Global Maths Trophy — free printable maths board games
A football-inspired board game for practising maths facts. Pick your route, answer to keep possession, shoot for goal. Download, print and play at school or at home!
Get the boardsGETTING STARTED
Set up the match
- 1Split the class into groups of 3 for one v one, or groups of 5 for two v two. In each group, one person is the referee.
- 2Each group needs: a game board (enlarge to A3 to make it easier to read), a counter for the ball, the answer sheet, and a timer.
- 3Players sit facing each other. The referee sits between them, at the side of the board, holding the answer sheet so nobody else can see it.
- 4Referee places the board in the middle and decides which player shoots at which goal. Swap ends at half time if you like.
- 5Referee shows everyone the board for 30 seconds. Some routes have easier facts but take longer, the quickest route to goal has the hardest questions. Choose your path!
- 6Place the ball on the centre spot.
- 7Rock, paper, scissors decides who kicks off.
- 8Referee says "kick off" and starts the 30 seconds. Play! Have some fun!
THE RULES
How to play
How to move
When you have the ball, choose any line leading from its circle and answer the question on it. Get it right and move the ball along that line. Keep answering, keep moving!
No going back
You cannot use the same line twice in the same possession.
Losing the ball
Answer incorrectly, or run out of time, and possession passes to your opponent. The ball stays where it is and they attack the other way.
Scoring
To score, answer the final question in front of goal. That's the shot. Get it right, it's a goal! The ball returns to the centre spot and the other player kicks off.
The referee
The referee runs the timer and checks every answer. The referee's decision is final.
Winning
First to 3 goals wins. Or play for 10 minutes and the highest score wins.
Playing in pairs
In two v two, teammates take it in turns to answer, one question each, like passing the ball.
MAKE IT YOUR OWN
Ideas for your classroom
Swap boards between games
Rotate boards around the room so each group faces new questions, or move winners up a board difficulty for a fresh challenge.
Change the clock
30 seconds is the standard possession. Drop to 20 for confident classes, stretch to 45 for younger children or trickier boards.
Run a tournament
Set up a leaderboard, group stage then knockout, just like the World Cup. Draw team names from a hat.
Rotate the referee
Swap the referee in after each game so everyone gets a turn to play. Refereeing is practice too, they're checking every answer!
Golden goal
If it's a draw at full time, next goal wins.
Remove the time limit
To avoid time pressures, consider giving pupils a maximum number of passes they can make before losing possession.
DOWNLOADS
Pick your board
One pitch, many matches. Every board comes as an A4 PDF in full colour and printer-friendly black & white, with the referee’s answer sheet.
Times table facts
Subtraction facts
Make your own
Looking for a maths intervention programme?
Groundwork Maths builds the number fluency these games practise: a structured intervention that gets pupils back on track.