🔎 World Cup 2026Grade 4Reading: grades 3-4Skip countingRoundingMultiplicationSubtractionMissing addends
The Championship Cup Caper
The stadium lights are bright and the crowd is roaring. But just before kickoff, the golden World Cup trophy went missing from the display case. The head coach is in a panic. A mysterious player is trying to ruin the biggest game of the decade. We need you to crack the clues, find the soccer saboteur, and save the tournament.
Suspects
Possible suspects
Cross off a row as each clue rules it out. On screen, tap a row.
21 of 21 still in play
| Name | Signature Soccer Move | High-Tech Gear | Player Type | Hair Style | Pitch Distraction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoe | cyclone spin | magnet gloves | boy | neon mohawk | sticky mud |
| Sofia | gravity chip | turbo watch | girl | gold spikes | sticky mud |
| Ryder | matrix defense | turbo watch | boy | gold spikes | bright camera flash |
| Nora | matrix defense | hologram visor | boy | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
| Chloe | nitro sprint | sonar headband | girl | neon mohawk | sticky mud |
| Alex | cyclone spin | magnet gloves | boy | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
| Luca | matrix defense | magnet gloves | boy | blue ponytail | loud whistle |
| Jax | nitro sprint | magnet gloves | boy | neon mohawk | loud whistle |
| Santi | cyclone spin | turbo watch | girl | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
| Mia | thunder volley | sonar headband | boy | blue ponytail | loud whistle |
| Hugo | matrix defense | sonar headband | girl | blue ponytail | loud whistle |
| Elena | thunder volley | sonar headband | girl | gold spikes | sticky mud |
| Emma | gravity chip | sonar headband | boy | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
| Yuki | nitro sprint | hologram visor | girl | gold spikes | loud whistle |
| Mason | gravity chip | magnet gloves | girl | gold spikes | loud whistle |
| Diego | matrix defense | magnet gloves | boy | gold spikes | sticky mud |
| Kofi | thunder volley | hologram visor | girl | blue ponytail | sticky mud |
| Zane | cyclone spin | rocket cleats | girl | blue ponytail | loud whistle |
| Mateo | gravity chip | sonar headband | boy | gold spikes | loud whistle |
| Tyler | thunder volley | rocket cleats | boy | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
| Anya | gravity chip | rocket cleats | boy | neon mohawk | bright camera flash |
Clue 1
Skip counting
The stadium crew counted the practice soccer balls by fives. Some were missing from the rack, but the skip counting pattern left behind a clue written on a tactics board.
Solve each problem to learn its letter. Then write that letter in every box that shows the same number, and read the secret clue.
T
16
6
15
130
24
26
26
60
24
9
20
70
15
100
9
70
T
16
14
15
60
10
60
100
70
9
60
10
6
15
60
20
25
60
9
20
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, ___, 18, 20T
Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, ___, 20, 25E
Skip-count by 10s. Fill the blank: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110, 120, ___, 140, 150V
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, ___, 8, 10H
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, ___, 26, 28I
Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, ___, 30, 35B
Skip-count by 3s. Fill the blank: 3, 6, ___, 12, 15N
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, ___, 28, 30L
Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, ___, 25, 30D
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, ___, 16, 18W
Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, ___, 12, 14R
Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, ___, 65, 70A
Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, ___, 75, 80O
Skip-count by 10s. Fill the blank: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, ___, 110, 120S
0/14 letters found
Clue 2
Rounding
The ticket scanner display screen was damaged and could only show ticket numbers rounded to the nearest ten. We had to round the bad scans to reveal the next clue.
Solve each problem to learn its letter. Then write that letter in every box that shows the same number, and read the secret clue.
T
310000
300000
3100
3000
280000
T
310000
2800000
3100
2000
2000
2000
28000
3000
28000
20000
70
30000
300
4700000
2800000
20000
30000
Round 305,534 to the nearest ten thousandT
Round 3,091 to the nearest thousandW
Round 28,320 to the nearest thousandA
Round 324,211 to the nearest hundred thousandH
Round 34,640 to the nearest ten thousandY
Round 23,192 to the nearest ten thousandB
Round 2,293 to the nearest thousandS
Round 3,090 to the nearest hundredE
Round 2,809,020 to the nearest hundred thousandN
Round 70 to the nearest tenO
Round 278,136 to the nearest ten thousandI
Round 311 to the nearest hundredR
Round 4,718,365 to the nearest hundred thousandU
0/13 letters found
Clue 3
Multiplication facts (1-12)
The gear manager found empty equipment boxes arranged in equal rows and columns. Multiplying the empty spaces helped us calculate where the culprit dropped a hidden note.
Solve each problem to learn its letter. Then write that letter in every box that shows the same number, and read the secret clue.
B
110
70
90
25
96
11
21
100
77
24
70
100
121
120
100
60
96
24
60
B
110
120
90
81
30
24
30
11
96
24
1
90
120
120
100
90
81
10 × 11 =B
10 × 10 =A
11 × 1 =T
7 × 10 =R
6 × 5 =D
11 × 7 =M
11 × 11 =F
7 × 3 =C
3 × 8 =E
5 × 5 =G
10 × 9 =I
10 × 6 =S
9 × 9 =N
12 × 10 =L
1 × 1 =V
12 × 8 =H
0/16 letters found
Clue 4
Subtraction
The giant stadium timer was counting down the minutes. Subtracting the extra stoppage time from the total gave us the secret lock code for a locker containing a scrap of paper.
Solve each problem to learn its letter. Then write that letter in every box that shows the same number, and read the secret clue.
W
7659
3869
2116
4846
1769
3249
1562
3249
3869
4846
3249
6810
3833
3869
3869
3249
3775
4846
1929
7855
W
7659
4829
1929
7855
4334
3833
11826 - 4167 =W
6321 - 2452 =E
5723 - 1389 =I
4744 - 2975 =U
8228 - 373 =A
5952 - 1123 =K
10738 - 3928 =G
5784 - 1951 =R
7014 - 4898 =F
2922 - 1360 =D
6546 - 4617 =H
8251 - 4476 =M
9356 - 4510 =O
6802 - 3553 =N
0/14 letters found
Clue 5
Missing addends — the last clue
To open the trophy vault, we needed to know the missing number of gold medals. Solving this missing addend unlocked the final secret file.
First solve each problem. Then find each answer in the list below and cross that sentence out. One sentence will be left — that's exactly what the villain did!
Step 1 — solve these
2 + ___ = 7
1 + ___ = 4
33 + ___ = 35
14 + ___ = 21
24 + ___ = 32
25 + ___ = 29
17 + ___ = 29
40 + ___ = 50
22 + ___ = 33
35 + ___ = 36
30 + ___ = 36
Step 2 — cross out the sentence with each answer
1.The villain snatches the mascot costume, then hides in the team bus.
2.The villain scrambles the scoreboard computer, then dribbles past the security guards.
3.The villain snatches the mascot costume, then escapes through the player tunnel.
4.The villain snatches the mascot costume, then blends into the wave of fans.
5.The villain swaps the official match ball, then blends into the wave of fans.
6.The villain scrambles the scoreboard computer, then hides in the team bus.
7.The villain steals the championship trophy, then escapes through the player tunnel.
8.The villain steals the championship trophy, then dribbles past the security guards.
9.The villain hacks the stadium lights, then escapes through the player tunnel.
10.The villain steals the championship trophy, then leaps over the stadium gate.
11.The villain scrambles the scoreboard computer, then blends into the wave of fans.
12.The villain swaps the official match ball, then escapes through the player tunnel.
Solve it
Name the culprit
Choose the one suspect left standing.
Answer Key — The Championship Cup Caper
Culprit: Tyler (thunder volley · rocket cleats · boy · neon mohawk · bright camera flash)
- Clue 1 (Skip counting): "THE VILLAIN DOES NOT WEAR A SONAR HEADBAND"Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, ___, 18, 20 = 16 (T) · Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, ___, 20, 25 = 15 (E) · Skip-count by 10s. Fill the blank: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110, 120, ___, 140, 150 = 130 (V) · Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, ___, 8, 10 = 6 (H) · Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, ___, 26, 28 = 24 (I) · Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, ___, 30, 35 = 25 (B) · Skip-count by 3s. Fill the blank: 3, 6, ___, 12, 15 = 9 (N) · Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, ___, 28, 30 = 26 (L) · Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, ___, 25, 30 = 20 (D) · Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, ___, 16, 18 = 14 (W) · Skip-count by 2s. Fill the blank: 2, 4, 6, 8, ___, 12, 14 = 10 (R) · Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, ___, 65, 70 = 60 (A) · Skip-count by 5s. Fill the blank: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, ___, 75, 80 = 70 (O) · Skip-count by 10s. Fill the blank: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, ___, 110, 120 = 100 (S)
- Clue 2 (Rounding): "THE WITNESS SAW A BOY RUN BY"Round 305,534 to the nearest ten thousand = 310000 (T) · Round 3,091 to the nearest thousand = 3000 (W) · Round 28,320 to the nearest thousand = 28000 (A) · Round 324,211 to the nearest hundred thousand = 300000 (H) · Round 34,640 to the nearest ten thousand = 30000 (Y) · Round 23,192 to the nearest ten thousand = 20000 (B) · Round 2,293 to the nearest thousand = 2000 (S) · Round 3,090 to the nearest hundred = 3100 (E) · Round 2,809,020 to the nearest hundred thousand = 2800000 (N) · Round 70 to the nearest ten = 70 (O) · Round 278,136 to the nearest ten thousand = 280000 (I) · Round 311 to the nearest hundred = 300 (R) · Round 4,718,365 to the nearest hundred thousand = 4700000 (U)
- Clue 3 (Multiplication facts (1-12)): "BRIGHT CAMERA FLASHES BLINDED THE VILLAIN"10 × 11 = 110 (B) · 10 × 10 = 100 (A) · 11 × 1 = 11 (T) · 7 × 10 = 70 (R) · 6 × 5 = 30 (D) · 11 × 7 = 77 (M) · 11 × 11 = 121 (F) · 7 × 3 = 21 (C) · 3 × 8 = 24 (E) · 5 × 5 = 25 (G) · 10 × 9 = 90 (I) · 10 × 6 = 60 (S) · 9 × 9 = 81 (N) · 12 × 10 = 120 (L) · 1 × 1 = 1 (V) · 12 × 8 = 96 (H)
- Clue 4 (Subtraction): "WE FOUND NEON GREEN MOHAWK HAIR"11826 - 4167 = 7659 (W) · 6321 - 2452 = 3869 (E) · 5723 - 1389 = 4334 (I) · 4744 - 2975 = 1769 (U) · 8228 - 373 = 7855 (A) · 5952 - 1123 = 4829 (K) · 10738 - 3928 = 6810 (G) · 5784 - 1951 = 3833 (R) · 7014 - 4898 = 2116 (F) · 2922 - 1360 = 1562 (D) · 6546 - 4617 = 1929 (H) · 8251 - 4476 = 3775 (M) · 9356 - 4510 = 4846 (O) · 6802 - 3553 = 3249 (N)
- Clue 5 (Missing addends): surviving statement (box 9) → Tyler2 + ___ = 7 = 5 · 1 + ___ = 4 = 3 · 33 + ___ = 35 = 2 · 14 + ___ = 21 = 7 · 24 + ___ = 32 = 8 · 25 + ___ = 29 = 4 · 17 + ___ = 29 = 12 · 40 + ___ = 50 = 10 · 22 + ___ = 33 = 11 · 35 + ___ = 36 = 1 · 30 + ___ = 36 = 6
About this mystery
- Grade level
- Grade 4 math
- Math topics
- Skip counting, Rounding, Multiplication, Subtraction, Missing addends
- Reading level
- grades 3-4
- Theme
- The Championship Cup Caper — set in MetLife Stadium during the World Cup 2026 final
- Format
- Interactive online & printable worksheet with answer key
- Solution
- One unique, verified culprit among 21 suspects