Step-by-step instructions for every sport. From creating a board to sharing the final score.
The JudgeMate Free Scoreboard lets you run a game from your phone — no account needed. Pick a sport (football, basketball, ice hockey, or volleyball), tap "Create", set up team names, and you're live. Spectators follow via a QR code or link in real-time. This guide walks through every button and situation in the admin panel.
The system instantly generates:
Important: Bookmark or save your admin link. If you lose it, you cannot regain control of the board.
Before the game starts, you'll see the Setup Screen:
While you're in setup, spectators see a waiting screen: "Game Starting Soon — Waiting for the host to start..."
Once you tap Start, the board goes LIVE and spectators see the score in real-time.
The score area is split into two tap zones:
Each side has:
Basketball is special: you get +1, +2, +3 buttons per team instead of a single +1.
Every tap updates the spectator screen instantly.
Three sports have a game clock. Volleyball does not — skip this section for volleyball.
Basic controls:
When paused, two extra controls appear:
Quick jump buttons let you skip to a specific time (e.g., 0:00, 45:00, 90:00 in football). These only appear when the clock is paused.
Clock direction:
Football has up to 5 phases:
| Phase | Period | Clock range |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Half | 1 | 0:00 → 45:00 |
| 2nd Half | 2 | 45:00 → 90:00 |
| Extra Time 1st Half | 3 | 90:00 → 105:00 |
| Extra Time 2nd Half | 4 | 105:00 → 120:00 |
| Shootout (SO) | 5 | No clock |
The clock is cumulative — it never resets to 0:00. After the 1st half, the 2nd half starts from 45:00.
Tap the "→ Next Half" button to advance to the next period. You can also undo a period change if you tapped it by mistake.
When the clock passes the period end (e.g., 45:00), it switches to stoppage time format: 45+1:23.
Set stoppage time with quick buttons: +1, +3, +5, +7, +10 minutes, or type a custom value (0–30 min). Tapping the same value again clears it.
When stoppage time is set, a yellow indicator shows how much was added. If the clock exceeds the stoppage time, the display turns red with a pulse animation.
For each team:
Auto-conversion: If the same player receives 2 yellow cards, the system automatically converts them to 1 red card. This only works when you enter the player name/number.
Undo: The "Undo last card" button removes the most recent card for that team.
When you advance past Extra Time, the scoreboard enters Shootout mode:
Basketball has 4 quarters of 10 minutes each (FIBA rules), plus unlimited overtime periods of 5 minutes.
| Phase | Clock |
|---|---|
| Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4 | 10:00 → 0:00 |
| OT1, OT2, ... | 5:00 → 0:00 |
Tap "Next Period" to advance: Q1 → Q2 → Q3 → Q4 → OT1 → OT2...
Quick jump buttons (when paused): 10:00, 5:00, 2:00, 0:00.
Unlike other sports, basketball has three score buttons per team:
Two reset buttons:
The shot clock runs independently from the game clock.
Track fouls per team with +/− buttons. When a team reaches 5 fouls, the bonus indicator lights up in red.
Foul reset rules (FIBA):
Tap the "Timeout" button to increment the count for each team. Timeouts reset automatically at the start of each quarter.
Ice hockey has 3 regular periods of 20 minutes, plus overtime and shootout.
| Phase | Clock |
|---|---|
| 1st, 2nd, 3rd Period | 20:00 → 0:00 |
| Overtime (OT) | 5:00 → 0:00 |
| Shootout (SO) | No clock |
Tap "Next Period" to advance: 1st → 2nd → 3rd → OT → SO.
Quick jump buttons change by phase:
During Shootout: the clock disappears, clock controls are hidden. Only score buttons remain.
Ice hockey penalties are tracked with countdown timers, not just counts.
To add a penalty:
The penalty timer starts immediately and syncs with the game clock (runs when the game clock runs, pauses when it pauses).
All active penalties are listed with:
Volleyball has no game clock. The clock controls section is completely hidden.
Volleyball uses a best-of-5 sets format:
The display shows:
When a team reaches the target score with the required 2-point advantage, a pulsing "End Set" button appears automatically.
Tapping it:
Completed set scores are displayed as a running log:
A yellow dot shows which team is currently serving. Tap it to switch the server manually. After each set ends, the server switches to the losing team automatically.
The match ends automatically when either team wins 3 sets (best of 5). The scoreboard status changes to ENDED and the score freezes for all spectators.
Tap the "Share" button in the top bar to open the share modal:
The spectator link looks like: judgemate.com/{language}/scoreboard/live/{sport}/{boardId}
No login or app download is required. Works on any phone, tablet, laptop, or Smart TV.
As admin, you control the text size on spectator screens:
Spectators can also tap their own screen to reveal a local font slider (range: 70%–160%), but the admin's setting takes priority.
Once ended:
After ending, the admin panel shows a match summary:
| Sport | Stats shown |
|---|---|
| Football | Duration, total goals, yellow cards, red cards |
| Basketball | Duration, total points, total fouls |
| Ice Hockey | Duration, total goals, penalty minutes |
| Volleyball | Set scores (e.g., 25-23, 24-26, 25-20) |
Completed scoreboards remain accessible for up to one week. After that, the board expires and spectators see a "Session Expired" message.
Create a live scoreboard with one tap. No account, no email, no app download — just pick a sport and go.
Every point, card, and period change appears on spectator screens instantly via a shareable link or QR code.
Football (cards, stoppage time, shootout), Basketball (shot clock, fouls, +1/+2/+3), Ice Hockey (penalty timers), Volleyball (sets, serving).
Control the text size on the spectator screen directly from your phone. Scale from 50% to 300% — ideal for big venue displays.
After a game ends, create a new board with the same teams and colors in one tap. Perfect for tournaments and series.
Open the spectator link on a Smart TV, projector, or jumbotron. No app needed — just a web browser.
Create a free account and set up your first event in 15 minutes. The wizard walks you through every step — from event details to scoring criteria.
