Sports Mafia rules

General provisions

• Line-up: every game is played by exactly 10 people.
• Teams: players are split into “Reds” (civilians) and “Blacks” (the Mafia).
• Role distribution: the game holds 7 “red” cards (including the Sheriff) and 3 “black” cards (including the Don). Roles are assigned at random — either by drawing cards “from the tray” or by the host dealing them.
• Game flow: a game ends only after the host officially announces it.

Team “Red” (civilians)

Task: find the entire Mafia and vote it out of the game.

Civilian

Has no special abilities. During the day they take part in the discussion (1 minute), voice suspicions and vote against suspected mafiosi.

Sheriff

The leader of the “reds”. Each night they may check one player to learn whether that player belongs to the Mafia. The host confirms whether the player is “black” or not, without revealing whether the checked player is the Don.

The Sheriff’s special duties:

• If the Sheriff is “killed” at night, during their farewell minute they must clearly name the numbers of every player they checked and those players’ roles.
• The Sheriff should reveal themselves during the day while 7 or 8 players remain at the table, to minimise the risk of a Mafia win.
• If the table tries to vote the Sheriff out, they must immediately announce their role.

Team “Black” (the Mafia)

Key trait: from the start of the game the Mafia knows each other’s roles and works to deceive the town.

Mafioso

Each night they can “shoot” — removing civilians from the game (a collective Mafia decision).

Don

The leader of the Mafia. Each night they hunt for the Sheriff by checking one player. During the first night (the “arrangement”) the Don sets the shooting order for the nights ahead or agrees on a system of signals (“beacons”) for the daytime discussion.

Game phases

1. Opening and the first night

The host announces: “Night falls”, and everyone puts on their masks. Players pick their cards in turn and learn their roles under the host’s supervision.

• The Mafia’s arrangement: the Mafia wakes up in full once. They have 1 minute to agree on the shooting order using gestures only.
• The Sheriff surveys the table: the Sheriff wakes up and looks over the players but checks nobody on the first night.

2. The day phase

The host announces: “Morning comes to the town”, and the players take off their masks.

• Discussion: each player in turn gets 1 minute to speak. During that minute they may share their read and nominate candidates for the vote.
• Voting: a vote is held once at least two candidates have been nominated. Every player has one vote. If a player does not vote, their vote automatically goes to the last nominated candidate. Any gesturing during the vote is forbidden.

3. The night phase (active moves)

• The shot: the Mafia “goes hunting”. Without removing their masks, the Mafia players mime a shot with their fingers (raising a hand) as the host calls out the number of the chosen player.
• The checks: the Don and the Sheriff wake in turn and use gestures to show the host which player number they check. The host likewise shows the checked players’ roles with gestures.

Victory conditions

Discipline and violations

Penalties keep order at the table. Any shout or gesture during the sleep phase leads to immediate removal.