What does a team captain do?

Your club or school sends a team to a tournament, and the captain holds the team together. You know the rules well, so your team can just play. When the arbiter, the chess referee, has a question, they come to you. Be captain for one tournament, and you see from the inside how events work.

The captain's jobs

• Before round 1, go to the captains' meeting.
• Set the board order: who sits on board 1, 2, 3 and 4.
• Pick who plays each round, and hand in the team list before the deadline.
• Make sure every player knows their board and their start time.
• If something is wrong at a board, you take it to the arbiter.
• When the match ends, sign the result sheet.

FIDE, the world chess federation, lists these jobs. Ask the organizer, the grown-up who runs the event, how your event does them.

During the games

Never tell a player to offer a draw or to take one. That choice belongs to the player. If you need to tell your player something, go to the arbiter first. Then speak so that the arbiter can hear you. You can play a game yourself too. Even if you lose your own game, the team can still win the match.

How you become captain

When you ask to be captain, say that you know the rules and want the job. Put the deadlines, the boards and the meeting time on your job list. Bring the list on the day, because it helps you remember every job.

How you get the sticker

Your grown-up or coach checks it and hands you the sticker. Show the team lists you handed in, or the result sheets with your signature. The organizer knows who was captain. If you have no club, a school team counts the same, and your grown-up at home checks it. Were you captain before you had the passport? It still counts. Ask the coach who ran that team to confirm it.