Skip to main content

Set Up Team Play

Team Play is a category type where multiple people cooperate and compete by score. Because the joining flow and how results appear differ from standard play, it is easier to operate if you think not only about category settings but also about participant guidance and result confirmation.

Which categories can use it​

Team Play is mainly used with score-based categories.

  • Score
  • Score (Free Start and Finish)

It cannot be used on Fixed Order courses.

Setup flow​

  1. Prepare a score-based course in Course and spot settings
  2. Create a category in Category settings
  3. Turn on Play as a team (score-combining mode)
  4. After creating the category, change the Maximum team size in the category edit screen if needed (the default right after creation is 3 people; you can set 2–999)
  5. If needed, also configure mass start and application operation
  6. In participant guidance, clearly describe Team Numbers and the start method

:::note Team play setting is only at category creation "Play as a team (score-combining mode)" can only be specified when creating the category and cannot be turned off afterwards. :::

What to explain to participants​

  • How Team Numbers are decided
  • Whether all members are expected to start at the same time
  • How all team members' finishes are handled
  • When network connectivity is needed
  • Whether team messages and location sharing are used

For ideas on pre-event guidance, also see Operations Guide - Guidance for participants.

Team Number operation​

In Team Play, participants join the same team by entering the same Team Number.

Common patterns​

  • The organizer assigns Team Numbers in advance
  • Each team decides its number on the day
  • Team Numbers are guided separately from Entry Numbers

Things worth deciding in advance​

  • Who announces the numbers
  • How much to check at reception
  • Who handles mistakes in number entry

For the connection with reception flow, see Application and approval management.

Common points of confusion when explaining the rules​

  • Scores are combined at the team level
  • Even if multiple members visit the same checkpoint (spot), the score is counted only once
  • The team start time is based on the first member who starts
  • The team finish time is based on the last member who finishes
  • Time limit checks and penalties are calculated from the team's elapsed time between the team start and finish times (staggered starts make the team's elapsed time correspondingly longer)
  • Even if a member retires (DNF) partway, if at least one member finishes, the app treats the team as having finished, and the retired member's points are still included in the team score. If your event uses a different rule, state it clearly in advance

These are common questions on the event day, so it helps to make them clear in advance guidance and the briefing.

:::note Team events and bonus points Combo Bonus works in team events too, and it is reflected in the team's score, ranking, and Team Results CSV. Bonus QR cannot be used in team events. Note that in team score adjustments, the score used as the baseline for the adjustment does not include Combo Bonus (see Results and data export). For how to set it up, see Course and spot settings - Combo Bonus. :::

Points to check in results​

  • Whether team rankings are displayed as expected
  • Whether you can explain the handling of DNF or mid-race retirement
  • Whether team-by-team record confirmation is needed before awards
  • If standard categories and Team Play categories coexist, whether you want to separate how results are presented

Team results can be exported both as a team-level CSV (Export team results) and as a per-member individual CSV (Export individual results) (event managers only). You can also set an arbitrary team name (menu Update team name on the team detail screen; the team's members and event managers can change it).

For result screen operations, see Results and data export.