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 Contract bridge (usually knwon simply as ""bridge""), is a card game played with 52 cards (see box at right) . It is played by four players who form two partnerships; the partners ( N;E;S;W) sit opposite each other at a table. The game consists of dealing, the auction   (bidding) and downplay of 13 tricks, after which the hand is scored; all this takes about ten minutes. All actions are done clockwise. 

 The bidding ends with a ""contract"", which is a declaration by one 
 partnership that their side will win at least a stated number of tricks, with a specified suit as trump or without trumps. The declaring partnership will try to make the annouced tricks, and the opponents - the other partnership- will try to impede them. This way a real competiton is established. Downplay: 52 cards ( 4 x 13 ) are dealt to the four players. 
 To the first trick each player places one card on the table, and the highest card wins. The winner is entitled to put the first card to the next trick. This downplay ends with trick # 13. The result is expressed in a score, a numerical value, which permits comparing to other scores.   

  
 The detailed rules of play for tournaments are many, but millions of players have no 
 difficulty to have the basic rules in mind. The special rule that one player's hand (dummy) is displayed face up on the table is the necessary exception from the basic rule, that no player must know the content of the other hands: the table view enables the declarer to direct the game. Bridge has special methods of counting and uses words/expressions/denominations with different meaning to public use: in consequence persons not connected to bridge have dificulties to understand 

  
 Bridge players like to play many deals one after another. If a given deal is to be played by another for players - or again at a later time- , it must be conserved in containers(boards) at the end of the downplay. There are no proverbial ""good or bad cards (fortuitousnes)"" in bridge, if deals are played from both sides (NS and EW). Each new hand asks for solution of the problems of the actual deal. No deal is the same as the last deal; by dealing more than 6oo ooo ooo hands can be generated. 

  
 Bridge is played in private at home (one-table-competition), and a possible  standard is 16 boards. ( old form  rubber) Players are free to use the rules set by the WBF and the usual boards and bidding boxes. There is no money involved. 
 
 Tournaments, where two or more tables play the same deal of cards, are organised by small clubs with a handful of tables, or more tables in big clubs, regional, national and international Organisations. They follow the rules of the World Bridge Federation. Membership in Clubs is mostly paid, at least a table fee is requested.  
 In Tournaments duplicating of deals is necessary, if all participants are to play a deal at the same time (hence the name duplicate bridge). 
 The winner of a competition is found by interpreting the score. Several methods are in use. I.E. the own score could  be better, equal or inferior the the score of other contestants.: 

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 If we ask google for information about bridge, we will get millions of citations; many thousand books have been published on bridge, there are several monthly publications. Some people make their living from bridge. The number of organised players is more than 1.500 000, the number of non registered player  is probably greater. 
 To sum up: Bridge is a global universe, with leaders, heroes, fights, underlings, constitution, business, inventors, legislation, history and future, and more.  
 Congratulations to Wiki, to give insight. 
 HJPH Mai 2010  . 

  

  

  
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