Apps4DreamTraditional card games
Language: English
A card table on a Mediterranean café terrace at night, with a trick of Spanish cards in the centre and the nine of coins glowing

Born in Catalonia. Ready for the world.

Botifarra The Catalan card game that dares you to double

Four players, two partnerships, forty-eight Spanish cards. The nine beats the ace, the dealer calls trumps or leaves the call to their partner, and three words can turn one hand into the whole game: contro, recontro, Sant Vicenç. A café classic from Catalonia, now for players everywhere.

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  • 4players in two pairs
  • 48Spanish-suited cards
  • 72points in every hand
  • ×8Sant Vicenç, the top double

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Botifarra Daily

Five tricks, one question each: which card takes the trick? Everyone gets the same deal today. Read the trumps, spot the nine, keep your streak alive and share your score.

Botifarra Daily

    Trumps: Swords

    Which card takes the trick?

    1. Led
    2. 2nd
    3. 3rd
    4. 4th
    ButiArena

    Botifarra in your pocket

    The whole game on your phone or tablet, in portrait or landscape: a public online room that starts right away, rooms for friends, and offline games against bots whenever you like.

    Get ButiArena on Google PlayDownload ButiArena on the App Store

    App screenshots shown in English.

    ButiArena on a tablet held sideways: four players around the green table in the middle of a hand, with the stake doubled
    On a tablet, sideways
    • A public online room where bots fill empty seats, so a game starts right away
    • Rooms to play with friends, general chat, private messages and a friends list
    • Offline games against bots, saved so you can continue later
    • Free or required (obligada) Botifarra, to 51 or 101 points, or any limit from 31 to 301
    • A guide to card values, trumps, calls and doubles
    • Your recent results, your own avatar, and portrait or landscape play
    • The ButiArena home screen: Play, Learn, History, Progress and Settings

      Home

    • The ButiArena table in the middle of a hand, the trick in the centre and your cards below

      At the table

    • The trump call in ButiArena: coins, cups, swords, clubs, botifarra, or delegate the call to your partner

      Your call

    • The ButiArena guide to how Botifarra is played

      Learn

    Why players fall for it

    Botifarra looks like other trick-taking games for about a minute. Then four rules change everything.

    1. The nine is the top card

      In every suit the nine, called the manilla, beats the ace. It is worth 5 points, the ace 4, the king 3, the knight 2 and the jack 1, and every trick adds one more: 72 points in a hand, and your pair needs more than half of them.

    2. Call it, or trust your partner

      The dealer looks at twelve cards and names the trump suit, or passes the decision to the partner opposite, who then has to choose. Knowing when to call and when to delegate is half the game.

    3. No trumps, double stakes

      The boldest call is botifarra itself: no trump suit at all, and the hand counts double for whichever pair wins it. It is how strong hands become big scores.

    4. Every card tells a story

      Strict rules decide what you may play, so every card reveals something about the hand it came from. Good players track the four manillas and the aces trick by trick: deduction beats luck.

    Learn by playing

    How a hand is played

    No tutorial and no sign-up: three small pieces of a real table to tap and try. Find your seat, learn which cards the rules let you play, then count a hand the way players do in Catalonia.

    1. The table
    2. Which cards may you play?
    3. Count the hand

    The table

    Botifarra is played by four, in two pairs. Your partner sits opposite you and an opponent sits on each side, so the two pairs alternate around the table.

    The dealer deals all 48 cards, twelve each, and makes the call: a trump suit, botifarra (no trumps), or handing the choice to their partner.

    Play always moves to the right, counter-clockwise. The player on the dealer's right leads the first trick, whoever wins a trick leads the next one, and after every hand the deal passes to the right.

    1. Tap your partner.

      Your partner is the player opposite you. The players on your left and right are your opponents.

    2. You are the dealer. Who leads the first trick?

      The opponent on your right. The player on the dealer's right leads, play moves counter-clockwise, and the dealer plays last.

    3. Now your partner deals. Who leads?

      The opponent on your left. Your partner faces you, so the player on their right is the one on your left.

    Which cards may you play?

    Botifarra is strict about which card you may play, and that is what turns every trick into a small piece of deduction. Whoever leads may play any card. Everyone after that follows four rules:

    Follow suit
    If you hold the suit that was led, you must play it.
    Beat an opponent
    If an opponent is winning the trick, you must beat them if you can: with a higher card of the suit that was led or, only if you have no card of that suit, with a trump high enough to win.
    No need to beat your partner
    If your partner is winning, you never have to beat them: any card of the suit will do, or any card at all if you have none.
    Free when you cannot win
    If no card you are allowed to play can beat the opponent, any card of the suit will do, or any card at all if you have none. In required Botifarra (obligada) you must then play your lowest card of the suit you play, and when your partner is winning, a card that scores or your lowest.

    Try them on four tricks. The cards on the felt are already played; you choose from your hand below them.

    1. Puzzle 1 of 4

      Follow suit and beat an opponent

      Trumps: CoinsFree

      1. Right opponent · ledWinning
      2. Partner · 2ndWinning
      3. Left opponent · 3rdWinning

      The opponent on your right led the king of cups, and it is still winning.

      Your hand: the cards you may play are marked

      You hold cups, so you must play a cup. An opponent is winning, so you must beat the king if you can: the nine and the ace of cups both do. The seven and the two would not beat it, and the king of coins is a trump you may not use while you still have a cup.

    2. Puzzle 2 of 4

      Your partner is winning

      Trumps: SwordsFree

      1. Partner · ledWinning
      2. Left opponent · 2ndWinning
      3. Right opponent · plays after you

      Your partner led the ace of clubs and is winning. The opponent on your right plays after you.

      Your hand: the cards you may play are marked

      You must still follow suit, but you never have to beat your partner: any club will do, the nine and the king included. The points you add stay with your pair if the trick does. Careful: the opponent on your right still plays, and with no clubs they would trump with a sword. With no clubs at all you would not even have to trump.

    3. Puzzle 3 of 4

      No card of the suit: trump, and win

      Trumps: ClubsFree

      1. Right opponent · ledWinning
      2. Partner · 2ndWinning
      3. Left opponent · 3rdWinning

      Your partner's ace of swords was winning until the opponent on your left trumped it with the jack of clubs.

      Your hand: the cards you may play are marked

      You have no swords and an opponent is winning, so you must win the trick if any card of yours can. A trump beats every other suit, but the opponent has already trumped, so only a higher trump wins: the ace or the king of clubs. The two of clubs is a trump that would not win, and the nine and ace of cups can never win a trick of swords. In free Botifarra, had none of your trumps been high enough, any card would have done.

    4. Puzzle 4 of 4

      Required Botifarra: when you cannot win, play low

      Botifarra: no trumpsRequired (obligada)

      1. Right opponent · ledWinning
      2. Partner · 2ndWinning
      3. Left opponent · 3rdWinning

      Botifarra, so no trumps. The opponent on your left is winning with the ace of coins, and you have no coins.

      Your hand: the cards you may play are marked

      With no coins and no trumps, nothing you hold can win this trick. In free Botifarra you could play any card. In required Botifarra (obligada) you still choose the suit, but you must play your lowest card of it: the four of cups, the five of swords or the two of clubs. And when your partner is winning, obligada asks instead for a card that scores or your lowest card.

    Count the hand

    Only five cards in each suit score: the nine, or manilla, is worth 5 points, the ace 4, the king 3, the knight 2 and the jack 1. Every trick adds one point more, so a hand holds 72: 60 in cards and 12 for the tricks.

    A pair needs more than half, 36, and only the points above 36 go on the scoreboard, multiplied by the call and by any doubles.

    What each card scores

    • Ace4
    • Nine5
    • Jack1
    • Knight2
    • King3

    The call: botifarra, no trumps, counts double

    The six tricks your pair took

    1. Trick 1 · 10

    2. Trick 2 · 11

    3. Trick 3 · 10

    4. Trick 4 · 7

    5. Trick 5 · 9

    6. Trick 6 · 1

    42 in cards + 6 for the tricks = 48 points

    So what does the hand score?

    A pair needs more than 36 of the 72 points. Yours took 48, which is 12 over 36, so it scores 12 and the other pair scores nothing. The hand was called botifarra, and a botifarra counts double: 24 points toward the 101 that win a game.

    Contro, recontro and Sant Vicenç can double it again. Raise the stakes

    Your call

    You are the dealer. Look at your twelve cards and make the call: name a trump suit, call botifarra, or delegate to your partner. Then see what an experienced player would do, and why.

    1. Hand 1 of 3

      Your twelve cards

      Six coins headed by the manilla, the ace and the king, and a single club.

      What do you call?

    2. Hand 2 of 3

      Your twelve cards

      Three manillas, two aces and three cards in every suit.

      What do you call?

    3. Hand 3 of 3

      Your twelve cards

      No manilla, one ace and no long suit.

      What do you call?

    Long and strong: name the suit. Strong everywhere: botifarra. Weak: trust your partner. That is the call; the tricks come next.

    Raise the stakes

    A hand is worth only the points above 36, multiplied by the call and by every double. Set the points and climb the ladder: this is how a single hand can win a game to 101.

    The call

    The doubles

    Your pair scores 12.

    With 48 points your pair is 12 over 36: it scores 12, 24 with contro, 48 with recontro and 96 with Sant Vicenç. Call botifarra and every figure doubles; ButiArena allows Sant Vicenç on a botifarra, which many tables do not.

    How to play Botifarra in two minutes

    Everything you need to sit down at a table.

    Players and cards
    Four players in two pairs, partners facing each other. The full Spanish deck of 48 cards is dealt, twelve to each player, in groups of four.
    Card order
    In every suit: 9 (manilla), ace, king, knight, jack, then 8 down to 2.
    Points
    Manilla 5, ace 4, king 3, knight 2, jack 1, plus one point for every trick: 72 in a hand. A pair needs more than 36.
    The call
    The dealer names trumps, calls botifarra (no trumps, double value) or delegates the call to their partner, who must then choose.
    Doubles
    Before the first card, the opponents can say contro (×2), the calling pair can answer recontro (×4), and the opponents can raise to Sant Vicenç (×8). Many tables allow Sant Vicenç only when a trump suit was called; ButiArena allows it on a botifarra too.
    Play
    The player to the dealer's right leads. You must follow suit, and when an opponent is winning the trick you must beat it if you can: with a higher card of the suit or, if you have none, with a trump. You never have to beat your partner.
    Free or required
    In free Botifarra, when you do not have to beat, any card of the suit will do, or any card at all if you have none. In required Botifarra (obligada) that choice is forced too: if you cannot beat, you play your lowest card of the suit you play, and when your partner is winning you give a point card or your lowest.
    Winning
    After each hand the pair with more than 36 scores its points over 36, multiplied by the call and any doubles. The first pair to reach 101 points wins; ButiArena also offers a shorter game to 51.

    If you play Spades, Bridge or Belote

    Botifarra belongs to the big family of partnership trick-taking games. If you know one of these, you are halfway there.

    Botifarra next to four other partnership card games
    GameCardsTrumpsDoublesTop card
    BotifarraCatalonia48 Spanish cards, 12 eachCalled by the dealer or their partner, or none at allContro ×2, recontro ×4, Sant Vicenç ×8The 9 (manilla), then the ace
    SpadesUnited States52 cards, 13 eachAlways spadesNone: players bid tricks insteadThe ace
    BridgeWorldwide52 cards, 13 eachSet by an auction, which can end in no trumpsDouble and redoubleThe ace
    EuchreUS Midwest and Canada24 cards, 5 eachOrdered up from a turned card, or namedNone: a player can go aloneThe jack of trumps
    BeloteFrance32 cards, 8 eachBid on a turned cardIn coinche: contre and surcontreThe jack of trumps, then the 9

    Its closest relative is Manilla, the older game it grew out of, from the same family as the French Manille.

    An antique world map on a card table, Spanish playing cards fanned across it and golden routes leaving Catalonia for every continent

    From Catalan cafés to the world

    Botifarra is played all over Catalonia and beyond it, in parts of Aragon, on Ibiza and Formentera and in northern Valencia. It grew out of an older card game, Manilla, and overtook it in popularity.

    Yes, it shares its name with the Catalan sausage. ButiArena's emblem plays on it: a botifarra cut by two cards, the nine of coins and the ace of swords.

    Players argue happily about two styles: free, with more room for imagination, and required (obligada), where forced plays turn every hand into a puzzle of deduction. ButiArena lets you play both.

    ButiArena is bringing the game to players everywhere. Around a Catalan table you will still hear the old words: manilla for the nine, contro and recontro for the doubles, and Sant Vicenç.

    Speak like a player

    Manilla
    The 9 of each suit: the highest card, worth 5 points.
    Botifarra
    The call without trumps: the hand counts double.
    Delegar
    To delegate: the dealer passes the call to their partner, who must then choose. In ButiArena it is the Delegate button.
    Contro
    The opponents' double: ×2.
    Recontro
    The calling pair's answer: ×4.
    Sant Vicenç
    The opponents' reply to recontro: ×8.
    Obligada
    The strict style, where the rules limit which card you may play.
    Basa
    A trick: four cards, and one more point for the pair that takes it.

    Questions players ask

    How many people play Botifarra?

    Four, in two fixed pairs, with partners sitting opposite each other. In ButiArena bots fill any empty seat, so you can always play.

    Is Botifarra like Spades or Bridge?

    It is a cousin: a partnership trick-taking game. What sets it apart is the nine as the top card, the dealer's call (a trump suit, botifarra or delegating) and the ladder of doubles up to Sant Vicenç.

    Which cards do you need?

    A Spanish-suited deck of 48 cards: coins, cups, swords and clubs, numbered 1 to 12 in each suit.

    Why is it called Botifarra?

    No one knows for sure. It shares its name with the Catalan sausage, and botifarra is also the name of the call without trumps, the one that makes a hand count double.

    How long is a game?

    It is played to a score, not a clock: the first pair to 101 points usually wins, and ButiArena also offers a quicker game to 51. Because doubles multiply the score, a single hand can decide it.

    Where can I play ButiArena?

    On iPhone, iPad and Android: ButiArena is free on the App Store and Google Play, with online tables, rooms for friends and offline games against bots.

    Is ButiArena free?

    Yes. Downloading the app and playing are free. Mobile advertising follows the service’s consent and age controls.

    Take your seat

    ButiArena is free on iPhone, iPad and Android. Four players, one call and a nine that beats the ace: your first table is one tap away.

    Get ButiArena on Google PlayDownload ButiArena on the App Store

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