozen early in the week, so everyone in your pool plays the identical number no matter how the line moves afterwards. Games without a posted line aren’t on the slate, and with byes each week the slate runs 13–16 games.

Question 12

How are the weekly pots calculated?

Accepted Answer

Your commissioner sets one entry fee for the whole season. The season pool — fee × members — is split evenly into one pot per week. Perfect cards win the week’s pot; multiple perfect cards split it evenly.

Question 13

What happens if nobody gets a perfect card?

Accepted Answer

The pot rolls over and is added to the next week’s pot. Rollovers can stack for weeks, so one perfect card at the right moment can land a monster payout.

Question 14

What happens to the pot on the final week?

Accepted Answer

The season’s final week has nowhere to roll over to, so the commissioner sets the rule when creating the pool: Split among the season’s best (the default): the pot goes to the member(s) with the most week wins that season. Carry to next season: the pot seeds next season’s pool. Commissioner decides: the group settles it their own way. The rule is fixed at creation, so everyone knows the stakes all season.

Question 15

What if one of my Pick'em games is postponed?

Accepted Answer

That pick is voided — it counts neither for nor against you. Your card is judged on the remaining picks: get them all right and you still take the pot.

Question 16

What happens if I miss a Pick'em deadline?

Accepted Answer

You just sit that week out — no elimination, and you’re back in next week. If your pool has auto-picks enabled, FootballPools submits a card of favorites for you shortly before the week locks in, and you can still change any pick until that game kicks off. Missed it completely? Ask your commissioner — they can reopen the week just for you, for a window they choose. You’ll only be able to pick from games that haven’t kicked off yet, so ask early.

Question 17

When does the season start?

Accepted Answer

The NFL regular season runs 18 weeks, from opening week in September through Week 18 in early January. You can create a pool and invite your group at any time — before Week 1 or mid-season. Week 1 picks lock game by game, starting with the opener on Wednesday, September 9.

Question 18

How do I create a pool?

Accepted Answer

From your dashboard, tap + New pool and choose Survivor or Pick'em. Name your pool and set your rules — Survivor pools choose the tie rule, team re-use, mid-season joining, and rebuys; Pick'em pools choose the final-week pot rule; both can enable auto-picks and a message board. Then set your entry fee and payment handles and share the invite code. It takes about two minutes.

Question 19

How do I join a pool?

Accepted Answer

Enter the invite code your commissioner shared (or open their invite link), or browse public pools. You’ll see the pool’s type, rules, and entry fee before you confirm.

Question 20

How do entry fees and prize money work?

Accepted Answer

The commissioner sets the entry fee in the pool’s currency — USD, GBP, EUR, or BRL. FootballPools never collects, holds, or pays out prize money: you pay your commissioner directly through the payment handles listed in the pool (Venmo, Zelle, Cash App, PayPal, or Pix), and they mark you as paid in the pool’s Finances tab so the whole pool can see the books. Both formats use a one-time buy-in for the season — nothing is charged per week.

Question 21

What is the hosting fee?

Accepted Answer

FootballPools is free for pools with 5 or fewer members. Larger pools pay a hosting fee of $2 per member above 5 (12 members = $14, 50 members = $90), paid by the commissioner — not by individual members. In multi-entry pools, each entry counts as one member for the fee. It covers the entire season: live scoring, deadline reminders, payment tracking, and support. Entry fees are separate and stay entirely within your group.

Question 22

When and how is the hosting fee paid?

Accepted Answer

The fee comes due around your pool’s first week — Week 1 for pools created before the season, or your first upcoming week for pools created mid-season — so the member count has settled before anything is owed. The commissioner pays by card through Stripe, from the pool’s Finances section or the emailed payment link. If it goes unpaid there’s a grace period: after 7 days standings are hidden, and after 10 days picks are locked. Paying at any point restores everything immediately.

Question 23

What happens if more people join after I’ve paid?

Accepted Answer

You only ever pay for members you haven’t already covered. If your pool grows after you’ve paid, the commissioner tops up just $2 for each new member above 5 — never again for members already paid for. If the pool shrinks there’s no change and no refund, and you’re never billed twice for the same member. Any top-up due shows in the pool’s Finances section, and we’ll email you when it’s time.

Question 24

Can I be in more than one pool?

Accepted Answer

Yes — join or create as many as you like, and mix formats freely. Plenty of groups run a Survivor pool and a Pick'em pool side by side with the same members.

Question 25

Can I leave a pool?

Accepted Answer

Yes — open the pool and choose Leave Pool in the Pool Info section. Note that your picks in that pool are deleted when you leave.

Question 26

Can I reopen a deadline for someone who missed it?

Accepted Answer

Yes — if you’re the commissioner. Open your pool’s Activity tab, find the member and choose Reopen, then set how long the window stays open (anything from a minute to a week). It closes itself when the time is up, so there’s nothing to remember to switch off. Two things to know. It reopens for that member only — never the whole pool — so nobody who already picked can revise their card once games are under way. And they can only choose games that haven’t kicked off: in Pick'em they pick from whatever is left, and in Survivor the team they pick must still have a game to play. Once every game has started, reopening achieves nothing. Everyone in the pool sees a Reopened badge next to that member, so it is never a silent change. Pool admins can’t do this — only the commissioner — and a Pick'em week that has already been settled and paid out can’t be reopened at all.

Question 27

Will I get a reminder before each week deadline?

Accepted Answer

Yes — if you haven’t picked yet, FootballPools reminds you twice every week: a heads-up about a day before the deadline, and a last call in the final hours before the first kickoff. Reminders arrive by email, and by push notification if you’ve enabled it. Once you’ve picked, you won’t be nagged.

Question 28

How do I know my picks were saved?

Accepted Answer

Your picks are confirmed on screen the moment you submit, and FootballPools also emails you a confirmation listing exactly what you picked. If anything looks wrong, you can change your picks as many times as you like before the week locks.

Question 29

Does FootballPools send push notifications?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Enable notifications when the app asks (or from your account settings) to get deadline reminders on your device. On iPhone, add FootballPools to your home screen first — iOS only delivers push notifications to installed web apps.

Question 30

Why does FootballPools ask for my phone number?

Accepted Answer

New accounts are verified with a one-time SMS code at sign-up — it keeps bots and duplicate accounts out of everyone’s pools. Your number is used for verification only. If you’d rather not share a phone number, you can verify by email instead.

Question 31

How do I add FootballPools to my home screen?

Accepted Answer

iPhone/iPad: Open footballpools.us in Safari → tap the Share button → "Add to Home Screen" Android: Open footballpools.us in Chrome → tap the menu (⋮) → "Add to Home Screen" It looks and feels like a native app — including push notifications — with nothing to install from an app store.

Question 32

How do I reset my password?

Accepted Answer

Click "Forgot Password" on the login page and enter your email. You’ll receive a reset link valid for 1 hour.

Question 33

Can I sign in with Google?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Click "Continue with Google" on the login or sign-up page. We’ll create your FootballPools account automatically using your Google email — no separate password needed.

Question 34

Can I change my display name?

Accepted Answer

Yes, go to Account Settings to update your display name or email.

Question 35

Is my data secure?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Passwords are encrypted, and we never share your personal information. See our Privacy Policy for details.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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