Portuguese classic · 4 players
Sueca
Read the table, trust your partner, and make every trump count.
Deal complete
Your team wins!
Small deck.
Sharp game.
Follow one illustrated deal, then use the complete rules below whenever you need a precise answer.
Illustrated guide
See how a deal unfolds.
These examples are separate from the live game.
Complete rules
These rules describe the four-player version playable above. Local tables may have different dealing and scoring customs.
Origin & history
Sueca is a Portuguese partnership game with a long social tradition. It is also played in Brazil and Angola. Partners sit opposite one another and cooperate through the cards they play; traditional Sueca is a silent game, without discussion of a hand.
Objective
Collect more card points in tricks than the opposing partnership. The deck contains 120 card points. Winning a deal earns match points; the first team to reach four match points wins this online match.
Equipment & setup
Four players form two fixed partnerships: you and North against West and East. Use a 40-card French-suited deck, removing all 8s, 9s and 10s. Deal ten cards to each player. The suit of the last card dealt is shown to everyone and becomes trump for the deal.
The card order, highest first, is Ace, Seven, King, Jack, Queen, Six, Five, Four, Three, Two. The player after the dealer leads the first trick. The dealer and first lead rotate on subsequent deals.
Gameplay
The leader plays any card. That card sets the led suit. Each other player must follow suit if able; a player without that suit may play any card, including a trump. Four cards make a trick. The highest trump wins if a trump was played; otherwise the highest card of the led suit wins. The winner leads the next trick.
After ten tricks, all 40 cards have been played. You can see the revealed trump card, the current trick and both teams’ running points. The bot players use their own cards and cards already played; they do not see your hand or the unseen deck.
Scoring & points
Ace is worth 11 card points, Seven 10, King 4, Jack 3 and Queen 2. Every other card is worth zero. These values add to 120 across the deck. A trick’s winner collects the points on all four cards, regardless of how many points the winning card itself carries.
At the end of the deal, 61–90 card points earn the winning team one match point, 91–119 earn two, and all 120 earn four. A 60–60 tie awards no match points in this version. The number of tricks won does not determine the deal winner: only the card points in those tricks do.
End of game & winning
A deal ends after ten tricks. If neither team has reached four match points, deal another hand. The first partnership to reach four wins the match; collecting all 120 card points in one deal awards four and therefore wins the match immediately.
Variants
Sueca tables may reveal a different card during the deal to establish trump, carry a 60–60 tie into the next deal, or use a different meaning of a complete sweep. Some groups allow a weak initial hand to be redealt. These customs are not selectable in this version. Sueca Italiana is a related bidding game rather than the ordinary four-player game shown here.
Category
Trick-Taking · Point-Trick · Ace-Ten
Also known as
Sueca
Documented countries
Portugal · Brazil · Angola