Help
Quick answers to how The Pundit works.
The Pundit is a free football prediction game where you call the result of real matches and win points from a shared pot.
For every match, you pick a home win, a draw or an away win, and back your pick with a stake. Everyone who calls it right shares the pot, so the fewer people who see it coming, the bigger your share. Nobody sees anyone else's picks until the match locks, so reading the crowd matters as much as reading the match. Unlock chips as you play to boost your best calls, and climb the leaderboard across the whole season. You can play against everyone, and create private leagues to compete with friends, family and colleagues. Some competitions also have real prizes.
There's a lot to take in when you start playing. Begin with the basics below, then use the Rules and each match page for more detail.
Getting started
No. The Pundit is free to play. You do not deposit, wager or withdraw real money, and chips, stakes and profit are virtual competition metrics, not cash. Some competitions separately offer prizes, covered under Prizes and eligibility.
Yes. The Pundit is strictly 18+. You must give an accurate date of birth when you complete your profile, and accounts found to have given false age information may be restricted or removed.
Open a match that has not locked (picks lock 15 minutes before kick-off), choose Home, Draw or Away, and tap Save pick. That is the only decision you need to make; everything else (a chip, verifying your account) is optional. See Picks and locking for how long you have.
No, you can browse and place picks without unlocking. Unlocking is a one-time verification step that turns on the leaderboard, profit tracking, chips, and private leagues. Go to account settings to unlock.
Picks and locking
Picks lock 15 minutes before kick-off. Once a match locks, every player's pick on that match is revealed at the same moment.
Yes, as many times as you like, right up until the match locks. Tap Change pick, choose a different outcome or chip, then tap Update pick. The Update pick button stays disabled until you've actually changed something.
Yes, until the match locks. Tap Change pick, then Manage pick, then Remove pick, and confirm with Remove. Once it's removed, your stake is returned and any chip you had applied is released so you can use it again. If you do not place a new pick, the match counts as a No Pick.
Nothing against you. A No Pick is neutral: no stake, no profit or loss, no effect on the pot, and it does not count towards a chip unlock.
No. Once a match locks, picks can no longer be changed, cancelled or withdrawn, even if you had technical trouble reaching the site in time.
Stakes and the pot
Your stake is the amount your pick commits to the match pot. A standard pick stakes 50; using a chip increases it.
Every match has a single pot. It is made up of a base amount of 500, plus 50 for every pick, plus anything added by chip-boosted stakes.
Profit is what you receive minus what you staked, added up across your picks in that competition. ROI is profit divided by total staked. Neither carries between competitions.
Chips
Chips let you back a strong read with a bigger stake. Bronze, Silver and Gold increase your stake on one outcome; Double Chance splits your stake across two outcomes. You need an unlocked (verified) account to earn or use chips. The exact unlock order and timing are set per competition on that competition's chip rules page.
Chips unlock as you complete settled picks. Each unlock has a fixed settled-pick threshold set for that competition; you can see your progress on the chip tile itself.
Double Chance splits your stake across two different outcomes. Only the winning half shares the pot; the other half is lost.You can win the pick and still be down on the stake.
One chip per round. A chip cannot be used in the round it was earned in; it becomes usable from the following round and stays usable for a fixed number of further rounds, then expires if unused.
No. Chips are limited per competition and do not carry between competitions or seasons. Any unused chips expire when the competition ends.
Scoring and results
Settlement uses the official full-time result. Extra time and penalties never affect settlement. Only the 90-minute result counts.
If the official result is later corrected or amended, The Pundit may update settlements and rankings to match.
It is released so you can use it again within its usable window.
Live results shown during a match are provisional. Final settlement happens at full time, using the official result.
Leagues and private leagues
You are ranked by profit, then ROI, then correct picks, against every other player in the same competition. You need an unlocked (verified) account and, on the Premier League and Champions League 2026/27, one settled pick. On the World Cup 2026 and Premier League 2025/26 you needed picks on 3 different matches.
Private leagues let you compete against friends, colleagues or a community inside a competition, using the same profit and ranking system as the global leaderboard. Your private standing does not affect the global leaderboard.
Only verified (unlocked) accounts can create or join a private league. Depending on the league's settings, joining is either instant or requires the admin's approval.
Only with people you want in the league. Treat an invite link or code like a password; it is intended for private sharing.
Yes, with a stated reason, and you can leave at any time. Misuse of a private league can lead to the league itself being restricted or removed.
Prizes and eligibility
Some competitions separately offer prizes based on the final leaderboard. Where that applies, the competition's own Prize Terms page sets out the pool, eligibility and how winners are paid.
Eligibility follows the same rules as the leaderboard (an unlocked, verified account and one settled pick on the Premier League and Champions League 2026/27), plus you must be 18 or over, and you must finish in a published prize position once the competition has concluded and results are verified. For a monthly prize specifically, you also need at least 8 picks on matches kicking off in that calendar month.
Each tied player receives the full prize for that position, and the following prize position is skipped rather than splitting the prize between them.
On the Premier League 2026/27 competition, yes: three monthly prizes of £25, £15 and £10, awarded for each calendar month from November 2026 to the end of the season, on top of the season prizes. Every month starts from zero: only picks on that month's matches count, so you get a fresh chance each month whatever your season position. To be eligible for a given month you need at least 8 picks on matches that kick off in that month (UK time); picks on void matches don't count. Monthly winners are contacted and paid together with the season winners, after the season ends. Other competitions may not offer monthly prizes; check that competition's Prize Terms page.
Both current competitions pay prizes as digital gift cards only, through Tremendous; cash and bank transfer are not offered. Winners are contacted at the email address on their account and must reply within 14 days, or the prize may be forfeited. We aim to fulfil the prize within 30 days of the winner confirming their details.
Account and privacy
The minimum needed to run a fair game: your email, username, hashed password, nationality (shown publicly as a flag), date of birth (used only to confirm you are 18+, never shown publicly), and your picks, stake and profit.
No, we never sell your data. There are no tracking pixels or ad networks, and no commercial email marketing. If onsite advertising or sponsorship is ever added to The Pundit, we will give clear notice and consent controls where the law requires it.
Yes. Essential account emails (sign-in, verification, password reset, security notices) always send. Optional emails (reminders, leaderboard moments) are off by default; turn them on or off any time from your account page.
Yes, at any time, from your account page. Your email and login are removed and your username is replaced with an anonymised placeholder. Your past picks stay in the game, no longer linked to you, so historical pots stay fair.
Yes, from your account page. You can change this setting at any time.
Contact
Email [email protected] with any question about the game, your account or the rules.
Email [email protected]. For a disputed or incorrect result, we settle on the official full-time result and may correct a settlement if the official result is later amended.