Thursday 29 October 2026: the Tic-Tac-Toe board and the Bracket on international caps, every answer and how the day went.
Day 1's Tic-Tac-Toe was an Medium board: Marseille, Fenerbahçe and Arsenal against Crystal Palace, Sevilla and Juventus. Its nine cells held 85 valid answers between them, from 17 for Arsenal × Crystal Palace down to 4 players for Fenerbahçe × Crystal Palace. Of the 2 players who finished, the best scored 98 and the median 94. The rarest right answer anyone gave was Eberechi Eze, in Arsenal × Crystal Palace.
Sixteen players went into the Medium Bracket, and the question was international caps. Edin Džeko's 152 was the highest number in the bracket, so Džeko won every match, ending with Lothar Matthäus in the final. The closest match was Lothar Matthäus against Edin Džeko: 150 to 152. 3 players finished, scoring from 600 to 689.
Tic-Tac-Toe
The board, cell by cell: valid answers in Goaler's data, the share of the day's finishers who filled the cell (from 5 finishers), and the rarest right answer given| Cell | Valid answers | Filled | Rarest pick given |
|---|
| Marseille × Crystal Palace | 8 | – | – |
| Marseille × Sevilla | 12 | 1 player | Alexis Sánchez |
| Marseille × Juventus | 11 | – | – |
| Fenerbahçe × Crystal Palace | 4 | – | – |
| Fenerbahçe × Sevilla | 5 | – | – |
| Fenerbahçe × Juventus | 8 | – | – |
| Arsenal × Crystal Palace | 17 | 1 player | Eberechi Eze |
| Arsenal × Sevilla | 8 | – | – |
| Arsenal × Juventus | 12 | – | – |
2 players finished: the lowest score was 94, the median 94 and the best 98.
The best-known answers in each cell
Each cell had more right answers than these: here are the ten players with the most Wikipedia language editions, and how each fits the cell. A club needs at least one senior appearance; a country needs a senior cap.
Marseille × Crystal Palace: 8 valid answers| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Steve Mandanda | Marseille 2007–2008 (loan), 2008–2016, 2017–2022 · Crystal Palace 2016–2017 |
| Jordan Ayew | Marseille 2009–2014 · Crystal Palace 2018–2019 (loan), 2019–2024 |
| Michy Batshuayi | Marseille 2014–2016 · Crystal Palace 2019 (loan), 2020–2021 (loan) |
| Loïc Rémy | Marseille 2010–2012 · Crystal Palace 2016–2017 (loan) |
| Mathieu Flamini | Marseille 2003–2004 · Crystal Palace 2016–2017 |
| Ismaïla Sarr | Marseille 2023–2024 · Crystal Palace 2024–now |
| Cédric Carrasso | Marseille 2000–2008 · Crystal Palace 2001–2002 (loan) |
| Quinten Timber | Marseille 2026 · Crystal Palace 2026–now |
Marseille × Sevilla: 12 valid answers, the 10 best-known| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Alexis Sánchez | Marseille 2022–2023 · Sevilla 2025–2026 |
| César Azpilicueta | Marseille 2010–2012 · Sevilla 2025–2026 |
| Samir Nasri | Marseille 2004–2008 · Sevilla 2016–2017 (loan) |
| Adil Rami | Marseille 2017–2019 · Sevilla 2015–2017 |
| Seydou Keita | Marseille 1999–2000 · Sevilla 2007–2008 |
| Pape Gueye | Marseille 2020–2024 · Sevilla 2023 (loan) |
| Stéphane Mbia | Marseille 2009–2012 · Sevilla 2013–2014 (loan), 2014–2015 |
| Geoffrey Kondogbia | Marseille 2023–now · Sevilla 2012–2013 |
| Joaquín Correa | Marseille 2023–2024 (loan) · Sevilla 2016–2018 |
| Lucas Ocampos | Marseille 2015–2019 · Sevilla 2019–2024 |
Marseille × Juventus: 11 valid answers, the 10 best-known| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Didier Deschamps | Marseille 1989–1994 · Juventus 1994–1999 |
| Patrice Evra | Marseille 2017 · Juventus 2014–2017 |
| Adrien Rabiot | Marseille 2024–2025 · Juventus 2019–2024 |
| Arkadiusz Milik | Marseille 2021–2022 (loan), 2022–2023 · Juventus 2022–2023 (loan), 2023–now |
| Mauricio Isla | Marseille 2015–2016 (loan) · Juventus 2012–2016 |
| Timothy Weah | Marseille 2025–now (loan) · Juventus 2023–now |
| Mario Lemina | Marseille 2013–2015 · Juventus 2015–2017 |
| Alen Bokšić | Marseille 1991–1993 · Juventus 1996–1997 |
| Fabrizio Ravanelli | Marseille 1997–1999 · Juventus 1992–1996 |
| Paolo De Ceglie | Marseille 2015–now (loan) · Juventus 2006–2007, 2008–2014, 2015 |
Fenerbahçe × Crystal Palace: 4 valid answers| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Michy Batshuayi | Fenerbahçe 2022–2024 · Crystal Palace 2019 (loan), 2020–2021 (loan) |
| Victor Moses | Fenerbahçe 2019–2020 (loan) · Crystal Palace 2007–2010 |
| Cenk Tosun | Fenerbahçe 2024–2026 · Crystal Palace 2020 (loan) |
| Max Meyer | Fenerbahçe 2021–2022 · Crystal Palace 2018–2021 |
Fenerbahçe × Sevilla: 5 valid answers| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Adil Rami | Fenerbahçe 2019–2020 · Sevilla 2015–2017 |
| Simon Kjær | Fenerbahçe 2015–2017 · Sevilla 2017–2020 |
| Youssef En-Nesyri | Fenerbahçe 2024–2026 · Sevilla 2020–2024 |
| Diego Perotti | Fenerbahçe 2020–2021 · Sevilla 2009–2014 |
| Diego Carlos | Fenerbahçe 2025–now · Sevilla 2019–2022 |
Fenerbahçe × Juventus: 8 valid answers| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Nicolas Anelka | Fenerbahçe 2005–2006 · Juventus 2013 (loan) |
| Leonardo Bonucci | Fenerbahçe 2024 · Juventus 2010–2017, 2018–2023 |
| Mauricio Isla | Fenerbahçe 2017–2020 · Juventus 2012–2016 |
| Miloš Krasić | Fenerbahçe 2012–2015 · Juventus 2010–2012 |
| Stephen Appiah | Fenerbahçe 2005–2008 · Juventus 2003–2005 |
| Diego | Fenerbahçe 2014–now · Juventus 2009–2010 |
| Filip Kostić | Fenerbahçe 2024–2025 (loan) · Juventus 2022–2026 |
| Zoran Mirković | Fenerbahçe 2000–2003 · Juventus 1998–2000 |
Arsenal × Crystal Palace: 17 valid answers, the 10 best-known| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Ashley Cole | Arsenal 1998–2006 · Crystal Palace 1999–2000 (loan) |
| Emmanuel Adebayor | Arsenal 2006–2009 · Crystal Palace 2016 |
| Takehiro Tomiyasu | Arsenal 2021–2025 · Crystal Palace 2026–now |
| Eberechi Eze | Arsenal 2025–now · Crystal Palace 2020–2025 |
| Mathieu Flamini | Arsenal 2004–2008, 2013–2016 · Crystal Palace 2016–2017 |
| Matthew Upson | Arsenal 1997–2003 · Crystal Palace 2001 (loan) |
| Ian Wright | Arsenal 1991–1998 · Crystal Palace 1985–1991 |
| Marouane Chamakh | Arsenal 2010–2013 · Crystal Palace 2013–2016 |
| Rob Holding | Arsenal 2016–2023 · Crystal Palace 2023–now |
| Eddie Nketiah | Arsenal 2017–2024 · Crystal Palace 2024–now |
Arsenal × Sevilla: 8 valid answers| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Alexis Sánchez | Arsenal 2014–2018 · Sevilla 2025–2026 |
| Davor Šuker | Arsenal 1999–2000 · Sevilla 1991–1996 |
| Samir Nasri | Arsenal 2008–2011 · Sevilla 2016–2017 (loan) |
| José Antonio Reyes | Arsenal 2004–2007 · Sevilla 2000–2004, 2012–2016 |
| Denis Suárez | Arsenal 2019 (loan) · Sevilla 2014–2015 (loan) |
| Sébastien Squillaci | Arsenal 2010–2013 · Sevilla 2008–2010 |
| Júlio Baptista | Arsenal 2006–2007 (loan) · Sevilla 2003–2005 |
| Albert Sambi Lokonga | Arsenal 2021–2025 · Sevilla 2024–2025 (loan) |
Arsenal × Juventus: 12 valid answers, the 10 best-known| Player | How he fits |
|---|
| Thierry Henry | Arsenal 1999–2007, 2012 (loan) · Juventus 1999 |
| Patrick Vieira | Arsenal 1996–2005 · Juventus 2005–2006 |
| Aaron Ramsey | Arsenal 2008–2019 · Juventus 2019–2022 |
| Nicolas Anelka | Arsenal 1997–1999 · Juventus 2013 (loan) |
| Wojciech Szczęsny | Arsenal 2006–2017 · Juventus 2017–2024 |
| Nicklas Bendtner | Arsenal 2005–2014 · Juventus 2012–2013 (loan) |
| Stephan Lichtsteiner | Arsenal 2018–2019 · Juventus 2011–2018 |
| Alex Manninger | Arsenal 1997–2002 · Juventus 2008–2012 |
| Armand Traoré | Arsenal 2006–2011 · Juventus 2010–2011 (loan) |
| David Platt | Arsenal 1995–1998 · Juventus 1992–1993 |
Bracket: who has more international caps?
The 16 players and their international caps, frozen when the bracket was built (stats as of 2026-10-07)| Seed | Player | Country | International caps |
|---|
| 1 | Joe Cole | England | 56 |
| 2 | Dayot Upamecano | France | 48 |
| 3 | Lothar Matthäus | Germany | 150 |
| 4 | Branislav Ivanović | Serbia | 105 |
| 5 | Yasuhiko Okudera | Japan | 32 |
| 6 | Owen Hargreaves | England | 42 |
| 7 | Frenkie de Jong | Netherlands | 70 |
| 8 | Hamit Altıntop | Turkey | 82 |
| 9 | Thierry Henry | France | 123 |
| 10 | Diego Simeone | Argentina | 106 |
| 11 | Matteo Darmian | Italy | 46 |
| 12 | Francesco Totti | Italy | 58 |
| 13 | Olivier Giroud | France | 137 |
| 14 | David Alaba | Austria | 117 |
| 15 | Edin Džeko | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 152 |
| 16 | Gheorghe Hagi | Romania | 124 |
- Round of 16: Joe Cole (56) v Dayot Upamecano (48), Joe Cole goes through
- Round of 16: Lothar Matthäus (150) v Branislav Ivanović (105), Lothar Matthäus goes through
- Round of 16: Yasuhiko Okudera (32) v Owen Hargreaves (42), Owen Hargreaves goes through
- Round of 16: Frenkie de Jong (70) v Hamit Altıntop (82), Hamit Altıntop goes through
- Round of 16: Thierry Henry (123) v Diego Simeone (106), Thierry Henry goes through
- Round of 16: Matteo Darmian (46) v Francesco Totti (58), Francesco Totti goes through
- Round of 16: Olivier Giroud (137) v David Alaba (117), Olivier Giroud goes through
- Round of 16: Edin Džeko (152) v Gheorghe Hagi (124), Edin Džeko goes through
- Quarter-finals: Joe Cole (56) v Lothar Matthäus (150), Lothar Matthäus goes through
- Quarter-finals: Owen Hargreaves (42) v Hamit Altıntop (82), Hamit Altıntop goes through
- Quarter-finals: Thierry Henry (123) v Francesco Totti (58), Thierry Henry goes through
- Quarter-finals: Olivier Giroud (137) v Edin Džeko (152), Edin Džeko goes through
- Semi-finals: Lothar Matthäus (150) v Hamit Altıntop (82), Lothar Matthäus goes through
- Semi-finals: Thierry Henry (123) v Edin Džeko (152), Edin Džeko goes through
- Final: Lothar Matthäus (150) v Edin Džeko (152), Edin Džeko goes through
Edin Džeko won the bracket with 152. 3 players finished it, scoring between 600 and 689.
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