[1] It is also popular in Argentina and Brazil, brought in by Italian immigrants, mostly in the Scopa a Quindici variation.

[2] Scopa is also played in former Italian colonies such as Libya and Somalia or some other countries like Tunisia and even Morocco, with changed appearance in the cards.

Neapolitan, Piacentine, Triestine, and Sicilian cards are divided into Coppe (Cups), Ori or Denari (Golds or Coins), Spada (Swords) and Bastoni (Clubs) or Mazzi (Clubs in Sicilian), while Piemontesi, Milanesi and Toscane cards use the 'French' suits, that is Cuori (Hearts), Quadri (Diamonds, lit.

The dealer deals them out one card at a time, in a counter-clockwise direction, beginning with the player to their right.

As it is impossible to sweep in a game where the initial table cards include three or four kings, such a deal is considered invalid.

Therefore, it is a common tactic, while playing the game, to capture aces and sixes whenever possible.

In addition to the four standard points (called "punti di mazzo", lit.

It is still possible that the opposing team could end up with a tied or higher score once all points are calculated.

In some Italian cities, before the game the players can agree to play with the cappotto variant.

For example, a common variant in the Milan area combines "Scopone scientifico", "Scopa d'Assi" and "Napola".

When playing with a standard 52-card pack with French suits, 12 cards need to be removed from the deck.

It is recommended to play multiple games so that each player has the opportunity to deal and to mitigate first-player advantage.

In this variation of the game, playing an Ace captures all cards currently on the table (and does not count as a scopa).

In this game, which must be played in two teams of two, players are dealt all nine of their cards at the start of each round.

[5] In another form of the game, Scopone a 10 carte, the players are dealt ten cards each so that none are left.

In this variation (also known as Scopone trentino), a team capturing the ace, two, and three of coins achieves the Napola (aka Napula) and is awarded additional points equal to the highest consecutive coin they obtain, e.g. if a team captures the ace, two, three, four, and five, and eight of coins, that team is awarded 6 additional points.

Settebello ( 7) is then worth 2 points (one for the card and one for being in the sequence) as is Re Bello ( K), if the variation below is played.

Sometimes a team that manages to capture all 10 coins in a single round wins the game immediately.

The game of Cirulla (in Ligurian cirolla [tʃiˈɾulːa] or ciammachinze [ˌtʃamaˈkiŋze]) is the variant most commonly found in Liguria and bordering areas such as Lower Piedmont, and is usually played with the 40-card Genoese deck by 2, 3 or 4 players.

For instance, a player holding 'Q♦ Q♣ 7♥' may declare that the '7♥' is a queen, thus qualifying them for the ten-point bonus.

Additionally: With such a high degree of point-awarding combinations and the possibility of scoring dozens of points in a single hand, Cirulla games are tense affairs, where seemingly desperate situations can be reversed in a matter of minutes.

However, if a player or team manages to capture all diamonds in one round, they win the game immediately.

Scopa is very popular in Libya and is usually played as mentioned above, but some local variations are often added, such as: A number of variant point systems are used for calculating the prime, most of which produce the same order of hands.

One notable variant that does not produce the same order is to count 0 points for each face card.

There is a playable version of scopa within the Nancy Drew game The Phantom of Venice.

There are apps for Android smartphones and the Nokia internet tablet running the Maemo operating system, as well as for iOS iPads and iPhones.