About BiggerThan

Bigger Than is a higher-or-lower game for football fans. Two retired players appear side by side, a wheel picks a stat, and you guess whether the hidden number is higher or lower than the one you can see. Get it right and the run goes on. Get it wrong and it's over.

The difference is that the stat changes mid-run. You beat someone on caps, and then the question turns to Instagram followers, and the veteran loses to a winger with a boot deal.

How to play

1. Two players appear, with their names and nationalities. No stat yet.
2. The wheel spins and lands on a stat. The plaque between the players shows which one, in the stat's colour.
3. The first player's number is shown. The second player's is hidden.
4. Pick Higher or Lower.
5. Right, and the player you just guessed becomes the one to beat, against someone new. Wrong, and the run ends. There's one life.

A stat holds for a few rounds, then the wheel spins again. It only spins when the stat is changing, so watch the plaque before you pick. Two players never come up tied on the stat in play.

The early rounds are gifts. As the run goes on the gaps between the two numbers narrow, until you need to actually know.

Friendly Mode

Friendly Mode is twenty questions with no timer. Take as long as you like over every answer, and get all twenty right to win the run. It's here so that anyone can play without a clock, and as a way to learn the game. It uses every player and every stat, and it has no leaderboard: your best score is kept on your device.

You need a connection to play. The hidden number isn't sent to your browser until you've answered, so each answer is checked as you give it.

The stats

There are ten. Each has a tier, and the plaque takes the tier's colour. The tier tells you how often a stat comes up, not what it's worth: every correct answer is one point.

• Club goalsBasic

  Senior club goals in all competitions, for every club. Not asked about goalkeepers.

• International capsBasic

  Senior international appearances. Nothing else counts as a cap.

• Club appearancesBasic

  Senior club appearances in all competitions, for every club.

• Instagram followersBasic

  Instagram followers, from a dated snapshot. The date is shown under the number.

• Highest transfer feeUncommon

  The largest single reported transfer fee, shown with the year it was paid. Not adjusted for inflation.

• International goalsUncommon

  Senior international goals. Not asked about goalkeepers.

• Club trophiesRare

  Club honours won, as listed on Wikipedia. Exactly what counts is set out below.

• International trophiesRare

  Major international honours won with the national team.

• Clubs played forRare

  The number of senior clubs played for.

• AgeRare

  Age today, worked out from date of birth. Only asked about living players.

What counts as a club trophy

Every trophy listed under the club section of the Honours part of the player's English Wikipedia article, where the player's team won it. That includes one-match trophies such as the Community Shield, domestic super cups and the UEFA Super Cup, as well as leagues, cups, continental competitions and the Club World Cup.

Runners-up and third places, individual awards, and youth, reserve or B-team honours. International honours don't count here either: they're the international trophies stat.

Where the figures come from

Every figure is entered by hand from published sources and checked before it goes into the deck. Goals, caps and appearances are senior totals, in all competitions, for every club. Trophies follow the rules above. Instagram followers are counted on a stated date, which the card shows under the number, and ages are worked out from date of birth on the day you play.

Figures aren't cited one by one on the cards. When someone reports a mistake, the figure is checked again against current sources and, if it's wrong, fixed in the next update.

Transfer fees

The fee is the largest ever paid for the player in a permanent move. Loans and youth moves don't count, and a player who never moved for a fee isn't asked about fees. Where a club published its figure, that's the one used, add-ons included; otherwise it's the most widely reported figure.

So that every fee can be compared, each is converted to euros at the exchange rate for the year of the transfer: euro rates for modern fees, the European Currency Unit before the euro existed, and US dollars at one to one for the oldest deals. Fees are shown in millions of euros with the year of the transfer, and they're not adjusted for inflation, so an old record fee can look small next to an ordinary modern one. That's part of the game.

The players

Every player is retired, so caps, goals, trophies and fees don't change. Instagram followers do creep up, which is why they carry a date, and ages move on birthdays.

Photos are freely licensed and credited on the credits page. Players without a usable free photo are shown with their initial instead.

Spotted a wrong number?

At the end of a run, tap Something wrong with that card? The report carries the two players, the stat and both figures, so just say what's wrong and where you found the right one. Or email corrections@biggerthangame.com with the player, the stat and your source. Corrections are checked and go into the next update.

Missing a legend?

Suggest a legend for the deck. Retired players only. Anything else, like a bug or a typo? Report a problem. None of the forms asks for your email or any other details.