> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.toqui.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Toqui FAQ: Pools, Picks, Scoring, and Pricing

> Answers to common questions about Toqui's free soccer prediction pools — pricing, picks, scoring, tiebreakers, supported tournaments, and more.

Toqui is a private soccer prediction pool app for friend groups, offices, and communities. If you're new or just have a quick question, you're likely to find the answer below. Can't find what you need? Email [help@toqui.app](mailto:help@toqui.app).

## Getting started

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Is Toqui free?">
    Yes — completely free for pools with up to 25 members. You can create as many pools as you like, and the free tier never expires and never requires a credit card. You only pay if a pool grows beyond 25 members, and even then only the organizer pays — not the members.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do members have to pay to join?">
    Never. Joining a pool is always free for every participant. One tap on a shareable invite link (or entering an 8-character join code) and you're in. Only the pool organizer pays, and only when the pool grows past 25 members.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I need to download an app?">
    No download required. Toqui is a web app — open [toqui.app](https://toqui.app) in any modern browser and you're good to go.

    If you'd like a more native feel, you can install Toqui as a Progressive Web App (PWA):

    * **iOS (Safari):** Tap the Share button, then **Add to Home Screen**.
    * **Android (Chrome):** Tap the browser menu, then **Add to Home Screen** or **Install app**.
    * **Desktop (Chrome/Edge):** Click the install icon in the address bar.

    The installed PWA gives you a home-screen icon, full-screen experience, and push notifications.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What tournaments does Toqui support?">
    Toqui is built for the **World Cup 2026** (48 teams, 104 matches, June 11 – July 19, hosted across the US, Canada, and Mexico) and other major soccer tournaments including Copa América. More tournaments are added as they approach — check the tournament selector when creating a pool for the current list.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Pools and picks

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What's the difference between a public pool and a private pool?">
    * **Public pool:** Anyone with the invite link can join — no extra code needed. Useful for larger, open groups.
    * **Private pool:** Members must enter the pool's unique 8-character join code to get in. The organizer controls who gets the code.

    Both pool types keep individual picks hidden from other members until the deadline locks.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I be in more than one pool at the same time?">
    Yes. You can join or create up to 50 pools simultaneously. If you try to create a pool beyond that limit, you'll see an error asking you to leave an existing pool first.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I change my picks after submitting?">
    Yes, as long as the deadline hasn't passed. Lock timing is configurable per stage by the organizer, so check your pool's scoring rules to see exactly when picks close. The defaults are:

    * **Casual mode:** picks lock individually at each match's kickoff.
    * **Escalating / Cascading Bracket:** all picks for a stage lock at the start of that stage (e.g., all group-stage picks lock when the first group-stage match kicks off).

    Once a match or stage has locked, picks for it can no longer be added or changed.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if I miss the pick deadline?">
    Your prediction for that match is not submitted, and you earn 0 points for it. There's no way to retroactively enter a pick after the deadline has passed. Set up push notifications so Toqui can remind you before picks lock.

    <Tip>
      Enable push notifications in your account settings to get a reminder a few hours before each deadline.
    </Tip>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I see other members' picks before the deadline?">
    No. All picks are private until the match or stage deadline locks. This prevents anyone from simply copying the picks of the person who actually watches soccer — everyone competes on their own knowledge.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What does 'picks lock' mean?">
    "Picks lock" is the deadline after which no new predictions can be submitted for a given match or tournament stage. Each stage of your pool has one of three lock settings (defaults seeded by the scoring mode, but configurable by the organizer):

    * **Per match** — picks lock individually at each match's kickoff.
    * **Stage start** — all picks for the stage lock when the first match of that stage kicks off.
    * **Custom** — a specific date and time the organizer chose.

    After a lock, submitted picks become visible to all pool members.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="When can members start making knockout-stage picks?">
    It depends on your pool's mode.

    * **Cascading Bracket pools** let members predict the full knockout bracket up front, before any knockout game kicks off — your own picks cascade downstream (R32 winner appears in your R16 slot, and so on). All knockout picks lock together at the first knockout-round kickoff.
    * **Per Match / Stage Start / Custom pools** open each knockout matchup as soon as both teams are confirmed — typically right after the feeding group-stage matches finish — and lock per the stage's setting.

    Either way, the last matchups to confirm can have a tight predict window — sometimes less than a day. See [When can I make my predictions?](/en/when-can-i-predict) for the full member-facing breakdown, and [Set prediction deadlines for your pool](/en/guides/prediction-deadlines) for the organizer view.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can someone join the pool after the tournament has started?">
    Yes. New members can join any time the pool is open and under capacity. They earn 0 points for any matches that have already locked, so they're effectively competing from their join date forward.

    If your pool uses a single group-stage lock, anyone who joins after that date can only submit knockout picks — a clean "knockout-only late entry" experience that's popular for community pools where members hear about the pool partway through.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I create a pool after the tournament has started?">
    Yes. Pick your tournament as usual — Toqui adapts the locks to where things stand. Stages already underway lock **per match**, so your group can predict every game that hasn't kicked off yet; matches that already started are locked and score 0. Stages that haven't started behave normally for your scoring mode. See [Creating a pool mid-tournament](/en/guides/prediction-deadlines#creating-a-pool-mid-tournament).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why can't I select 'Stage start' for a stage?">
    That stage has already begun, so a stage-start deadline (which falls at the stage's first kickoff) is in the past and can't apply. Toqui grays it out and locks those matches at each kickoff instead. If a pool you created earlier shows a started stage fully locked, open **Pool Settings → Scoring Rules** and set that stage to **Per match** to reopen the games that haven't started.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can the same person register twice?">
    Members can't re-join with the same email — Toqui blocks duplicate accounts on the same address. As the pool organizer, you also have a **Manage Members** view in the dashboard with the full member list, their emails, and CSV export, so you can audit and resolve anything suspicious directly.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Scoring

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How does scoring work?">
    Scoring depends on the mode your organizer chose when creating the pool. Toqui awards points for different levels of prediction accuracy:

    | Rule                                        | What it rewards                                                                                                                           | Default points         |
    | ------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------- |
    | Correct outcome                             | Right result — home win, draw, or away win                                                                                                | 2                      |
    | Exact score                                 | The exact final scoreline                                                                                                                 | 5                      |
    | Correct margin                              | Right goal difference                                                                                                                     | 3                      |
    | Total goals                                 | Right total number of goals                                                                                                               | 2                      |
    | Clean sheet                                 | Correctly predicted a team conceding 0 goals                                                                                              | 2                      |
    | Close score                                 | Each predicted score within 1 goal of the actual score                                                                                    | 1                      |
    | Team advancement *(Cascading Bracket only)* | The team you picked won their knockout match — full time, extra time, or penalty shootout — even if your predicted matchup never happened | 4–25, scaling by round |

    Organizers can customize which rules apply and adjust the point values per tournament stage. In **Escalating** and **Cascading Bracket** modes, point values increase as the tournament progresses — a correct outcome in the final is worth far more than one in the group stage.

    <Note>
      Your organizer may have changed the default point values. Check your pool's scoring rules page to see exactly what's in play for your pool.
    </Note>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="When does the leaderboard update?">
    Within seconds of a match ending. Toqui receives live match data and updates scores and standings automatically — no organizer action needed, no page refresh required. You may receive a push notification if you've moved up the table.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why did my points or ranking change?">
    If your points moved when no new match just finished, your pool's organizer (or an admin) likely updated the scoring rules. Organizers can edit scoring at any time; when they do it after games have been played, Toqui recalculates every score under the new rules, so rankings can rise or fall. You'll get a notification naming who made the change. See [Editing the rules later](/en/guides/prediction-deadlines#editing-the-rules-later).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can organizers change the scoring or rules after the pool starts?">
    Yes. Pool organizers and admins can edit scoring (point values, which rules apply, the scoring mode, the Cascading Bracket toggle) and prediction lock timing at any point in the tournament — there's no need to contact support. Regular members can't edit rules. Changing scoring after games have been played recalculates the whole leaderboard and notifies every member; changing only when predictions lock never affects points.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How are tiebreakers handled?">
    When two or more members have the same total points, Toqui resolves ties in this order:

    1. **Total points** — higher is better (the primary sort).
    2. **Number of exact scores** — more exact-score hits wins the tiebreak.
    3. **Correct outcomes** — the member who predicted more correct results (home win, draw, or away win) ranks higher. Exact scores count here too, so this total is always at least as high as your exact-score count.
    4. **Average prediction time** — the member who submitted their picks earlier on average ranks higher. Editing a pick later doesn't change its recorded time.

    Each tier is only used if the members are still tied after the one above it, so a tiebreak can almost always be resolved without a manual ruling. See [Tiebreakers](/en/guides/tiebreakers) for worked examples.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if a match goes to penalty kicks?">
    Score-based rules don't count penalty kicks. Every score prediction is checked against the **full-time + extra time** result. If you predicted 1–1 for a knockout match that ended 1–1 after extra time and went to penalties, you'd still get full credit for the exact score regardless of who won the shootout.

    There's no way to predict penalty kicks in Toqui — your score prediction always applies to the regulation + extra time result.

    The one exception is the **Team Advancement** rule in Cascading Bracket pools, which rewards the team that actually advances — including shootout winners. See [Bracket pools](/en/guides/bracket-pools#team-advancement) for the full breakdown.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do scoring rules stack? If I predict the exact score, do I also earn points for the correct outcome?">
    Yes — scoring rules always stack. An exact-score prediction also satisfies "correct outcome," so under the default points (3 for exact score + 1 for correct outcome) you'd earn **4 points**, not 3. The rules are independent checks against your prediction, not mutually exclusive categories.

    This applies to every rule: if your prediction satisfies multiple rules (e.g. exact score + correct margin + clean sheet), you earn the points for each.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I award separate prizes for the group stage and the knockout stage?">
    Toqui's native standings cover the full tournament, so a "best overall" or "best combined" prize is built in. For separate **group-stage-only** and **knockout-only** standings, use the CSV export — it has one row per prediction with the member's email, the stage, the match (teams and kickoff time), predicted vs actual scores, submission time, and a per-rule point breakdown (`pts_exact_score`, `pts_correct_outcome`, `pts_correct_margin`, `pts_total_goals`, `pts_clean_sheet`, `pts_close_score`, and `pts_team_advancement` for Cascading Bracket pools) plus the per-prediction total.

    Filtering by stage in Google Sheets or Excel takes a few minutes — email [help@toqui.app](mailto:help@toqui.app) if you'd like a hand setting up the formulas. Community pools with multiple prize categories are a common setup.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Customization

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Can I add sponsor logos to my pool?">
    Yes. From your pool's **Settings** page, open the **Sponsors** area to add sponsor names and logos. You can add **up to 20 sponsors per pool**, and any image format works. Their logos appear on the pool's **Home** view and on the **Join** page, so both existing members and anyone you invite can see who's supporting the event.

    This is useful for community pools with prize sponsors, club-run pools recognizing local businesses, or any event where you want to thank contributors visibly.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Pricing

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Is a World Cup office pool legal in the US?">
    For a recreational group activity, yes — a World Cup prediction pool sits on the same legal footing as a March Madness bracket at the office. Toqui takes no money in or out of the platform: there are no entry fees paid to us and no cash prizes paid by us. Any buy-in your group runs among yourselves lives entirely off-platform and between your group members.

    <Warning>
      Check your company's HR or legal policy before running a pool at work — some employers have rules about workplace pools regardless of the platform. This is not legal advice.
    </Warning>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if my pool hits the member limit?">
    Once a pool reaches its tier's member cap, new members can't join. Toqui will notify the organizer in-app when the limit is reached. The organizer can upgrade to the next Pro tier at any time — paying only the difference in price — and no picks or data are lost. Existing members don't need to rejoin.

    Pro tier caps: **50, 100, 250, 500, and 1,000 members**. Pools with over 1,000 members require an Enterprise plan.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I get a refund?">
    For billing questions, refund requests, or any payment issues, email [help@toqui.app](mailto:help@toqui.app). Include your pool name and the email address on your account and the team will get back to you.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Technical

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What browsers does Toqui support?">
    Toqui works in all modern browsers:

    * **Chrome** (desktop and Android) — full support including PWA install and push notifications.
    * **Firefox** — full support.
    * **Safari** (macOS and iOS) — full support. PWA push notifications on iOS require **Safari 16.4 or later** and the app must be installed to your Home Screen first.
    * **Edge** — full support.

    Very old browser versions (Internet Explorer, Safari below 14) are not supported.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I install Toqui as an app on my phone or desktop?">
    Toqui is installable as a Progressive Web App (PWA), which gives you a home-screen icon, full-screen experience, and push notifications without going through an app store.

    **iPhone / iPad (Safari required):**

    1. Open [toqui.app](https://toqui.app) in Safari.
    2. Tap the **Share** button (the box with an arrow pointing up).
    3. Scroll down and tap **Add to Home Screen**.
    4. Tap **Add** to confirm.

    **Android (Chrome):**

    1. Open [toqui.app](https://toqui.app) in Chrome.
    2. Tap the three-dot menu.
    3. Tap **Add to Home Screen** or **Install app**.

    **Desktop (Chrome or Edge):**

    1. Open [toqui.app](https://toqui.app).
    2. Click the install icon (a monitor with a download arrow) in the browser's address bar.
    3. Click **Install** in the confirmation prompt.

    <Note>
      On iOS, push notifications only work when Toqui is installed as a PWA via Safari and your iOS version is 16.4 or later.
    </Note>
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>