Rules of Sport Mafia

Important. This is a study summary of classic Sport Mafia for the players and hosts of Fortuna Elite Club, not a copy of the official rulebook. In disputed tournament situations the current FIIM original takes priority; the links are at the end of the page.

1. The table and the goal

There are 10 players: 7 red (6 civilians and 1 sheriff) and 3 black (2 mafia and 1 don). The host or referee does not play. The red team wins when all three black players have left the game. The black team wins when it reaches the winning ratio set by the rules and the red team can no longer stop the mafia. Player numbers are fixed. Roles are secret. Day speeches, nominations and votes are public; at night the players keep to the mask rule and obey the referee's commands.

2. Preparation and dealing the roles

The referee seats the participants, announces the night and deals the roles. Each person looks only at their own card. On the first night the black players meet each other, and the don organises the plan for the night shots and the general strategy. Then the participants take the night position on the referee's command.

3. The first day

The players speak in turn, each with a timed minute. In your speech you can analyse behaviour, put forward versions, announce checks (if the format allows it) and nominate a candidate for the vote. A nomination is made during your own speech, usually with the formula "I nominate player number …". The referee records the candidates. In the classic format the first day may end with nobody leaving, under the voting conditions set by the rules. The details of the first day, and whether a vote is compulsory when there is only one candidate, depend on the edition of the rules in use: the referee must announce the variant before the meeting starts.

4. Night and the shot

From the next night on, the referee calls the player numbers in order. The black players make an agreed shooting gesture at one number. For a kill to succeed, the black players still in the game must point at the same target at the same moment; a mismatch or a skipped shot means a miss. A player killed at night usually gets a last speech, and their role is not revealed.

At night the don looks for the sheriff, and the sheriff checks which team a player belongs to. The results are given by the referee's gestures and are not announced publicly. The don and the sheriff may not pass information by voice during the night.

5. Voting step by step

1. Candidates are nominated during the permitted speeches.
2. The referee reads out the list and the order of voting.
3. The referee opens the vote on each number in turn.
4. A player makes the prescribed voting gesture once.
5. The referee counts the votes and announces the result.

One candidate. Do not treat the candidate as automatically out. The procedure for a single candidate differs between editions of the rules and between game days. The club needs to fix a specific rulebook in advance, and the host should apply exactly that one. In common practice a single candidate may need a set threshold of votes, or a separate procedure.

Two or more candidates. The vote runs in the announced order. The candidate who gets the required majority, or the highest number of votes under the rulebook, leaves. If the votes are equal, the tie vote procedure applies.

6. The tie vote: equal numbers of votes

A tie vote (called "popil" in Russian-speaking clubs) is the situation when two or more candidates get the same highest number of votes. The referee announces who is in the tie; they get the set extra time for a defence speech, and then a repeat vote is held among them only. If the tie remains, the rulebook may provide for a separate vote on removing all the players in the tie together. The decision depends on the number of players, the game day and the edition in force. You cannot assume that everyone in a tie automatically leaves the table. Practical advice: before the game the host names the edition of the rules aloud and keeps the exact tie-vote scheme from the original document at hand. In a disputed case the host does not improvise.

7. The last speech, the first night kill and the "best move"

A player who leaves gets the prescribed last speech, unless the right to it has been lost through a violation. A red player killed on the first night may name the three players they think are black: this is the "best move". Under the FIIM/MWT system, 2 correct black players out of 3 give +0.5 and all 3 give +0.7. These are rating points, not extra votes in the game.

8. Fouls, removal, discipline

The referee gives a warning for speaking out of turn, talking outside your own minute, forbidden gestures, hints, night behaviour and other actions covered by the rulebook. When a set number of fouls is reached, a player may lose the right to speak or be removed. Gross violations can lead to immediate removal.

An ordinary foul and a rating penalty are not the same thing. Do not apply money or rating penalties automatically for every foul. The referee records the decision under the disciplinary document in force.

9. What each role has to do

• Civilian. Look for contradictions, compare votes with speeches and protect the team from wrong conclusions.
• Sheriff. Choose checks, keep reliable information and pass it on in time, and avoid losing critical checks.
• Mafia. Persuade, build believable versions, vote together and shoot together.
• Don. Coordinate the black team and look for the sheriff.

10. Checklist for the host

• Before the start. Prepare the cards, masks, protocol and timer, and choose one edition of the rulebook.
• During the game. Keep strictly to the order and the time, and write down nominations, votes, night events and fouls.
• After the game. Announce the winner, record the basic and extra points and the grounds for penalties, and publish the result after checking.

11. Frequently disputed questions

Can a nomination be changed? Only within the procedure the rulebook allows.

Who nominates players for a tie vote? Nobody nominates them again: a tie vote arises from equal votes among candidates who were already nominated.

Can the host change the order? No, the order must follow the announced rules.

Can a check be announced after death? Only in the permitted final speech and without breaking any special restrictions.

12. Official materials for full study

• The full text of the FIIM rules: https://fiim.world/fiim-rules. The page links to the official rules of the game, commentaries, the game protocol, the rules for working with the protocol and recommendations for referees.
• The FIIM points scale: https://fiim.world/scoring (changes from 1 January 2025).

This page deliberately does not replace the detailed official procedures for exceptional situations. For tournaments where the result depends on the fine points of voting, fouls or the tie vote, use the full original through the links above.