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Booked! — The Football Card Game

Core rules · Squad Rush

How to play Booked!

2-6 players · 20 min · ages 8+. Three steps a turn, one loud word to win, and a table full of people who'd rather you didn't.

Download the rules booklet (PDF) ↓

See a round played

Watch a full round: deal, two actions a turn, a Tackle, a booking, and the GOOOAL call.

What you're watching

You're South, building Germany. England (East), Brazil (North) and Argentina (West) are racing to their own sevens — hands hidden, pitches public, play passing left. The gold glow marks whose turn it is.

  1. 0:09

    The deal. Seven cards to every manager, one card flipped to start the discard. Youngest kicks off — in this game, that’s you.

  2. 0:12

    Your turn — two actions. A turn is TWO actions, any mix. Here you spend one to DRAW (deck or face-up discard) and one to play a German to your pitch, face up. Hands stay hidden — the pitch is the only thing everyone can see.

  3. 0:15

    The Tackle. England uses its two actions to draw, then Tackle: they discard a Germany card from their own hand — that’s the price — and one German is forced off your pitch, back into your hand. Nothing is destroyed; you’ve just lost a placement, and the Tackle cost England its whole turn.

  4. 0:19

    The rebuild. You park an Argentine card in the extras zone — any nation may sit on your pitch, but only ONE nation can form your 7. Meanwhile all three opponents are racing to their own sevens.

  5. 0:24

    The booking. Brazil spends a turn playing a Yellow on one of your Germans — BOOKED. Booked players still count toward your 7, but a second Yellow would send them off for good.

  6. 0:29

    GOOOAL! and the instant window. Seven Germans side by side — you call it. The call opens ONE window around the table: England passes, Brazil throws ⚡ OFFSIDE! at your seventh man, you answer ⚡ PLAY ON. Newest instant resolves first, so the Offside dies and the goal stands. Argentina passes, the window closes — full time, you win.

How to Play Booked! — Core Rules (Squad Rush)

2–6 players · 20 minutes · ages 8+

The object

Be first to field a legal Starting 7 — all from ONE nation: 1 GK, 2 DEF, 2 MID, 2 FWD — then call GOOOAL! and survive one final INSTANT window.

Setup

  1. Remove the 4 Quick Rules cards.
  2. Shuffle everything else into one deck.
  3. Deal 7 to each manager.
  4. Flip the top card to start the discard (referee or discipline card? bury it, flip again).
  5. Youngest manager kicks off; play passes left.

Your turn — TWO ACTIONS

Take 2 actions, any mix, repeats allowed. An action is any ONE of:

  • Draw — top of deck or top of the face-up discard.
  • Play a player — FACE UP to your pitch (your open row — hands are the only hidden cards in Booked!).
  • Play a Referee and resolve it.
  • Play a Yellow/Red on an opponent.
  • Tackle (below).
  • Discard a card from hand.

Hand limit 9 — over nine at any point? Discard down.

The Tackle

Discard a player from hand whose nation matches a nation on an opponent's pitch. That opponent returns ONE pitch card of that nation to their hand. Your tackler goes to the discard pile — it's a trade: one card + your action to undo one placement. (The discard is face up and draftable: sequence your tackles.)

Discipline

Yellow — book any opponent's pitch player: slide it halfway under them. Booked players still count toward a 7, but a second Yellow sends them off (player + Yellows discarded). Red — played on a BOOKED player: straight ejection (all cards discarded). On a clean player it bounces: discarded, no effect. Super Sub — wildcard for any slot including keeper, max 2 on your pitch; can be tackled as the nation it stands in for, and can be booked.

GOOOAL! and winning

A legal 7 on your pitch (sent-off players excluded) lets you call "GOOOAL!" out loud — all three O's. The call opens ONE window: around the table once, each opponent may play any number of ⚡ INSTANT cards to break your 7. Still legal when it closes? You win. Broken? Rebuild and re-call.

⚡ Instant timing

An INSTANT can be played at any time, even on another manager's turn; it resolves before what it interrupts. When instants stack, the newest resolves first — an instant can cancel an instant. (You call GOOOAL!, they throw ⚡OFFSIDE!, you answer ⚡OVERTURNED: the Offside is cancelled and the goal stands.)

If the deck runs dry

Set the top discard aside, shuffle the rest into a new deck. A second exhaustion goes to penalties: highest total rating on pitch wins.

Questions from real tables

Every one of these came up in playtesting. Yours probably will too.

Are pitch cards face up or face down?
Face up, always. Your hand is the only hidden information. Tackles, discipline targeting, OFFSIDE!, and the race itself all depend on public pitches.
What happens to my card after a Tackle?
It goes to the discard pile — a Tackle costs the card plus your action. And the discard is draftable, so you may be gifting your victim a pickup. Time it.
Can I play a Red on a player with no Yellow?
You can, but it bounces: discarded with no effect. Reds only eject BOOKED players. Two paths to a sending-off: Yellow→Red, or Yellow→Yellow.
Does a Tackle destroy the returned card?
No — it returns to their hand. Destruction is the discipline system's job. (Booked player tackled home? The booking discards; they replay clean.)
In Group Stage, what does "playing a match" actually mean?
A scoring ceremony, ~30 seconds: lock, flip an official, apply their call, run the goals formula both ways, record. The strategy happened in the build phase — the match is why it mattered.
Can I play instants during match resolution?
No — locked means locked. (Unless your table runs the Matchday Drama variant.)
Two instants collide — who wins?
Newest first: the last instant played resolves before the ones under it. You call GOOOAL!, they play ⚡OFFSIDE!, you answer ⚡OVERTURNED — the Offside dies, the goal stands. (And yes, that Overturned can itself be Overturned.)
What counts as an action?
Draw, play a player, play a referee, play a Yellow/Red, Tackle, or discard from hand. Two per turn, any mix, repeats allowed. Instants are the exception — they're free and playable any time.

Ready for the tournament?

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