The EBU is encouraging everyone playing at Club level to have a Convention Card, and at Warrington Bridge Club we want to do our best to support that, by making it as easy as possible, and by gently reminding our members. 

A Convention Card is simply a written summary of the system that you and your partner are using, set out in a standard format. It should go without saying that it's you AND your partner - it's clearly a nonsense if the two members of a partnership are operating to a different system. And "system" here doesn't just mean bidding - it includes elements of play of the cards, such as signals and leads. You should always have a copy of your Convention card with you when you're playing in any EBU event - which includes, for example, a Duplicate Pairs session at Warrington Bridge Club. Your opposition at the table is entitled to ask to see it if they want. 

Please don't be put off- you will only need to fill in a convention card once for any partnership (unless you decide to change your system), and it is quite a good discipline for you and your partner (or most regular partner) to go through it and agree. It's surprising how many times this reveals misunderstandings or differences you didn't know you had! 

And the good news is you don't need to start from scratch, though if you do want to do that, the EBU helpfully provides a blank template that you can fill in: Convention card template

There are example Convention cards available, already completed with "standard" systems, that you can simply pick up and use exactly as they are, or modify to suit, as appropriate.  Here are two, one for modern Acol, and one for Benji-Acol. 

Convention card - modern Acol

Convention card Benji-Acol

If you would like more details, or other example convention cards to download and use, you can visit the EBU website page here: EBU Laws and ethics: System cards