← Home · Rules · Updated October 2026
How prediction league scoring works — the exact rules
BeTeam scores every prediction automatically with one transparent system: 3 points for the exact score, 1 point for the correct outcome, 0 for a miss — with per-sport adjustments, knockout multipliers up to ×16, and optional twists the league organizer controls. This page is the complete rulebook, the same rules shown inside the app.
If you're designing your own office pool in a spreadsheet, you're welcome to copy this system — it's the product of a full World Cup with 470,000+ scored predictions. Or skip the spreadsheet: BeTeam applies all of it automatically.
Base points — football, hockey & tennis
| Your prediction | Points |
|---|---|
| Exact score (e.g. predicted 2-1, finished 2-1) | 3 |
| Correct winner or draw, wrong score | 1 |
| Wrong outcome | 0 |
Knockout rule: knockout guesses are judged on the result after extra time. A penalty shootout doesn't count — a game decided on penalties is scored as a draw.
High-scoring sports reward "close enough"
Nobody predicts an NBA game 109-107 exactly, so basketball, American football, and baseball add a middle tier:
| Sport | Exact | Close (right winner) | Right winner, further off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basketball | 10 | 3 — right margin band (1–5, 6–10, 11–15, 16–20, 21+) | 1 |
| American football (NFL) | 5 | 3 — within 7 pts each side | 1 |
| Baseball (MLB) | 4 | 2 — within 2 runs each side | 1 |
Multipliers — and they multiply together
- Super Game (×2). The organizer can flag a decisive game before it starts; the flag locks at kickoff.
- Knockout stage. Each round doubles the last — a 5-round bracket runs ×1 → ×2 → ×4 → ×8 → ×16; shorter cups start lower. A game's round locks when it's added to the league.
- Weekly / Monthly doubling. Optionally, points double each week or month the league runs — late-season games matter more, keeping everyone in the race.
- Relative scoring. If 10% or fewer of your group picked the outcome that actually happened — and you were one of them — your points double. Bold calls pay.
When more than one multiplier is active they multiply: a Super Game (×2) in a doubled week (×2) scores ×4, not ×3.
Bonus questions
- Official questions (added with a tournament, e.g. "Top scorer?") are worth up to 10 points and resolve automatically when the result is known.
- Custom questions (written by the organizer) are worth their number of options — a 4-option question scores 4 points.
- If reality ties (e.g. joint top scorers), everyone who picked either correct answer scores.
The anti-cheat rules
- Predictions lock at kickoff. Nobody can edit once the game starts — the most common way spreadsheet pools go wrong.
- Miss the deadline? The app auto-fills a guess for you, but it scores at most 1 point (exact match only) — you stay in the game without being rewarded for forgetting.
- Everything is logged. Every prediction is recorded and visible after kickoff — no "I said 2-1" arguments.
How hard are those points in practice? See our research on how accurate football fans really are — across 194,812 World Cup 2026 predictions, fans hit the exact score 10.4% of the time. And does the choice of system actually change who wins? We re-scored 203 real leagues five ways: in 52% of them at least two systems crowned a different champion — see the scoring systems study.
Frequently asked questions
What is a fair scoring system for a football prediction league?
The most common fair system — and BeTeam's default — is 3 points for the exact score, 1 point for the correct outcome (win, draw, or loss) with the wrong score, and 0 for a wrong outcome. It rewards precision without making lucky exact guesses the only thing that matters. Predictions must lock at kickoff so nobody can edit after the game starts.
How are knockout games scored in a prediction league?
On BeTeam, knockout guesses are judged on the result after extra time; a penalty shootout does not count, so a game decided on penalties is scored as a draw. Each knockout round doubles the points of the last — a 5-round bracket runs ×1, ×2, ×4, ×8, ×16 — so the final is worth the most.
How does scoring work for basketball or NFL prediction leagues?
High-scoring sports get a middle tier. Basketball scores the margin: 3 points for the right winner with the margin in the right band (1–5, 6–10, 11–15, 16–20 or 21+ points), 1 point for the right winner otherwise, and 10 points for the exact score as a rare jackpot. American football (NFL): 5 points for the exact score, 3 for within 7 points on each side with the right winner, 1 for the right winner further off. Baseball uses 4 / 2 (within 2 runs each side) / 1.
Can the league organizer customize the scoring?
Yes. A BeTeam organizer can flag Super Games (×2), run weekly or monthly doubling so late rounds matter more, enable relative scoring (points double when 10% or fewer of the group picked the outcome that happened), and add bonus questions. Multipliers multiply together — a Super Game in a doubled week scores ×4.
