SweepSquad glossary: competitors, members, pots and the draw explained
5 min read
A sweepstake has two sides: the competitors in the real event, and the members in your group. The draw shares one out to the other. Everything else below builds on that.
If a word you've seen in the app isn't here, tell us and we'll add it.
- Organiser
- You — the person with the SweepSquad account who sets the sweepstake up, adds people and runs the draw. Your members don't need an account.
- Competition
- One sweepstake. "Office Strictly 2026" is a competition. You can run as many as you like side by side, each with its own members and competitors. Read more
- Competitors
- The things being drawn out of the hat: the teams, players, horses, couples or bakers taking part in the real event. The app uses the right word for the sport, so you'll see "Teams", "Players" or "Horses" on the tab. Read more
- Members
- The people taking part in your sweepstake — your colleagues, club-mates or family. Each member is given one or more competitors in the draw. Members need a name; an email address is optional, and they never need an account. Read more
- People (your roster)
- Everyone saved in your organisation, found under People in the menu. Add someone once, then pick them for any competition with From roster instead of typing them in again. Everyone on this list who isn't archived counts towards your plan's people limit. Archiving someone frees their place. Their history in finished sweepstakes is kept. Read more
- Member places
- How many people your organisation can save on your plan (Free 10, Tier 1 30, Tier 2 75, Tier 3 200). The same people can join as many sweepstakes as you like at no extra cost. Adding someone who's already on your list never uses another place. Read more
- Upgrading and downgrading
- Moving to a bigger or smaller plan. Upgrades happen straight away. You pay only for the time left until your renewal date, and your new limit applies as soon as payment goes through. Downgrading, or switching between monthly and annual, takes effect at your next renewal. Read more
- Seed
- A ranking that says how strong each competitor is — 1 is the favourite. Depending on the format you'll see it called Seed, Predicted finish or Favourite order. Seeds are optional, but they're what keeps the draw fair. Read more
- Pots
- Groups of competitors of similar strength. The draw sorts competitors by seed and splits them into pots the same size as your number of members, then deals one from each pot to every member — so nobody ends up with all the favourites. Read more
- The draw
- The random share-out of competitors to members. You can do it instantly with Allocate, or schedule it for a set time so everyone can watch the reveal together. Read more
- Allocations
- The result of the draw: which member holds which competitors.
- The reveal
- The animated draw on your public page. When you schedule a draw, members get a link, watch a countdown, and see who gets what at the time you set. Read more
- Live tab
- Your organiser view of how things stand: scores, tables, who's still in and the leaderboard. It refreshes itself every 45 seconds. Read more
- Public page
- The shareable page your members see, at a private link. It shows the draw, the leaderboard and results — member names only, never email addresses or who has paid. It only works once you switch on Live page link. Read more
- Join link
- A link people can use to add themselves to your sweepstake instead of you typing them in. It works once sharing is on, and closes when the draw is scheduled or made. Read more
- Entry fee and the pot
- What each member pays in, and the total that makes. SweepSquad only keeps a record — you collect and pay out the money yourself. "Pot (your records)" adds up the fees of members you've ticked as paid. Read more
- Format
- How the real event is decided: Group stage then knockout, Straight knockout, League table, One-off event or race, or Weekly elimination (TV show). The format sets how a competitor goes out, and so how points are scored. It can't be changed once the competition is created. Read more
- Points
- Members score points depending on how far their competitors get. You can change the points for each round with Points per round on the Results tab. Read more
- Featured event
- An event we've set up for you, such as Strictly Come Dancing or a football tournament, with the name, format and — once it's announced — the full list of competitors ready to go. Read more
- Live results
- For linked football and tennis competitions, scores and knockouts update automatically. For everything else you enter results yourself on the Results tab. Read more
Related guides
How to run a sweepstake on SweepSquad: the quick-start guide
The whole thing in five steps, from creating your first competition to sharing the live leaderboard with everyone.
How the sweepstake draw works: pots, seeds and the live reveal
What makes the draw fair, instant versus scheduled draws, and how to put on a live reveal.
Plans and member places
How many people each plan allows, how the limit is counted, and how to upgrade, downgrade or cancel.
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