Tournament Schafkopf

According to section 284 of the Strafgesetzbuch (penal code) in German law, Schafkopf is not a game of chance (gambling game) since all the cards are dealt, and there is thus no legal objection.[2] The organisation of Schafkopf tournaments is governed by German commercial law, especially section 33d of the Gewerbeordnung (GewO, licensing requirements), and section 5a of the Spielverordnung (gaming regulations). These make a fundamental distinction between:[3][4]

• commercial events where the aim is monetary gain (subject to licensing iaw section 33d of the GewO)
• non-commercial events where the aim is not primarily financial (not subject to licensing)

In the latter case the entry fee must not be greater than 15 € and the winnings must distributed as non-monetary goods.[5] Also, as a leisure event, Schafkopf tournaments in Bavaria must in principle also be reported in accordance with Article 19 of the Bavarian LStVG law (competent authorities are the county or municipal authorities).[6]

Tournaments often have special rules not used in everyday play:

• In large tournaments the cutter shuffles the cards a second time instead of cutting them.[7][8]
• Cards are often dealt in four packets of 2 rather than 2 packets of 4.[9][8]
• If everyone passes, the usual rule is to play a 'Force' or 'Muss' game instead of throwing the cards in. Other options are the contracts of Kreuzbock or Ramsch.[7]
• Often there is something called Reuegeld or Weitergeld, a form of monetary forfeit paid into a pot known as the stock; if a hand is thrown in, each player pays a specified amount into the pot which is then distributed at the end of the tournament. The abandoned game is recorded with a dash on the points list and the same dealer deals again.[8]
• Another form of Reuegeld is that the declarer has to pay a special contribution into the pot after losing a game (especially a solo game). Some of this Reuegeld may be paid directly to the table winners.[7]

The following table gives typical tournament scoring:[8][10]

In Tournament Schafkopf the games won or lost in are scored in the form of points in a list; usually a small amount of money also changes hands, one point being worth a specified stake. There are two scoring systems: in the 'Plus/Minus' system both wins and losses are recorded. In the 'Plus Only' system only the points won are recorded.

Fundamentally the normal game (called a Rufspiel or Sauspiel) is worth 1 point and solo games are worth 2 (or even 4) points. In addition, Schneider and Schwarz each score an additional point. If a team has Matadors, these also score additional points. The maximum number of Matadors varies, depending on the rules, between 4 (only the Obers are counted) and 14 (all the trumps are counted).[11]

The rules for Solo Schneider and Solo Schwarz may vary regionally; often the Solo also has a standard basic value, and schneider and schwarz are not paid out. Also the matadors are scored variably or even not at all in a Solo game. Likewise the scores for Solo Tout and Sie vary; schneider and schwarz are not counted in these cases, also the matadors often don’t count or are calculated at a flat rate.

In large tournaments, the 'position' of each player at his or her table is usually scored as well (i.e. the first-placed player at a table receives 40 additional points, the second-placed player 30, etc.). Often these 'table points' are much more important than the actual game points.[12]

In the absence of a regular league, various tournament series have been established. The results of the participants are recorded in rankings and the best players are invited to a final tournament. One example is the Schafkopf Champions League run by the German Schafkopf Club (Deutscher Schafkopfverein) in Folmava/Vollmau.[13] Meanwhile a number of unofficial championship tournaments with different systems of qualification have developed. The most important of these are probably the Bavarian Championship run by the Bavarian Schafkopf Club[14] and the (unofficial) 'World Championship' which has been held every two years since 2001.[15]

List of unofficial Schafkopf world champions

The following is a list of unofficial Schafkopf world champions:

No.	Year	Winner
1.	2001	Waldemar Schwägerl (Bärnau)[16]
2.	2003  Hungary, Hévíz[17][18]
3.	2005  Czech Republic, Mariánské Lázně/Marienbad[19]	Christoph Karl
4.	2007  Austria, Reith im Alpbachtal[20]
5.	2009  Austria, Großarl	Sabine Fischer (Lechbruck)[21]
6.	2011  Austria, Großarl	Stefan Hobmeier (Neufahrn bei Freising)[22]
7.	2013  Austria, Großarl	Hans Fenzl (Waldmünchen)[23]
8.	2013  Austria, Großarl	Georg Leindecker (Bad Aibling)
9.	2017  Austria, Großarl	Herbert Gruber (Eggenfelden)[24]
10.	2019  Germany, Cham[25]

• schafkopfschule.de The current official rules issued by the German Schafkopf School.