Run a survivor pool
Pick one team a week. Lose once, you're out. Last survivor takes the bragging rights.
Free for groups up to 50. No app, no spreadsheet.
How it works
Create the pool
Pick the season - NFL or any sport - set your rules, and spin up your survivor pool in under two minutes.
Share the link
Drop one link in the group chat. Players join in a tap with a display name. No accounts, nothing to download.
Pick and survive
Everyone picks one team to win each week. Get it wrong and you're out. We auto-grade every result - last survivor wins.
Survivor pool rules & formats
A survivor pool (also called an eliminator or knockout pool) is the simplest format in sports: each week you pick one team you think will win their game. Win, and you advance. Lose, and you're eliminated. The last person still standing takes the whole pool.
The catch that makes it brutal: you can only use each team once all season. Burn the best matchup in Week 1 and you've got nothing left for the playoffs run.
The core rules
- One pick per week. Choose a single team to win their matchup. You're not picking a score or a margin - just the winner.
- No reusing teams. Once you've picked a team, they're off the board for the rest of the season. This is the whole strategy: budget your strong teams.
- Lose and you're out. A wrong pick eliminates you. A tie usually counts as a loss (configurable below).
- Last one standing wins. Survive longer than everyone else and the bragging rights are yours. If everyone busts in the same week, the pool can split or roll to a tiebreaker.
Common options you can turn on
- Buyback / mulligan. Give players one "strike" before elimination, or let them buy back in once. Softens the early-week bloodbath and keeps more people engaged.
- Multiple entries. Let each player run two or three independent entries so a single bad Sunday doesn't end their season. Great for bigger pools.
- Pick deadlines & lock. Picks lock at each game's kickoff - no editing once the ball is in the air. Forget to pick? Most pools auto-assign a loss (or the highest-seeded available team).
- Strategy, in one line: the favorite isn't always the smart pick. Save the juggernauts for later weeks and spend the safe-but-boring teams early.
Tiebreakers
When more than one survivor is left at the end - or everyone gets knocked out at once - you settle it with a tiebreaker: fewest total picks used, a head-to-head confidence round, or a single predicted-score question. Set it once and Trofeo.live applies it automatically.
Why run it on Trofeo.live
Most survivor pools die in a spreadsheet. Someone volunteers to track 40 picks by hand, misses a week, gets a result wrong, and the whole thing falls apart by October. Trofeo.live runs it for you.
- Auto-grading. Results are pulled live and scored the second games end. No commissioner math, no arguments.
- Live leaderboard. Everyone sees who's still alive, who's out, and who picked what - the moment it's locked.
- Public proof. Wins get gassed up, busts get roasted. Every result is screenshot-ready for the group chat.
- No app, no logins for players. You set it up; they join from a link with a name. That's it.
- Run it anywhere. Friends, a league, or the whole office - same setup, your branding.
Set the rules, share the link, and let the eliminations do the talking.
Where the trash talk lives
Survive the week and you've earned the right to gloat. Get knocked out and the group chat will never let you forget it. Every pick, every elimination, every comeback - public and screenshot-ready.
FAQ
What is a survivor pool?+
A survivor pool is a season-long elimination game. Each week you pick one team to win their game. Pick right and you advance; pick wrong and you're eliminated. You can only use each team once all season, and the last person still standing wins.
How many players can join?+
As many as you want. Trofeo.live is free for groups up to 50 players, and larger pools are supported on paid plans. There's no cap that breaks the format - survivor pools are actually more fun with a big field.
Can a player have more than one pick or entry?+
Yes. You can enable multiple entries so each player runs two or three independent survivor entries - a single bad week won't end their whole season. Within a single entry, though, it's still one team pick per week.
What happens on a tie?+
By default a tied game counts as a loss for that pick, but you can configure it. If multiple players survive to the end, Trofeo.live settles it with the tiebreaker you choose - fewest picks used, a confidence round, or a predicted-score question.
Is it free?+
Yes - running a survivor pool is free for groups up to 50 players. It's bragging rights, not betting: there's no wagering or payouts built in. Bigger pools and extra branding are available on paid plans.
Can I run a survivor pool for my office?+
Absolutely. The same setup works for a workplace - it's one of the easiest ways to get a team engaged around a season. Set it up, share the link in Slack or Teams, and let the eliminations fuel the trash talk.
Run a survivor pool
Pick one team a week. Lose once, you're out. Last survivor takes the bragging rights.
Free for groups up to 50. No app, no spreadsheet.