<P> The coin may be any type as long as it has two distinct sides; it need not be a circulating coin as such . Larger coins tend to be more popular than smaller ones . Some high - profile coin tosses, such as the Cricket World Cup and the Super Bowl, use custom - made ceremonial medallions . </P> <P> Three - way coin flips are also possible, by a different process--this can be done either to choose two out of three, or to choose one out of three . To choose two out of three, three coins are flipped, and if two coins come up the same and one different, the different one loses (is out), leaving two players . To choose one out of three, either reverse this (the odd coin out is the winner), or add a regular two - way coin flip between the remaining players as a second step . Note that the three - way flip is 75% likely to work each time it is tried (if all coins are heads or all are tails, each of which occur 1 / 8 of the time due to the chances being 0.5 by 0.5 by 0.5, the flip is repeated until the results differ), and does not require that "heads" or "tails" be called . A famous example of such a three - way coin flip (choose two out of three) is dramatized in Friday Night Lights (originally a book, subsequently film and TV series), where three high school football teams with identical records use a three - way coin flip--at a truck stop--to determine which two will advance to the playoffs . A legacy of this coin flip was to reduce the use of coin flips to break ties in Texas sports, instead using point - systems to reduce the frequency of ties . </P> <P> Coin tossing is a simple and unbiased way of settling a dispute or deciding between two or more arbitrary options . In a game theoretic analysis it provides even odds to both sides involved, requiring little effort and preventing the dispute from escalating into a struggle . It is used widely in sports and other games to decide arbitrary factors such as which side of the field a team will play from, or which side will attack or defend initially; these decisions may tend to favor one side, or may be neutral . Factors such as wind direction, the position of the sun, and other conditions may affect the decision . In team sports it is often the captain who makes the call, while the umpire or referee usually oversees such proceedings . A competitive method may be used instead of a toss in some situations, for example in basketball the jump ball is employed, while the face - off plays a similar role in ice hockey . </P> <P> Coin flipping is used to decide which end of the field the teams will play to and / or which team gets first use of the ball, or similar questions in football matches, American football games, Australian rules football, volleyball, and other sports requiring such decisions . In the U.S. a specially minted coin is flipped in National Football League games; the coin is then sent to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and other coins of the special series minted at the same time are sold to collectors . The XFL, a short - lived American football league, attempted to avoid coin tosses by implementing a face - off style "opening scramble," in which one player from each team tried to recover a loose football; the team whose player recovered the ball got first choice . Because of the high rate of injury in these events, it has not achieved mainstream popularity in any football league (a modified version was adopted by X-League Indoor Football, in which each player pursued his own ball), and coin tossing remains the method of choice in American football . </P>

What is the purpose of the coin toss in football