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Starting XI

How to Play

Every day, three legendary starting XIs from the last 30 years take the pitch — one per difficulty. Your job isn’t to find every player — it’s to name the team.

Difficulty modes

Each day brings a separate Easy, Medium and Hard challenge — play one or all three. The rules never change; only the teams do.

  • Easy — globally famous sides packed with icons. Barcelona 2010/11, France 2018.
  • Medium — for engaged fans. Inter 2009/10, Atlético 2013/14. The default.
  • Hard — for enthusiasts. Porto 2003/04, Croatia 1998. Challenging, never obscure.

Streaks and stats are tracked separately for each mode.

The basics

  • You can see the formation and eleven hidden positions on the pitch.
  • Guess players as many times as you like. Every guess gives you a clue.
  • When you think you know the side, guess the team — for example Barcelona 2011 or France 2018. You only get 3 team guesses.

Player guess clues

  • Correct — the player is in the XI. Their card is revealed on the pitch with shirt number and flag.
  • Partial — the player isn’t in the XI, but either shares a nationality with hidden players (those positions glow), or played for this club at some point in their career.
  • No match — no connection. Still useful: you’ve ruled something out.

Winning

Name the team within 3 guesses and the full XI is revealed in celebration. Use all three without success and the challenge is lost — but there’s always tomorrow. A new puzzle drops every day at midnight UTC, and you can replay older ones from the archive.

Tips

  • The formation itself is a clue — eras have shapes.
  • Guess well-travelled players to fish for “played for this club” hints.
  • Nationality glows tell you how many hidden players share a country.
  • Shirt numbers on revealed cards can date the side.