Football squares spreadsheet template: build one in five minutes

A spreadsheet is the classic upgrade from a paper board: it is free, everyone can see it, and it handles the payout math. Here is how to set one up in Google Sheets or Excel, including the one formula that does the number draw properly. Then, honestly, where it stops working once the game starts.

Step 1: The grid

1. Type the away team's name in cell B1 and merge it across B1 to K1. Type the home team's name in A2 and merge it down A2 to A11. (Which team goes where does not matter, as long as it is consistent.)
2. Insert a row below row 1 and a column after column A for the digits. Now the 10x10 grid of squares is C3 to L12.
3. Give the grid cells borders and a fixed width so it looks like a board. Turn on cell wrapping so names fit.

Step 2: Claiming squares

Share the sheet with edit access and let people type their name (or initials) into empty squares. Add a small legend of names to colors and use conditional formatting so each player's squares light up in their color. Lock the digit row and column so nobody can edit those cells.

Step 3: The draw

This is the part people get wrong. The digits must be assigned at random and only after every square is claimed. In the digit row above the grid (C2), enter:

=TRANSPOSE(SORTBY(SEQUENCE(10,1,0),RANDARRAY(10)))

In the digit column beside the grid (B3), enter the same without TRANSPOSE:

=SORTBY(SEQUENCE(10,1,0),RANDARRAY(10))

Each gives a shuffled 0 through 9. Immediately copy both and paste as values, because the formula reshuffles every time the sheet recalculates, and a board whose digits change mid-game is a riot waiting to happen. Do the draw on a screen share or in the room so everyone sees it happen. The draw guide explains why the order matters.

Step 4: The payout table

Off to the side, add cells for price per square, total pot (price times 100), and the split by quarter. The Boxpick standard is 20% for Q1, Q2, and Q3, and 40% for the final score. Multiply out the dollar amounts so nobody argues later. The payouts guide has alternatives.

Where the spreadsheet stops

On game day, the spreadsheet becomes the host's job. At the end of each quarter you look up the score, find the last digit of each team, trace the row and column, and announce the winner, then type it somewhere so people stop asking. Multiply by four quarters, or by three games on Thanksgiving. Nobody sees the winner unless you tell them.

That is the gap Boxpick fills. Same grid, same rules, but friends claim squares from a link, the draw is an animated reveal, and live scores light up the winning square on everyone's phone at the end of each quarter with the payout figured. Hosting regular season boards is free with no limit. The paper vs app guide and the squares app comparison go deeper.