December 20, 2018

Game Day? Game Night!

Diehard fans live for game day plays, but for casual fans and vaguely interested friends, game day is really all about socializing. Whether you’re gathering to watch the Super Bowl, a college rivalry, or some NFL Monday night football, you can keep everyone entertained and engaged on game night with your own winning strategy for gambling games.

Try Your Luck at Football Bingo

Let’s face it. Some people go to football parties for the food and fun. They might not want to do a lot of calculations, though, especially after a few beers. Game day bingo is one of those games that everyone can play and understand with zero frustration. You can easily create your own football-themed bingo cards or use a free downloadable template. For the squares, you can make places for game time happenings such as first down, punt, tackle, backup quarterback, or go for commercial and entertainment aspects, such as celebrity names, cheerleader sightings, and common commercial types.

You can give guests multiple small prizes every time they hit Bingo, give a special prize for a full card, or give one major prize at the end. The stakes are up to you! Prizes might include team swag, tickets to a local college game, or a quarterback bobblehead.

Hold a Classic Football Square Pool

If you haven’t placed your bets in a football square pool, you’re missing out on one of the most popular game day games out there. This is a low-cost, high suspense game that’s easy for everyone to play. Simply get a poster board, draw a 10 by 10 grid, and let everyone buy into 10 squares, one dollar per square. They can fill their names in on the board wherever they like. If there are extra squares, let them buy more for one dollar each.

Randomly assign numbers from one to 10 along the top and side squares, allowing the top left square to be split by team name, to indicate the team column. The winner is determined by the final score (or the quarterly or halftime score, if you choose). If, for example, the Giants scored 16 to 12 over the Patriots, you would look for the number 6 in the Giants assigned column, and then look for the number two in the Patriots’ column. The square where these two numbers intersect is the winner, who can receive the full cash pot.

Pass the Football

Like a football version of hot potato, get your party goers to toss a football back and forth through the commercials. Each time a commercial ends, the person holding the football is disqualified. Keep going until there’s only one person left standing, and that person can win something like a team jersey.

An alternate version of this activity is a slower one, in which guests pass a cup instead. Have each person put in a dollar and allow someone to hold the cup throughout the game, but they have to pass the cup during every turnover. Make your own rules as you go, such as the person holding the cup at the end of each quarter gets to take a certain amount from the pot. At the end of the game, the last person holding the cup gets to keep the pot.

Plan Energizing Halftime Games

If you’re not watching the Super Bowl, chances are, your guests won’t want to sit through the commercials. Fill that dead time with quick, adrenaline-charged games that get them on their feet. Set up an inflatable goal post and let guests try their best punt. The first participant to punt five balls successfully within the posts can win something like a logo cup filled with candy.

There are plenty of ways to get creative with game night games. From short, active challenges to game-long bets geared to more experienced gamblers, there’s a gambling activity out there that suits your style and preferred engagement level for football game night.