A time trigger plays a playlist at a set time, without waiting for a button press in LiveScore or a match event. You can use one before kick-off, for example a countdown close to the start. You can also use one during live play, for example a sponsor every 5 minutes. This article shows how to add both kinds and how to set the playlist's priority and guards so it behaves the way you expect.
Two kinds of time trigger
Time triggers live in both tabs of a game plan, and they work slightly differently in each:
Pre/Post Match & Breaks: a Time Trigger fires a set time before kick-off.
In Game (Live): a Time trigger (Time elapsed) fires after a set amount of time has passed in the live match.
Add a time trigger before kick-off
Open your game plan in the Automation tab and go to Pre/Post Match & Breaks.
Open the playlist you want to run, for example a countdown or a sponsor message.
Add a trigger with the pre-game period group and the trigger type Time Trigger.
Set how long before kick-off the playlist should play.
Save the trigger.
Pre-game playlists are often triggered by the Players Entering and About To Start buttons the scorer presses in LiveScore. A time-triggered playlist close to kick-off is usually given a higher priority than those button-triggered playlists, so it isn't skipped if they fire around the same time.
For more on period groups and break numbers, see Add triggers to a playlist.
Add a time trigger during play
In your game plan, go to In Game (Live) and open the playlist.
Click Configure and go to Trigger Playlists.
Click Add Live Trigger.
In the Trigger event dropdown, choose Time trigger (Time elapsed). The help text reads "Playlist will trigger after this much time has elapsed in the live match".
Enter the time in mm:ss, for example 10:00.
Save your changes.
Add several times to one trigger
You don't need a separate trigger for each time. Click + Add time trigger to add another time to the same trigger, then enter it in mm:ss. For a sponsor every 5 minutes, add 05:00, 10:00, 15:00 and so on. The playlist plays at each time you list.
The priority 4 and guards note
When you add a time elapsed trigger, a yellow note appears. It explains that this trigger defaults to priority 4 with the guards isLive and isNotPenaltyShootout.
The note also says that attaching the trigger does not change the playlist's own priority or guards. Those are set separately on the playlist, so check them in Configure.
Set priority and guards in Configure
Open the playlist and click Configure.
Click Show Advanced Options.
Set the priority. Priority 1 is the highest and 4 is the lowest. New playlists start at 2.
Add the guards the playlist needs. For a sponsor during play, use isLive and isNotPenaltyShootout.
Save your changes.
When two playlists trigger together, the higher priority one wins and can take over one that's already running. A time-triggered sponsor playlist is usually set to priority 4, so goals and cards always win. The guards make sure it only runs during play and never during a penalty shootout. For more detail, see Configure a playlist: name, priority and guards.
Tips and common mistakes
End every live playlist with a Show scorebug or Hide all except scorebug action, so the scorebug comes back afterwards.
Give every item its own start second. Two transitions on the same second can wipe each other.
Leave about 2 seconds between items so animations finish cleanly.
Check the playlist with Preview a playlist. Then use Review a match against your game plan and filter by Timed to see when it fires.
For example playlists, such as graphics 10 minutes into each half or a sponsor loop, see Adding time-triggered graphics and sponsor loops during play.
Next: Using milestone triggers