World Cup 70 - RP Thread

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

Trojana to complete CD FAS takeover on Tuesday

C.D. FAS have announced that the club will formally change hands on Tuesday after the investment group led by completed the due diligence process.

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By: Lorne Duval-Descharnais
Page last updated at 19:21 QST, Sunday, 16 June 2017, 18:41 QUE

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The Imperial Magnum Group will take over ownership of the club from CD FAS Ltd, which was led by a joint consortium of local interests and fans.

The Imperial Magnum Group is backed by Magnus Preservatif de Trojana, the 2nd Baron of Trojanajara and so-called Captain Condom for his 90% control of Multiverse's contraceptives industry. The company, with its massive pool of financial resources, is currently among one of the richest, if not the richest football team owners in San Jose Guayabal.

New chairman Arcangelo Chae promised stability, saying: "We are not going to do crazy stuff, but it makes sense for us to build a dynasty and sustain our exciting brand of football that is not just through aggressive campaigns to acquire world-class players, but also through developing players through the pipeline."

He added: "(Executive chairman) Oscar Murillo and manager Chochera Castillo call the shots and we're here to help build a sustainable club. I think we are going to have a blast doing it, from the bottom to the top!"

Far from looking to bring in their own man on the back of the takeover, Chae promised FAS's fans that the group see Castillo as integral to the club's future success.

"Chochera's as good as we are on paper and we'll give him all our support," he said, "He is an honest man, he's a leader, he's responsible and he is everything you would want in a manager. Despite what happened earlier this year, we trust him and see in him that he's one of the gems we saw in this club once we came here.

"We are here as long-term investors, and with our backing, with the commitment we are going to make to the team, the academy and the city of Santa Ana in the next 20 years, the future looks bright in CD FAS for everyone."

Chae also stressed to fans that he and the new owners will not interfere in team affairs, a stance that stood out particularly interesting due to the way other owners tend to behave in the Esportivan nation's teams.

He said: "Chochera makes the football decisions and we are here to learn. One thing I have made very clear to Chocera is that any player he wants comes from him. He wants, he gets. It comes from his requirements, his plan for the club, regardless of circumstances. I'm a fan, but I am not an expert.

"It is Chochera who runs the club, and he will put together a plan to win while we stay patient to see it unfold. As long as it is being managed properly and the players are doing what they need to do, then it will take whatever it takes."

Lord Preservatif - also in charge of Trojana Co., the very company behind 90% of the Multiverse's contraceptives supply - also issued a statement in which he revealed Arcangelo Chae, the President of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment in Kingston, will be appointed chairman.

He also gave his full backing to the "condoms" manager Chochera Castillo, whose job looked to be in jeopardy after an injury-ridden season that turned the tide against what looked to be a rapidly improving team.

Addressed to "my fellow beloved Club Deportivo FAS fans", the statement from Lord Preservatif, Duke of Trojanajara, said: "Like you, we are excited about the future of the club, and we hope the securing of Jason Goulding as a FAS player during the transfer window is seen as a signal of our very real intent.

"It's been a very exciting month or two for all of us, as the Deportivo enters a brand new chapter of its history, the one towards its resurgence and renaissance for years down the road.

"My best intention is that the C.D. FAS has the best officials on its disposal, both on and off the turf. For that reason I have asked my friend Arcangelo Chae, to take on the position of chairman of the club. My request to him has been to put together a board and executive team that is worthy of the heritage and potential of Chae.

"Chae and I have agreed that the we will not be making any more announcements for a while as we really now need to sit down with the manager, executive chairman and key staff and put together plans that will, over time, get the club to where we want it to be. While we have fallen from grace so quickly, we can climb back very quickly as well, and I'd like to see it with as many of us as possible.

"We also want to make it clear that Chochera Castillo is absolutely integral to our plans. We are lucky to have someone who we believe is the best young Guayabalense manager; someone who has been successful and proven his track to the glory, as we have seen all seen before.

"We are ambitious for the club, like you, but not unreasonably so and we understand it takes time to build a team capable of sustaining a presence in the team's return to the top flight and in turn top 3 place in what is one of the more respected leagues across the Multiverse.

"We know a little of the history at FAS also and whilst we want to bring in the best players in the world, we also want to see the academy continue to develop talent and give Castillo the chance to bring home-grown players into the team. The subsequent investments will be made to support that.

"We consider Chochera Castillo to be one of the prime assets of the club. We will back his judgement in what players to bring in and we look forward to working more closely with him in the future. I know he can work magic into the organization and we will see it happen before our eyes hopefully.

"We are building a structure for the future not just a team of all-stars. That's not what I want, and I know that you agree with me on it.

"I should perhaps also explain that despite what you may have read, I have bought the club in a private capacity and as part of my personal business strategy to hold a wide portfolio of business investments for the benefit of the footballing crowd and the good.

"I am a football fan, and I hope that you will soon see that I am now also a FAS fan. I grew up a FAS fan in my city of Trojana, and when studying in El Roblar I always made my trek to watch home and away games for this fabulous organisation.

"But I am also a long-term investor and that is probably more important to the club and to you because it means we are here for the long haul and that we will act always in the best interests of the club and all of its stakeholders, but especially you the fans."

MORE NEWS: • QUEBEC PLACED IN AN ALMOST-AO GROUP H FOR WORLD CUP • TROJANA INTERESTED IN PURCHASING ALIANZA FOR $3 BILLION NS • MONTREAL IMPACT PURCHASES POLASKAAN NT OZOLINSH

[Brenecia]

Brenecia, as in 'Brenecia Are Shit'
by aitchkay

well its been three days since the draw and nobody else is gonna make the brenecia world cup thread here, so i might as well, being brenecian (rip me)

Mighty Brenecia is a nation somewhere in esportiva's arsehole noted mostly for being staggeringly dull and boring and having grey skies. However under the heroic leadership of Catherine 'The Bards' Bardsley we have turned shit attacking into shit defending and it's a winning formula apparently. Up front we are basically the Apox B team, down the back we are useless idiots ready to get found out and left constantly exposed.

GOALKEEPERS
hahaha we're fucked theyre all so bad

Jayce 'Jazza' Pence, Kingsgrove
Shit useless fraud who keeps fumbling the ball into her own net and can't find crosses. Sometimes confusingly really good??? but mostly a liability. Will start every game.

Paul Ashpike, Honneur
Nominal backup. Used to play for some shit lower midtable Nepharim team, took a step sideways to a good team in a weaker league to get UICA football. The backup. Probably better than Pence.

Sara Fairhall, North Hall
Boring competent keeper. Got one match in qualifying, unfortunately got totally caught out by a free kick and then Pence started every other match.

DEFENDERS
Somewhat better. Our fullbacks are good, but they're very attack-minded which leaves our centrebacks exposed. We have one genuinely good centreback and one pretty good but old centreback, so that's nice I guess

Fiona Berenger, Crisisbless
Quick little rightback. We have no other proper rightbacks so will start every game. If she's injured we're fucked even though she's not actually that great.

Miriam Portadown, Kingsgrove
The other consistent starter throughout qualifying from the A-League. An actually pretty good leftback but there's a concern she might get badly found out defensively against proper world-class players.

Seth Greig, Crisisbless
Massive filthy cunt, the sort of guy who'd get you with a dog shot from behind as you walked out of a pub. Kind of slow but way better than anyone else who isn't Faulkner.

Orson Faulkner, AC Izotz Zubia
!!!!ACTUAL GOOD DEFENDER!!!! nailed-on starter at centreback but also annoyingly second-choice rightback. Literally scored a title-winning goal in the LigAnaia. hey maybe he can score a world cup winning goal too haha jokes

Emma Kelly, Goodfeather FC
Shit centreback and kind-of rightback, absent-minded and physically kind of weak. Couple of bad performances in qualifying means Bardsley seems to trust Kilcane more, but assuming Faulkner can't really be shifted from the heart of defence Kelly's backup on the right and ugh ugh ugh she's so bad

Constantine Bowyer, Sabrefell Athletic
Solid sturdy leftback and absurd long throw specialist. Might actually get a game over Portadown if we're against a massively better team and just need a big unit who can give us cheap chances.

Ash Kilcane, Fontvielle FC
From the Yttribian Fontvielle, not the Valladar one. Very quick, kind of a cunt. Watch your ankles.

MIDFIELD
watch out, world, we have some actual good players here!!

Augustine Breton, Brinemouth
More a deep player than a holding midfielder, and he comes from a team that generally finds itself on the attack and got really badly found out in the Champions' Cup. Might be trouble when we're on the back foot, which is probably gonna be most of the time.

Morgan Underwood, Vermillion Rage
Big unit, strong, tough, quick, not much technique. Out of favour these days.

Erin Camden, Parrhesia United
OUR NOBLE CAPTAIN also totally not nepharim at all despite playing her entire career for parrhesia and being a nephara u-21. Tidy with long balls and set pieces to give us more cheap goals, just pretty good all-around. Will still be found out at this level.

Catherine Purrington, Wye United
YESSSSS our best player, a fucking pub footballer from Marque, she ate all the pies and has a fucking beauty of a left peg. Once celebrated a goal by going over to the travelling supporters, shaking their hands and when one of them handed her a pint of lager, down that shit went. Fucking legend.

Rowena Stamper, Kingsgrove
A good, quiet, quick attacking midfielder who slots pretty well into the system. The last and least important part of the Kingsgrove Three For One Pack, but she's about as good as Camden without the captain/set pieces parts.

Kurtis Armstrong, Foxchester Raiders
Kicks people and is a big hard man and tough and brave and swole. Backup to Breton, but better at poleaxing tricky midfielders.

Cheney Keller, Violence Chariots
Can cover any position in the midfield and play any role, but doesn't even start regularly for his club, so who even knows. Will probably not see a minute because we won't play enough games to stretch our depth that far. Is... okay.

FORWARDS
The actual good part of the team!! Can they claw back the four goals we concede every game? hell, who knows, but hopefully

Isadora Cullen, Barbury Town
Professional bench-warmer for Barbury Town of the ANL. Quick and really good and cool, has a technical breeze to her, was easily the A-League's best player for a couple years but left just before it started to become actually kind of good.

Cheney Scherzer, Wye United
Massively alpha, Scherzer is about as fast as God and really really good at getting onto the end of long balls and actually finishing chances. Literally exactly what the nation needed. Has scored a fully sick 11 goals in 14 matches this year for the national team, and his hattrick against Quakmybush won the game for us. Massive legend, national hero, alpha as fuckkkkk

Miriam Spitfire, FC Brimstone
National treasure and legend who's been a regular on the left wing since the Patriots first damp-squibbed onto the international sphere, also vice-captain. Amazing feet and technical legend and goddess, only problem is she's old now and pretty slow. Her stamina will probably hold out enough for her to start every game but expect her to be subbed out in a lot of them, too.

Matt Kilgallon, Foxchester Raiders
Pretty good, fairly generic winger. Tough and strong and quick which is good. Cullen's way better though.

Tanith Bryson, Chatswood
Another pretty good striker! Pace isn't nearly as good as Scherzer's though which is a real issue, but she's stronger and more reliable. A massive downgrade but still a better player than any non-Faulkner/maybe Berenger defender.

Larissa Connolly, Falkner United
The left-footed version of Cullen. Really likes diagonal runs and scoring goals, is maybe a little too good for the A-League, is definitely the successor to <3 ~Miriam Goddess Spitfire~ <3 but a totally different player. The team's kind of assymmetrical with Spitfire in it but I'll get to that later.

NEVER FORGET - THOSE WHO WERE TOO SHIT TO MAKE THE CUT
Catherine Ralston another okay goalkeeper
Rook Milligan only other actual rightback by trade
Merry Chilton good player coming off a really really shit season
Rhea Lockhart an okay defensive leftback
Lyn Crowley budget breton
Daniel Snowden patriots legend but entering his 30s which really doesn't fit the squad
Malta Keohane good against shit a-league defences, one cap and three goals

The Plan
Bardsley's patriots are a 4-3-3 where the threes stand for ATTACK, ATTACK - we aren't, like, Takilan, but our attack is definitely our strong point and we want to stay on the front foot as much as possible because we're gonna crumble really badly if things go against us. Scherzer, Cullen, and Connolly on the bench are all mad quick and there's a lot of long balls into space to find them, Spitfire usually hangs back a little since she's slow nowadays, Purrington randomly has these alpha as fuck moments where she just beasts everyone and scores.

OUR OPPONENTS
Felix
Our one realistically winnable fixture. We have fairly comparable squads on paper even though they shred our rank. We got drawn against each other like all the time in the early games, playing each other 4 times in three years before one last meeting eight years ago. In those five matches we've won twice and drawn twice, for an aggregate score of 11-10. We were on about equal terms back when we were playing and now, well, they kind of actually enjoyed success while we continued to be Brenecia. Still, I think it'll be an even match, probably be a high-scoring draw.

Legalese
Legalese are gonna stomp us. We've never played them before and literally anyone can tell that the likes of Cyrus Damhan is gonna have a fucking field day. They really love attacking and we really love conceding goals so I think we're gonna have a really special relationship together

The Calanian Union
hahahaha oh we're fucked
For those who don't know, Brenecia have played the Calanian Union six times. From those six times we have collected a princely one (1) draw against them, losing five other matches, scoring five and conceding fifteen. Looking at their squad they are, yep, still fucking incredible and they must be looking forward to stomping us in the ground yet again.

Expectations
realistically we're gonna get turned over 5-2 in every game but as long as we go down swinging and put on a good show everyone's gonna go home reasonably happy. We're not just here for the numbers but we are pretty jazzed just to be here at all, so hey!

but yeah brenecia's totally gonna win the world cup #420

[HopNation]

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HopNation Sports

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12-22-14

HDT|2014|v.356

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WORLD CUP – PART 1

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Group C
Looks like things are nearing their start for the World Cup Proper and Equestrian States along with San José Guayabal look set to welcome everyone into their nations. Our Hops have been slated into Group C after being in the bottom of the barrel allocation pot. We will be playing our matches in ES against foes: Eura, They Holy Empire, and Valanora. Which will be an extremely uphill battle, but if we play like we did in the qualifying stages I think we have a shot to come away with a few points. A long shot sure, but still a shot. It would be exciting if we made it past the group stage and into the knockout stage, but that is highly unlikely. I just hope that the Hops are not satisfied with where they are and continue to improve their play.

As for the other teams in our group, well they are all direct qualifiers and none of them needed the extra playoff to get here. They could be a bit more rested than our squad but with the break we’ve had after that match and the training we’ve gone through leading up to the qualifying matches we should be ready for anything. Lets have a quick look through to see what we might expect in the order we’ll see them in this single leg gauntlet.

MD 1: HopNation v. Valanora
Valanora comes out of Group 3 in the qualifying stage with an 11-4-1 record (37 pts) where they finished just one point ahead of Bears Armed (36 pts). They finished the first half at 6-2 and the second half 5-2-1, so just looking at that they did not finish as strongly as they started (although marginally). The managed ties against only one worthy opponent (Bears Armed) while the rest of the ties and even their lone loss came to much lesser squads (Timbermunich, Robsonien, and Kingston-Atlantis ties, The Fallenmark Islands loss).

Valanora looks to be playing in a slightly attacking 3-5-2 that could be seen as a 3-4-1-2 from looking over their sheet with starters being:
Keeper – Galadirdren
Defenders – Haelinde, Tinueme, Kinarthir
Midfielders – va Drake, Soldarian, Lúinwë, Durosa, Hawk
Forwards – Fresco, Isiliéseil


MD 2: HopNation v. Eura
Eura comes to us from Group 14 and finished with an 11-2-3 and 35 pts, two points ahead of second place Nova Anglicana. One thing that stands out for them is the +36 on goal differential, they had 54 goals for while only allowing 18. This was the best +- out of the four teams in Group C, so our defenses better be ready when we face them. They finished the first half 6-0-2, with losses to Nova Anglicana and Kinitaria, a couple hard fought battles to the #4 and #2 ranked teams in that Group 14 set (not how they finished). One would have thought Taeshan would have been more trouble for Eura, but they handled them just fine on both legs. The second half saw them at 5-2-1, so roughly equal to their first half showing. They lost to Nova Anglicana again, and then tied Western Borderlands (a complete surprise) and Kinitaria as they changed an earlier loss to a tie.

Eura looks to be playing in a somewhat neutral 4-5-1, which from looking at the line-up could be a 4-3-3 depending on how they use their left and right wings. Their likely starters are:
GK - 1. C Waller
RB - 2. W Churchilli
RCB - 4. C Gilbert
LCB - 5. M Rogers
LB - 3. A Watson
RW - 11. M Adams
CDM - 6. G Blackthorn
RCM – 8. J Spartan
LCM – 18. G Anderson
LW - 7. C Sinclair
CF - 10. S Oslograd

MD3: The Holy Empire v. HopNation
The Holy Empire comes to us with an almost unblemished record as they finished tops in Group 19 with a 15-0-1 record. Their only loss coming on match day 8 to Jecatria, which caught them by surprise, I’m sure. They finished up the first half 7-0-1 and came home 8-0-0 on the second leg, so I wouldn’t say they had a better half in the second leg they just had a slight hiccup during the first leg against Jecatria. They did finish with the most points (45) along with surprise of the qualifying The Sarian, but The Sarian did play exceptionally well through all of qualifying.

The Holy Empire has a complete attacking 3-5-2 that is a deadly 3-3-4 on the counter. It seems the teams manager is some form of cahoots with Margaret (NSWC goddess of random numbers) so we’ll see how that develops. Their likely starters are:
Goal: Jesús Metochites [make 'Jesus saves' jokes as much as you want]
Defence: Nicephorus Scleruso
Jorge Apocapes
Nicholas Bryennio
Midfield: Manuel Gabraso
John Malenuso
Isaac Curcuaso
Miguel Aspietes
Michael Palaeologo
Forwards: Jose Taronities
Bardas Phocaso


I like our outlook against both Valanora and Eura, but find it hard to think that we can out play The Holy Empire and win against them. I think I’ll be happy if our Hops walk way with 3 points, but I know Coach Schmidt will not be happy unless they win the entire tournament (yes, highly unlikely).

As for our Hops we are having a nice run so far as we finished 11-2-3 and in second of Group 4. We did have to make it through a playoff game were we faced The Royal Barangay (second in The Holy Empire’s group). We finished behind one of the favorites in our group, Farfadillis, and ahead of group juggernaut, Holy Republican Empire. So we have been tested many times during qualifying and time after time we surprised our critics to come away with a playoff spot and eventual ticket to the big dance. Our tactics are unchanged even though we have a new 23 man roster.

Good luck to all of the teams that have made it this far and I look forward to some excellent matches!

Until next time Brew On! Brew Well Hoptonians!
Ringwald Griffinsmith
HopNation Sports Writer

[Felix]

(OOC: I decided to change the name of the political parties in the elections.)

Unbiased Media In Felix

A Week In Review
By: Steven Smith

This week has been very, very busy for Felixians everywhere, firstly the elections have been called in Felix and Kate Limbaugh of the Moderate Party has won the election by a narrow margin (45% to 44%) to Tamara Van Der Ven's Liberal Party. The other 11% of votes were distributed between the Isolationist Party candidate Robbie McKenna (7%), the National Front candidate Frédéric Chevrolet (3%), and Socialist Party write-in Consuela Garza (1%). Secondly, the fans of SC Volker were greeted to a championship parade led by the players in Volker as the club bus drove around the city of Volker with trophies from both the Felixian Premier League and Copa Félix. Lastly, the draw of the Cup of Harmony occurred last night in the Grand Felixian Convention Center in Santa Maria, Felix a few hours after the draw of the World Cup held in the Equestrian States (btw Felix was drawn to a tough group B, but more on that later). So with that let's recap this busy week.

On Monday the voting centres were opened and people went out to the polls. By 5:00 PM most eastern polls closed and the race for the 400 manned House of Representatives and 150 manned Senate heated up with a three way race for dominance was witnessed by the competing Liberal, Moderate and Socialist parties. What's surprising is the fact the Socialists were competitive this election especially when the Socialist Party wasn't able to field a national candidate for President. In fact, popular Socialist leader Consuela Garza managed to get 1% of votes in the national election just on write in votes. Going back to the Congressional elections the Socialists managed to get 25% of seats the eastern part of Felix could offer while the rest was divided between the National Front, the Liberals, the Moderates and some regional parties (such as the Swedish Nationalist Party). In the center third of Felix, things were pretty much the same expect the Socialists didn't muster that much in the congressional elections only grabbing 3% of seats. Again, the rest were divided between other parties. Lastly in the western part of Felix the Socialists managed to make a base of operations in the form of Cognac as they dominated elections in the biggest city in the western part of Felix. The Socialists managed to take 40% of congressional seats there and the Communist Party managed to take 1% of seats. As per usual the other parties took what was left of that 59% of available seats.

Going to the Presidential election the vote was decided by popular vote and Kate Limbaugh of the Moderate Party won the most votes carrying 45 percent of the electorate. She will be the second woman ever to be elected as President in Felix and she will lead the first non-coalition government in over a 100 years with the Moderates not agreeing to form a coalition with either the Socialist Party or Liberal Party. Kate Limbaugh will be sworn in as President after the Cup of Harmony. In the congressional part of the elections the National Unity Coalition obviously collapsed after two years of temporary unity as the Felixian government reorganized themselves. In the House of Representatives the Liberals maintain a slight lead over their Moderate rivals with the Liberal Party having 123 seats to 120 from the Moderate Party. The Socialist Party managed to nab 105 seats, the Isolationist Party got 33, the National Front got 10 seats, the Communist Party got 6 and 3 seats went to independents. In the Senate the Moderate Party has a slight edge with 45 seats, in second was the Liberal Party with 42 seats and in third the Socialists nabbed 41 seats surprising all political experts in Felix. The last 22 seats were divvied up between the National Front (6 seats), the Isolationist Party (5 seats), Communist Party (3 seats), and regional separatist parties, Altomare based Indipendenza (1 seat), Cato based Nationella Partiet (1 seat), and Indos based Kaji National Congress (1 seat). The other 5 seats were won by independents.

In a change of subject, on Wednesday SC Volker, winners of the first ever Premier League and national cup Copa Félix, paraded their trophies all over Volker in their club bus with thousands of SC Volker fans cheering them on. Albert Baumann, captain of SC Volker, commented on the event saying, "This is the best moment of my life. I love the fans here and I love the season we had. I hope SC Volker can get more than Felixian trophies though, I believe we can compete for ones presented by the UICA!" the clearly jubilant center-back mentioned that SC Volker competing for UICA cups. Which begs the question, will a Felixian club finally win a UICA cup? Or at least a CEdC or Cygnus? I think yes. Last time out Real Santa Maria got a second place finish in the last CEdC, if that isn't a sign of good growth for Felixian club football then I don't know what is. Either way, we'll all find out how we do as the draw of UICA tournaments comes to end and competition football begins.

On Friday Ralph Gunther of the Felixian Football Association co-hosted the Cup of Harmony draw in the Grand Felixian Convention Center in Santa Maria, Felix with Mizuyuki-jin, Yuiko Shirane of the Mizuyuki-jin Football Association. The draw went very well, Nova Hellstrom comments aside, according to my sources. Although the tardiness of the two hosts due to technical difficulties did lead to some early unrest most notability from the representatives from newer participants of the CoH. Meanwhile in the other side of the multiverse the Equestrian States hosted the World Cup draw and overall it was a success just like the CoH draw. Heck, I even heard rumours of a possible merger of leagues between neighbors Sarian and Yttribia!

Felix was drawn to Group B which consists of Brenecia, The Calanian Union, Felix, and Legalese. To be honest I am quite surprised by the draw. We are in a very tricky group compared to ones of the past. Brenecia rose from the dead after a really rough beginning in their World Cup campaign, heck, there were even talks of firing the current manager of the Brenecian national team. But they stuck with her and look where the are now. They are in the World Cup finals after edging the Blouman Empire and Apox in Group 17. So should we be wary of them? Yes and no. The fact they qualified after a bad start should be noticed but lets be honest here. Blouman is a mediocre team and has always been in the middle of the pack in the multiversial stage. And Apox, despite their history has been a slowly declining power in football, rumour has it they are closing their national team program due to this. So is it any shock Brenecia made it to the top? No, they had two easier teams to jump over. But let me be clear, I am not reducing their accomplishment, they did an amazing thing during the qualifiers. My verdict? Felixians should feel confident when facing them but shouldn't be surprised if they pull off a draw. They have that quality to surprise us.

Next up is the Calanian Union (formerly known as the Inevitable Syndicate) which had 32 points in Group 11 finishing second. They went through the playoff and they won. Now they are facing their former Corvidae allies in Felix. What do I think of them? They are a good team that just has crap luck. Do I think Felix will beat them? Yes. But as I was talking to a TCU representative during the WC draw I learnt that we shouldn't be too over confident, the Calanian team is one to respect and that rank won't determine a winner. So let's be quietly confident with this team. Lastly, we have Legalese which finished first in their group. They've been silent which gives me a reason to worry as I don't know what I should expect from them. I predict a draw or a close win but I am not backing that with fact. I have no idea what to expect from them other than the fact they have a high ranking (6th)

Our first opponent in two months will be Brenecia I hope Felix can beat them, they are the lowest rank team but as I mentioned earlier, certainly not the weakest. That's all I got today, I will make a in-depth preview of the Brenecia-Felix game in two months time. See you all in the WC!

In The News:

>> Kate Limbaugh Thanks Felixians Everywhere For Voting In Victory Speech
>> Limbaugh Promises A More Diplomatic Approach To Multiversial Issues
>> The Felixian Handball League Is Founded With 36 Teams In Two Divisions
>> Tamara Van Der Ven Thanks Supporters For Campaign Pledges To Continue To Serve Felix Until After WC
>> Real Santa Maria Owner Rafael Méndez To Buy Polar Islandstates Club FC1. Rangers
>> Mendoya Officially Recognized As A Colony Of Felix Today
>> The Esportivan Union Forms, Felix Applies As Observer State
>> Radio Free Felix Expands To Mendoya

[Saintland]

World Cup 70 Preview: Tournament to begin on Boxing Day

(SP) The 26th of December. The day after Christmas. The day after the day when our Savior Iesus Christus was born 2014 years ago. A day commonly known as Boxing Day. While the Christmas holidays are, traditionally, a team when all sporting competition ceases and the Kingdom spends a week reflecting on the birth of our savior, Boxing Day is the sole exception. That is because Boxing Day is the day when the annual National Boxing Championship is held, a one-day to-the-knockout single elimination tournament to determine who truly is the best boxer in the Kingdom. "I regret to inform everybody that those dastardly Talking Horses have ruined our Christmas holidays this by their diabolical decision to schedule the finals of World Cup 70 during the Christmas holidays. Scheduling an event like the World Cup in the middle of the Week of Rest ordained by the One True God is a grave sin and one for which those talking animals will suffer for eternity! Nonetheless, the Patriarch of St. Petrus, God's Primary Temporal Representative, has received a revelation from God. God wishes for His Kingdom to compete in the World Cup, even if it is held during the holiday season. The Patriarch told me that God was very clear about His wishes in that regard. God was also, apparently, very clear that the nation of the Equestrian States will pay for their sins, although he did not specify how. I can only hope, for their sake, that God will have mercy on them..." - King Petrus XX

The World Cup draw has been held and the Saintland National Soccer Team was drawn into Group D. Their opening match in Group D will be against the 2-time World Cup champions from Vilita, a team currently ranked 5th in the KPB rankings. The Sanctii are ranked 15th. We will refrain from going over Vilita's history in this article, but we encourage those interested to watch Royal Five's new program entitled The Legend of Vilita. Vilita were the champions way back in World Cup 20, but also won World Cup 68 earlier this year. In the recent World Cup qualifying campaign, they went 14-1-1 and won their group easily. However, they were notoriously unable to defeat Mizuyuki. They drew 2-2 at Mizuyuki in the first half of Qualifying before losing 1-3 to those Pagans on home soil. While one might be tempted to dismiss them since their victories in WCC matches during this cycle were against mediocre sides such as Maklohi Vai, Cata Larga and Patistan, Vilita is still a very formidable foe, one whom the Saintland National Team have never defeated. In addition, they defeated both San Jose Guayabal and Yttribia in the Confederations Cup, although neither of those sides can really be called quality opposition. Yttribia is, basically, synonymous with mediocre in the world of international soccer and San Jose Guayabal is a co-host that has only qualified for a single World Cup on their own merit.

But that is enough about Vilita for now, although we should probably mention that the Boxing Day match between Vilita and Saintland will be broadcast on Royal Two, not Royal One, because Royal One will be broadcasting the National Boxing Championship, which will be returning to the traditional bare-knuckle rules this year. The second match of the World Cup for our National Team will be held on December 28th and will be against Mizuyuki, a nation of bizarre pagans who worship a number of false gods and goddesses. While the concept of a female god is laughably preposterous, as is the idea that there is more than one God, the people of Mizuyuki actually believe that there are millions of gods and goddesses out there, none of whom possess the omnipotence of the One True God. This is ridiculous, but we do live in a fallen multiverse that has rejected God and rejected His Truth.

Mizuyuki debuted relatively inauspiciously at the 52nd Baptism of Fire under Ishikawa Haruka, losing their first official WCC match to Tasrailia by a goal to nil margin. They bounced back with 2 wins to move back into contention in BoF 52's Casaran stage, but after draws to Neo-Lemmitania and Brenecia, they ultimately finished 22nd, failing to advance any further. Things started out a little better for them in Qualifying for the 65th World Cup. Their first ever match in World Cup Qualifying was a 1-nil victory at Maklohi Vai. Even at the mid-qual point, they appeared respectable, with 14 points, just 5 back of second place. However, the bottom fell out in the second half of Qualifying and they finished with a mere 24 points, losing more matches than they won. Cassadaigua and the Equestrian States left them out of the Cup of Harrmony and it seemed that Mizuyuki would remain forever irrelevant.

However, following the firing of Haruka and the hiring of Shirakiin Kurumi. Kurumi led Mizuyuki to a title in the Market Cup, a now-defunct minor tournament and continued as the Mizuyuki-jin coach in World Cup 66. Haruka would go on to become the coach of Felix and redeem himself somewhat by turning Felix into a team that is actually pretty good, even if they are mainly famous for losing to the Holy Republicans over and over again. Meanwhile, Kurumi made a name for herself by leading Felix on a miraculous run in World Cup 66 Qualifying. First off, Mizuyuki lucked out with an extremely soft draw, as they drew a group consisting of Jeruselem, Ossidiacqua and 3 minnows. Then, they went 4-1-0 in the first half of Qualifying, with their only blemish being a draw at Jeruselem. Jeruselem, of course, should not be confused for the now-destroyed Holy City that was home to God's Temple in ancient times. Despite managing just 7 points in the second half of Qualifying, Mizuyuki still managed to finish atop that group as Jeruselem and Ossidiacqua both suffered from a chronic inability to win close matches. This put this lightly-regarded side into World Cup 66, where they drew a weak group consisting of the Arch-Heretics, the Talking Horses and Turori. Still, after managing just 2 draws in 3 matches, Mizuyuki was out of the World Cup with a last place finish.

Mizuyuki's group in World Cup 67 Qualifying is probably the most famous World Cup Qualifying group in the history of the tournament, with the possible exception of the group that spawned Spaamgate. The Equestrian States, being the corrupt nation that they are, decided to draw just about every team that was regarded as up-and-coming at that time into the same group, along with the always formidable Pasarga and the respectable West Angola. The result was an absolute nightmare of a group. Mizuyuki rose to the occasion, however, opening with victories against Felix and West Angola. Then, they ran into the Republicans and were defeated. However, the Mizuyuki-jin bounced back, defeating Vettrera and 2 minnows before drawing The Sarian and Pasarga to finish the first half in second place, a mere point behind Felix. After a victory over Felix to open the second half, they seized the group lead. This time around, they did not miss a beat in the second half, with only a draw against the Republicans and a meaningless loss to an already eliminated Pasarga squad, after they had already clinched first place in the group. They would follow this up with their first ever World Cup proper victory, a 2 goals to 1 victory over Andossa Se Mitrin Vega in Cassadaigua. A draw with Kinitaria put them in control of their own destiny going into the final matchday against Turori, but Turori embarrassed them by a 4 goals to nil margin and seized the spot in the Round of 16.

While it seemed like Mizuyuki were on the verge of becoming a fixture in the World Cup Finals, that would not happen. While they finished a respectable second in their World Cup 68 Qualifying group with an 11-1-2 record against mediocre competition, World Cup 68 was the World Cup where 72 teams advanced to the playoffs for a shot at qualification. Everything was seemingly going their way, as they knocked off Kalumba in the first round, but they would draw Osarius in the second round. After both legs ended with 3-2 scorelines, in favor of the visiting side, Osarius would score 2 goals in extra time to claim the spot in the World Cup and eliminate Mizuyuki from the World Cup. Even though the Cup of Harmony was co-hosted by Kazamatsuri, a semi-autonomous territory of Mizuyuki, they were not invited and had to watch. Their following World Cup Qualifying attempt also ended in failure after they started by winning their first 5 matches. A loss to the Northern Sunrise Islands was the first sign of things to come, as a squad that won 6 of their first 7 matches managed a mere 10 points in the second half of World Cup 69 Qualifying and finished third, a point back of HopNation. This time, however, they managed to secure an invite to their first ever Cup of Harmony and ended up in a group with Schottia, Carialus and HopNation. In other words, HopNation was their only serious competition in the CoH group stage. They would open the tournament with a whimper, drawing 3-3 with HopNation before being stunned 5-2 by Schottia. However, a narrow victory over Carialus earned them a spot in the Round of 16. There, they played Yttribia to a 1-1 draw in regulation before each side scored a goal in extra time. On penalties, the Mizuyuki-jin side prevailed, eliminating the hosts from their own Cup of Harmony. A 3-nil victory over Kiryu-shi placed them in the semi-finals, where they fell to Nephara. In the consolation match, they obtained 3rd place by defeating an Arch-Heretical team that was intentionally trying to lose, something that they were absolutely terrible at. However, beating an opponent that is intentionally trying to lose isn't very impressive, even if said opponent is terrible at actually losing on purpose.

The strong performance at the Cup of Harmony likely saved the job of their long-time manager Kurumi. That turned out to be fortuitous for them, as they bounced back with a vengeance in this World Cup. Although they managed to lose twice to Maklohi Vai, they finished with 6-1-1 records in both the first and second halves of Qualifying and qualified automatically as the second-best runner-up. They also got the better of Vilita, with a win and a draw against the legendary 2-time World Cup champions. This Mizuyuki team is certainly no fluke qualifier, even if they are only ranked 31st in the current KPB rankings.

If the World Cup was a baseball tournament, our 3rd opponent, Super-Llamaland, would be a formidable opponent. However, this is a soccer tournament. Super-Llamaland made their international soccer debut at the 49th Baptism of Fire, managed by Bryan Ferguson. At that tournament, they went 3-1-1 in the group stage, losing to Falcania and drawing against Gaveo. Of the 3 teams they beat, the most notable was Maklohi Vai, who were absolutely dreadful at that time, finishing with a single point in the BoF and going on to suffer through a nightmarish World Cup Qualifying debut. Super-Llamaland advanced to the Round of 16 at the BoF, where they would fall to Kintratar. However, in spite of the respectable performance in the BoF, Super-Llamaland was absolutely atrocious in World Cup 62 Qualifying. Of their first 7 matches, they lost 6, ultimately finishing with a 3-1-10 record, only finishing ahead of the Jahistic Unified Republic of Unolia, which was even worse at 0-1-13. Nor was their group particularly formidable. Bears Armed was the only team in that group, other than Llamaland, that most of our readers would be familiar with and a team that would go on to finish second at that World Cup. Super-Llamaland was such a joke that they were not even seriously considered by the legendary nations of Wight and the New Montreal States for a Cup of Harmony invite.

If their first World Cup Qualifying campaign was humiliating for the Llamas, their second started out on a more positive note. They would win their first 2 matches, including an upset over Jedi8246. At the mid-way point, they had won 6 out of 9 matches, including an impressive victory over Carmadin, and were in contention for a spot in World Cup 63. However, they collapsed down the stretch with a 3-2-4 record the second time through and finished 7th in a very competitive group that also featured Darmen and Jeruselem. This was good enough for a Cup of Harmony invite. However, after a 1 goal loss and a draw against Kaledor, the bottom fell out. Their 3rd match was a 3 goals to nil defeat against Ko-oren and their final match of the Cup of Harmony was a humiliating 10 goals to nil defeat against the New Montreal States, one of the most lopsided defeats in the history of WCC competition. The Saintland Press is unable to confirm at this time if it is, in fact, the worst defeat any nation has ever suffered in a WCC-sanctioned match, but we are unaware of any more lopsided matches at the international level. (OOC: Personally, I doubt if anybody ever lost in a more lopsided fashion. IIRC, SQIS only has 11 attacks.)

After being humiliated at the Cup of Harmony, the Llamas returned to be humiliated yet again in World Cup 64 Qualifying. How Bryan Ferguson maintained his job through his team's dreadful performances may be a mystery, but what is not a mystery is the fact that Super-Llamaland opened World Cup 64 Qualifying with defeats in their first 2 matches and never really turned it around, finishing 2-2-5 in the first half of Qualifying and 3-1-5 in the second half, to finish a far-more distant 7th in their group. This group featured The Babbage Islands, then the team widely regarded as the best in the world, even though they never managed to win a World Cup. Astograth was also part of that group, but Mashiki would finish second and earn a berth in the playoffs. Super-Llamaland's regression saw them left out of the Esportivan Cup of Harmony altogether, but they returned for the following World Cup and were, seemingly, back to their World Cup 63 form. A 5-1-3 first half in a tough group that included a Taeshan team that was particuarly good at that time, the always challenging Sargossa and the Armed Bears, a poor bear's version of Bears Armed, was enough for third place. This time, the Llamas would go 4-3-2 in the second half and actually finish in third place.

That was good enough for a Cup of Harmony invite and they were drawn into Group F. They started out with a scoreless draw against Punum before securing a goal to nil victory over a distracted Sanctii team on a goal right before halftime by Bobby Crosby. A 5 goals to 2 victory against Quebec put them into the Round of 16, even after they were vanquished by Svengarda in the final match of the group stage. However, their surprising Cup of Harmony run ended with a 3 goals to 2 defeat to Barunia and Super-Llamaland, once again, failed to win a trophy. The following World Cup Qualifying campaign was the first time Super-Llamaland would ever seriously contend for a spot in the World Cup. Under the unique World Cup 66 format, they drew perennial Group Stage fixtures Gyatso-Kai, a nation more famous for their hockey prowess, and they drew an up-and-coming Republican side. However, they would be eliminated on the penultimate matchday and would finish second with a 6-2-2 record. They were invited to the Cup of Harmony by the Republicans and managed a win and a draw in their first 2 matches before losing their next 2 matches and failing to advance out of the group stage.

After the 4th matchday of World Cup 67 Qualifying, it looked like the Llamas were regressing yet again. They were 2-0-2 and had just lost 8 goals to 2 against Valanora. However, they won 3 out of their next 4 matches and drew the other to make it to third place in their group at the midway point. Then, 4 days later, they did the unthinkable and managed to stun Valanora by a 2 goals to 1 margin in Valanora. They had turned it around. However, after they lost to HorusLand on the following matchday, it once again appeared that they were out of the running. Brenecia had 2 more points, but also had another match still to play. Then, Kitsunia-Deese stunned Brenecia on Super-Llamaland's bye day. A matchday later, Brenecia had lost to Valanora and Super-Llamaland were in second place in their group by a point with 2 matches to go. The following matchday was a historic one for the Llamas. Brenecia lost to HorusLand while the Llamas routed their old BoF nemesis Kintratar by a 4 goals to 1 margin. Super-Llamaland had qualified for the playoffs. It mattered not that Brenecia beat them on the final matchday, for Super-Llamaland had already clinched a playoff berth. Then, they beat Kandorith 2 goals to 1 in the first leg. Yet, Kandorith would win the second leg 1 goal to nil and advance on the away goals rule. Super-Llamaland secured one of the 24 places in the Vanoran Cup of Harmony and both of their group stage matches ended with the score at 2 goals to nil. The Llamas lost to Legalese, but they defeated the Sarian and advanced to face the Royal Barangay, whom they beat 3 goals to nil. Against Pasarga, however, their Cup of Harmony came to an ignominious end. Pasarga would, ultimately, win the match by a 7 goals to nil margin, a rout reminiscent of the 10-nil rout that ended their first Cup of Harmony.

Fortunately for Super-Llamaland, this defeat was not as disastrous as the 10 to nil defeat had been. Bryan Ferguson's side started their 7th World Cup Qualifying attempt with a 5-1-1 record in the first half, good enough to all but lock up a playoff berth by the middle of qualifying. They were even more dominant in the second half, going 6-1-0, including a draw against Osarius. That included victories over formidable Sandwich Territories and HopNation sides. Super-Llamaland finished atop the group, even ahead of Osarius. This earned them a playoff matchup with the so-called "Holy" Empire. They lost both legs, with the final aggregate score being 7-4, in favor of the Heretical Empire. However, as a group winner, they had a second chance at qualification and took full advantage of it. A 2-1 victory at Taeshan allowed them to advance to the World Cup with a 1-1 draw in the home leg. Super-Llamaland had secured a spot in the World Cup for the first time ever. Although they lost, as expected, to Audioslavia and the Heretical Empire, they managed an upset victory over the Northern Sunrise Islands, depriving them of an opportunity to advance to the Round of 16. However, they started World Cup 69 Qualifying on the wrong foot, losing to Chiata and Ceni in their first 2 matches. Although they would win 4 straight matches, including a match against Felix, to finish a respectable 5-0-2 in the first half, that was a sign of things to come. Another loss to Chiata and a draw against Ceni started their second half on the wrong foot, but disaster struck when they lost 3 to 2 against the mediocre Quakmybush. 2 matchdays later, they fell to Felix and they would ultimately finish just 8-1-5, a distant third behind Chiata and Felix. After receiving no Cup of Harmony invite, their World Cup cycle was over.

That was enough for the Llamas to, finally, force out long-term manager Bryan Ferguson and bring in Bogdan Antonescu, the former coach of Furellum's dominant youth sides. Super-Llamaland started out this World Cup cycle with 7 consecutive victories, including a win against Cosumar, before falling to Osarius. However, they struggled down the stretch, going just 4-1-3 down the stretch, including losses against Cosumar, HorusLand and Osarius again, as well as an embarassing draw against Ancharmunn. In the end, Cosumar suffered late draws to HorusLand and the Vakolicci before losing to Osarius on the last matchday. Super-Llamaland would defeat Greater Watford 3-1 on aggregate in the playoffs, winning both legs, and qualify for World Cup 70. They enter with the 39th ranking in the current KPBs and are widely expected to finish last in this group. Still, the Llamas can't be counted out. Their match against the National Team will be played on December 30th.

If our National Team can survive the group stage, the odds appear favorable for us in the knockout rounds. While the defending champions from the Heretical Empire were placed in Group C, the 3 times widely regarded as the favorites to win this World Cup were all drawn in San Jose Guayabal. In all likelihood, either Audioslavia, reigning AOCAF champions Osarius or reigning Rushmori champions Polar Islandstates will advance out of San Jose Guayabal. On the Equestrian States side, Vilita are probably the favorites, given the poor form of Legalese and the Heretical Empire. After those 3, there are no other top 10 sides on this half of the draw. The next highest ranked team is Felix, followed by Nephara and then the Sanctii. Valanora, who have struggled of late, and World Cup 66 champions Eura are also on this side of the draw, but few would argue that the Guayabalense side of the draw was stronger. If things go in our favor, maybe the World Cup will come to Saintland, afterall. Prince Andreas will certainly be more determined than ever to bring home the World Cup, especially after his brother, our King, set a World Cup as the price to retain his captaincy after this World Cup. But, there is a long way to go before there can be any talk of winning the World Cup.

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Speech by Patriarch Nicolaus V

Hello to all of the Faithful watching my speech around the Kingdom and around the multiverse. Hello, as well, to those who have yet to have that Via Damascus moment yet. I pray that you may yet see the Light of God's Truth and embrace it, for that is the only way that you can set yourself free from your Bondage to Satanas. I know there are many people around the multiverse who get upset whenever they hear that, but if you are honest with yourself, the only reason why you get upset is because you know that it is the Truth and are afraid to admit it. Yet, temporal riches, temporal pleasure and temporal popularity are fleeting. The only lasting riches and the only lasting pleasure comes through your acceptance of God's Grace.

Now, if I may digress for a moment, I wish to tell a story as Christmas Day approaches. This story is about a young maiden named Maria, who lived over 2 thousand years ago. Now, Maria was a beautiful maiden. Most importantly, she was every bit as beautiful on the inside, for Maria was pure. She was a virgin, betrothed to a carpenter named Josephus. Their situation, while unusual in today's sinful age, was not that unusual in past centuries, for the 2 of them truly loved one another.

What made this girl Maria special was the important role that she was pre-destined to play by the Lord, our God. For, you see, God needed a way to bring his son Iesus into our multiverse. Maria was chosen by God to bring Iesus into being, in our world, for God desired to perform a miracle by permitting a virgin to give birth. Now, Maria became pregnant with the baby Iesus, even though her purity was still intact. Now, Maria married Josephus shortly thereafter and they soon realized that she was pregnant even though she was still a virgin. Several months later, as she prepared to give birth to her son Iesus, the evil king decided to hold a Census and required everybody to travel to the city of their ancestors in order to be counted. While Maria and Josephus lived in the city of Nazareth, Josephus's ancestral homeland was Bethlehem. Therefore, Josephus and Maria had to travel, in the month of December, to Bethlehem.

Upon their arrival in Bethlehem, they were unable to find a place to stay. Finally, one kind motel owner offered them the use of a manger. It was in this manger where Maria gave birth to the baby Iesus. Now, God had placed new stars in the sky. 3 wise men noticed these new stars and, being wise enough to recognize a miracle when they saw one, followed the stars to the city of Bethlehem, where they found the manger where the baby Iesus had been born. They gave lavish gifts to the new-born Son of God. Unfortunately, the wicked king of that land, upon hearing word of the birth of the new "King" of God's People, decided that Iesus was a threat to his throne. This evil king, who is now burning in the fires of Infernus where he will remain for eternity, ordered the murder of every child under the age of 2 in Bethlehem. Maria and Josephus were fore-warned by God and fled to a nearby kingdom for a while before returning home to Nazareth.

To make a long story short, Iesus grew up, preached God's Message, established God's Church and would be murdered on a cross by wicked unbelievers. In so doing, he fulfilled the prophecy of a Messiah and died for the sins of everybody listening to the sound of my voice right now. He even died for the sins of those who are not listening to my voice right now. If you believe in Him and join His True Church, you too can be forgiven for your sins and can be born anew in the Holy Ghost. Now, there are undoubtedly many people out there who are too proud to admit that they have sinned, but there is no one, except for Iesus Christus, who is without sin. I urge everybody who can hear my voice to give your soul to Iesus Christus right now and attend your local True Church. If you do not have a local True Church, visit Truth.ecc.sanctvs and request a local chapter of the True Church today!

However, that isn't the reason why I decided to speak tonight. In fact, I have an important announcement to make. For, you see, I have received a revelation from God clarifying Church teaching on a matter that is currently a grey area. The matter of which I am speaking is the matter of the participation of women in sport. While temporal authorities may establish more stringent regulations on the participation of the fairer sex in competitive sports, God has revealed to me that women may participate in sports and remain in good standing with God. However, God also revealed to me that it is a sin for woman to compete against man in sport, with just a handful of exceptions.

In the past, many men and women of God erroneously believed that competitive sports were inappropriate for women. Well, God has spoken and they were in error. However, the temporal authorities may, if they wish, continue to bar Godly ladies from participating in competitive sports. Just to be clear on this matter, however, God has clearly stated that it is a sin for woman to compete against man and therefore the True Church encourages temporal authorities around the multiverse to establish separate competitions for men and women, so that women may participate in competitive sports without committing a sin.

I wish everybody around the multiverse a Merry Christmas! May God Bless you and may you embrace God's Truth!

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Feministvs Sanctvsterra is Back

(SP) The notorious international terrorist organization Feministvs Sanctvsterra has re-emerged. After holding up a cryptic sign during a blasphemous performance at the recent WorldVision singing contest in Yttribia, a Feministvs Sanctvsterra terrorist made her presence felt at the World Cup Draw yesterday, revealing a banner that has confirmed what many feared: Feministvs Sanctvsterra lives. The news that the group did not met its demise at the hands of the Holy Republican military earlier this year is most unwelcome. What makes this news even worse is the timing. This year, Feministvs Sanctvsterra has cast a serious black cloud over the Christmas holidays. "The news of the re-emergence of Feministvs Sanctvsterra is concerning. As your King, I want to make it clear that I will not negotiate with these terrorists. However, I will permit any Feministvs Sanctvsterra member whose conscience has gotten the better of her to turn herself in. Feministvs Sanctvsterra terrorists who turn themselves in will only be sentenced to a well-deserved public flogging in the square of their home community, rather than the lengthy prison sentences that will be dealt out to any Feministvs Sanctvsterra terrorists who are captured by authorities. Should any Feministvs Sanctvsterra member or sympathizer commit or attempt, that individual will be executed in the most severe manner permissible for their sex. Therefore, any male Feministvs Sanctvsterra sympathizer who commits murder will be hung, drawn and quartered while any murderous harlot will be burned at the stake. I urge all Godly nations to be on high alert and to deal with Feministvs Sanctvsterra and any copycat organizations that may emerge in the same manner. Only through a united front and a uniform standard of justice may we deal with this un-Godly menace once and for all!" - King Petrus XX

Feministvs Sanctvsterra is the terrorist organization that emerged on the scene 2 years ago by blockading the streets of St. Paulus on a Sunday morning. This prevented the people of the city from making it to Church on time on that morning and led to numerous arrests. The group became a menace for around a year and a half, infamously entering a number of international sports competitions masquerading as the Sanctii National Team for that sport. Their most successful sport was korfball, as they dominated the World Korfball Classic until that event's demise. Feministvs Sanctvsterra also staged numerous pitch invasions and engaged in hacking.

However, the most dastardly deeds of this terrorist organization that is likely headed by Satanas himself were the numerous assassinations that they carried out. The first of these assassinations occurred at the World Bowl XXII Championship Game, as Cassadaigua celebrated their World Bowl championship. A Feministvs Sanctvsterra terrorist fired a bullet into King Paulus XV's luxury box at the Gem of the Oceans Stadium in Republica, killing our King. Months later, after they assassinated Consul Venicio Piazza of the nation then known as the Federation of Free Republics and attempted to assassinate Senator Samuel Izmailov, who would go on to finish second to Consul Kulseth in the Republican election, their assassin was captured by Republican authorities and confessed to her crimes. Eventually, she would be deported to our Kingdom, where she was burned at the stake under the orders of King Paulus XV. The Republican military sprang into action and used their might to hunt down Feministvs Sanctvsterra members. They were so successful that we had thought, until recently, that Feministvs Sanctvsterra had been eliminated.

Sadly, this is not the case. Feministvs Sanctvsterra still exists. Even more concerning is the likelihood that they have used these past few months of lying low to rebuild their strength. Leaks from Holy Republican intelligence this morning confirmed the worst of our fears. It seems that Feministvs Sanctvsterra is now stronger than ever and committed to the destruction of the Patriarch, of Godly Government throughout the multiverse and of the True Church itself. Now more than ever, it is critical that we stand against Feministvs Sanctvsterra. It is critical that we fight for God's Truth and do whatever we can to bring the Enemies of God to justice.

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Sporting World

Rumor: Saintland's King Petrus XX will skip World Bowl XXV if it is held in the Equestrian States
By: Eric Furst

The World Bowl Assembly are preparing to cast a vote to determine the host of the upcoming 25th World Bowl. However, if the bid from the Equestrian States manages to be accepted by the Assembly, then rumor has it that one of the finest players in international football will skip the next World Bowl. King Petrus XX, formerly known as Prince Petrus, is the quarterback of the Saintland National Gridiron Team (yes, they refer to football as "Gridiron") and the reigning King of Saintland. However, he also loathes the Equestrian States more than any other nation in the multiverse.

The King's hatred of the Equestrian States reportedly stems from the infamous Mud Bowl game. The Equestrian States, furious because the Sanctii government does not engage in weather control witchcraft, blamed the condition of the field on the Sanctii captain and his father, the King. The allegations spread by the Equestrian States have been repeatedly debunked. Despite this, the government of the Equestrian States and most of the talking ponies that live there still continue to believe in fantastical conspiracy theories regarding this incident.

The proposed Equestrian State bid is most notable for its unique format, which consists of 2 group stages. Both group stages will consist of groups of 4 playing a double round-robin schedule. The first group stage will be drawn normally. However, the draw for the second group stage will be seeded based upon the results of the first group stage. After both group stages, all teams will be placed into a single table, much as is done in a Holy-Casaran format tournament and said table will be used to determine the 16 teams to advance to the knockout rounds. The rule prohibiting teams from being eliminated when they have the same record as the 16th best team would, also, be in effect, necessitating playoffs in the likely event that the 16th and 17th best team finish with the same record.

I have very reliable sources indicating that the King of Saintland is a fan of the format, but that he feels that the Equestrian States are absolutely unfit to host a tournament (OOC: ICly only, of course.). The King is, reportedly, upset that he didn't think of the format first. Even though he may have finally attained his revenge against the Equestrian States en route to leading Saintland to the title at World Bowl XXIV, King Petrus XX has certainly not forgiven the Equestrian States. The statements made by the Princess of the Equestrian States at the World Cup draw to Prince Andreas, regarding the Mud Bowl, have reportedly infuriated the King even more.

The Equestrian States does not recognize the Sanctii government, but indications are that the Sanctii National Team would be permitted to compete at the World Bowl, as they will be permitted to compete in the current World Cup. However, my sources indicate that King Petrus XX does not feel that the Equestrian States is a safe place to play. My sources report that the King is against a boycott however and that he would send some kind of Sanctii National Team, even if the Equestrian States end up hosting the World Bowl. However, my sources indicate that the King will not permit athletes from his nation to travel to Gregoryisgodistan under any circumstances.

The King of Saintland is widely regarded as one of the most dynamic players in the history of the World Bowl. Over the past 3 World Bowls, he has been especially dominant and his Sanctii National Team have won all but 2 of their games. While there have been dual-threat quarterbacks before, none has been as dominant in all facets of the game as King Petrus. His phenomenal talent, combined with the rule changes implemented by his father, King Paulus XV, for World Bowl XXII (changes which the Equestrian States is proposing to reverse, at least for the upcoming 25th World Bowl), have combined to make the Sanctii King an absolutely dominant force over the past year. Should he choose to stay home, then the Sanctii team would still be considered one of the favorites to win the World Bowl, but they would have to be carried by their underrated defense and their stable of talented running backs. In the meantime, King Petrus XX will be competing at the X Winter Olympics in the Figure Skating events, where he will be skating with his wife, Queen Veronica. The 2 of them hope to win 3 gold medals at the upcoming Baseton Olympics, but most observers are skeptical of their ability to do so.

Senator Emeritus Hillarion Vasin, the current Vice President of the World Bowl Assembly declined a request for comment.

Eric Furst is a lifelong football fan. Born in Falkamore, Eric played the sport for his high school. A backup fullback that rarely made it off the bench, Eric was not offered the chance to play at any college or university. He decided to go to the University of Nejax and major in sports journalism. Eric unsuccessfully attempted to walk-on to the Nejax Horns, but was unable to make the team. Instead, he reported on the team for the University's newspaper. Now, he is a football beat reporter for Sporting World.

---

feministvs.co.republica

Why We Fight: The Feministvs Sanctsvsterra Manifesto

Your Heroines first emerged on the scene nearly 2 years ago, fighting the good fight against the Patriarchy and against those that enable the Patriarchy to continue its brutal subjugation of womyn. However, throughout the past 2 years, we have never stated our beliefs outright. This has permitted the Patriarchy's numerous agents to spread hate and lie about what we believe in. Well, we say NO MORE! We at Feministvs Sanctvsterra have decided that it is time to tell you what we believe, so that you may know the truth, not the lies spread by the Church of Lies. We would not normally do this, but we face an enemy that is committed to the absolute destruction of womyn's rights around the multiverse and to the destruction of our organization, as well as every single one of our members. We cannot stay silent in the face of such hate! We will stand up and say what we stand for, in hopes that decent womyn and, yes, even some decent men will come to our aid and join us in our fight to Smash the Patriarchy, once and for all.

First off, we need to explain what the Patriarchy is. Contrary to the claims spread by the False Church and their numerous minions, the term "Patriarchy" does not, merely, refer to the man who styles himself "Patriarch Nicolaus V" or to the irredeemably misogynistic organization that he heads. While they are part of the Patriarchy, the Patriarchy extends beyond them. In fact, the term "Patriarchy" refers to any social system that oppresses womyn. This includes any elements of society that perpetuate the myth that men are superior to womyn or that men should dominate womyn. Because of the existence of Patriarchy, claims by misogynistic right-wing assholes (MRAs) that "sexism hurts men too" are not just laughable, but flat out impossible. It is impossible for a Patriarchal society to discriminate against men, so any claim that something called "misandry" exists is a flat-out lie.

Now, in the nation currently known as the "Kingdom of Saintland," Patriarchy takes the form of an oppressive theocratic regime that brutally oppresses womyn by denying our most fundamental rights. Feministvs Sanctvsterra was founded in a nation where it is illegal for womyn to have a career, to compete against men in sports, to leave an abusive relationship or even to walk around in public with our heads uncovered! We come from a culture where it is perfectly legal for men to emotionally abuse us and exploit us. We come from a culture where marriage is not a choice. We come from a culture that not only permits husbands to beat us, but actually encourages it! Yet, we are Strong Independent Womyn who are unbroken despite all that the Patriarchy has put us through! We refuse to submit to the Patriarchy. We will not obey men!

Indeed, it is often said that well-behaved womyn don't make history and don't change the multiverse for the better. That is almost certainly true, so we at Feministvs Sanctvsterra are NOT here to be "good girls" and win the approval of some Patriarchs. No, we desire the destruction of the Patriarchy, not just in our nation of origin and in the nations that have become enslaved to the Church of Lies, but in all nations around the multiverse. We recognize that Patriarchy is a problem that is prevalent in every nation in the multiverse and we will do everything that we can to end the Patriarchy everywhere. Only then can womyn and girls everywhere take our rightful place atop the societal hierarchy...

[Ko-oren]

Erik was in office for a little over two weeks now. Not much had happened at or around the Ko-orenite NT training facilities: the 22 players stayed there in preparation for the tournament, association bigwigs were busy marketing the national team to those areas that had to go without World Cup football this time, and the coaching staff was occupied with making sure that they came up with the best possible plan for conquering the three upcoming opponents. Ko-oren had been unlucky but lucky during the draw: Erik Koning represented the Dragonflies during the draw, barely visible but still present. He was accompanied by some faceless executives from the association, but even they showed more emotion following the draw. Nevertheless, the head coach was made to respond in front of the camera to say a few words about how he thought Ko-oren's chances were. His answer was short, concise, and everything but to the point. "I think we make a good chance, but so do the other three." The other three being Kandorith, the Royal Kingdom nearby, and Audioslavia.

Shortly after returning in Ko-oren, he declared that the 22 players were to stay at the training facilities until the World Cup started, and he retreated to his office for most of the day while he had his assistants take care of business outside. Erik's days consisted mainly of talking to the association honchos, foreign association honchos, club trainers and, if possible, catch some of the training. He did have his assistants draw up progress reports and scouting reports - which were in the corner of the office, collecting dust. The layer of dust was impressive, given that he only took office two weeks ago.

In a moment of not conferencing, he walked over to that corner of the room and took out the first report. He then remembered why he appointed all these people: they don't like words that much. Some of them do, but they remembered that he] didn't like words that much. This resulted in only a small pile of reports, all consisting of a front page with at best one or two more pages of material. He grabbed the top one and tossed it on his desk. It read "Front 5 - Offence - Yekaterina Nikitin". He looked at the next file, seemed to be lost in thought for just a second, and then also threw that file onto the Offense file. This second file read "Back 5 - Defence - Guillaume Riou". Erik expected a third file with the same layout, for goalkeepers, but thankfully Kwang-Sun didn't add to his reading list with a goalkeeper file. Enshadilsa was guarding the goal after all, and there was very little that could change that.

Erik walked back slowly to his desk, not looking forward to all the reading he had to do. He sat down, sighed, and picked up all four pages. He separated the actual material from the front pages, which he crumpled up and threw in the garbage bin in the style of Sijbrand Voorhorst for the Valkenzijl Scouts who made a particularly tricky shot in yesterday's game against Aminey Bay (101-79 win for Valkenzijl, which was probably why Erik was in a good enough mood to pick up the scouting and progress reports in the first place). Now he only had the remaining two pages, one for offence and one for defence. The first paper basically read 'I'm trying to capitalise on the 6-2 win over Starblaydia, as our attack was stellar that evening' and 'just keep Ceindrych and Henrique in charge of distributing the ball, Violet and Esolywend in charge of getting it to a striker and Narantuyaa in charge of scoring'. That was not everything: Yekaterina included a small table of who she liked best in which position, and which players to utilise against what kind of defence: play opportunistically and look for a gap in Audioslavias defence while not overcommitting, so field Ceindrych, Henrique, Esolywend, Violet or Emeline and then Narantuyaa or Audrey. Against a very aggressive team like Kandorith, play with a more daring front five with Ceindrych or Henrique paired with Hisahito, and then Violet, Esolywend and Narantuyaa. Lastly, against our rivals in Quebec, it's best to just keep to the basic plan as that seems to work 90% of the time. The other sheet of paper discussed the back five: this paper had very few words on it. 'Never fix what ain't broken: Timon-Katanmak-Katherine-Páll-Nanami, or sub Shi for Páll if you feel like' was the bottom line of the Defence report.

A much thicker report was still in the corner of the room: the Scouting Reports, by Vernon Addington. He liked words, and that made Erik dislike him. He found that assistants were in charge of implementing the scouting reports in daily training, and he took the bulky document to hand it over to Yekaterina or Guillaume. Before he even left the office, he was called over by a person in a suit for the next discussion.

[The Inevitable Syndicate]

Sports :: World Cup 70 :: Finals
Tags: Atlantian Oceania, Calanian Union, World Cup 70, Felix, Legalese, Brenecia
Group B: B is for... Bother?
Calanian Union Faces Tough Group in World Cup 70 Finals

8th June 2194

by Harvey Harding

---

Canterlot, EQUESTRIAN STATES---- Last night, the group draw for the 70th World Cup Finals was held, and The Calanian Union finally found out who they would face in the next stage of the tournament. Of course, getting here was tricky enough, as the Union had to fight through the playoffs last year, beating Electrum in a home-and-away series in two locations named Centralis to clinch a well-deserved spot among 31 other nations. Several giants of the sporting world have made it here, but there have also been some upsets - our purple neighbours, Starblaydia, were unable to make it after playing a tough set of games against Sargossa, resulting in a 5-3 aggregate score to the Corsairs and sealing the Starblaydi team's fate. Many of those Starblaydi fans have taken to supporting the Union for the duration of the finals, and the group of purple-clad excited fans is sure to boost morale for the Calanian team. Apox is another nation that failed to qualify, and their poor performance has put the fate of the entire national team into stormy waters. Their entry to the next cup is uncertain.

But it's not all bad news - we're here, and we've been drawn into a lovely group full of competent teams that look like they could crush the national team if they don't bring their A game to every single match. The Calanian Union have been drawn into Group B, against the following...

Our first opponents will be Legalese, currently the 6th ranked team in the world due to an impressive qualifying performance last year, in which they topped Group 8 with 39 points, twelve wins, and a single loss. As the first pot seed, the Legal Eagles will be looking to do everything they can to top the group, but hopefully we can scupper their plans and look to build our own momentum on Matchday 1. The Leaglese side is one that most Calanians know well, with many of the Legalite stars coming from home clubs that play in the LigAnaia. Their effective use of the 4-4-2 diamond formation, which is favoured by the Union's youth squads, can be tricky to break past, especially with Cyrus Damhan leading the charge in the midfield. Manager Ben Gammal seems to be on point, too, unlike Gerald Montier who seems to constantly have problems with both the squad and the media these days.

After beating (or being beaten by) Legalese, we'll then be facing Felix. A nation with a history that entwines our own, Felix's national team is a strong squad that has recently seen a rise in performance and also popularity, scoring many more fans in other nations. The Felixian team's greatest asset might just be packaged in the form of Kiki Nuremberg, 1830 Cathair's sharp-eyed goalkeeper who has caused problems for Calanians as well as many others in the LigAnaia. Felix had a fantastic qualifers as well, topping Group 7 with 38 points, twelve wins, and two losses. While not quite as polished as the Legalite side, I'd say Felix are going to be a larger challenge, especially if they've got some fight in them after coming away from their first game with a win. This will probably be the key game in the group stage, and will set the scene for the final Matchday. If the Union can't score a win here, or at least a draw, we're going to have a very tough time passing through at all.

The final match will be against Brenecia. This will be the sixth time that the Calanian Union (formerly The Inevitable Syndicate) is facing the team, and hopefully it will be the sixth time that we come away undefeated. We've tied, once. I hope that after the game, that record will still be intact, but the attitude that the Brenecians have surrounding them does scare me a little. The cynicism, the dry humour, the overwhelming feeling that they're not getting anywhere in this qualifers... I like that about them, and it echoes the feelings that go through every football fan's mind sometimes. Or all the time, if you've got a terrible national team like Audioslavia does. So I think that we simply can't let our guard down in this game against Brenecia, unless we want to get 360 no-scoped with our trousers down while mum gets the camera. One thing's for sure, Brenecia will do all they can to make sure we get #rekt.

And if we do get #rekt, at least we'll have a good time doing it. Three games separate the Calanian Union from the true track to getting that trophy, and I can't think of anyone on the national team that isn't going to try their absolute hardest to get it. Those three games are against some of our toughest opponents yet, and one wrong move could cost us the entire group stage. I wouldn't want to be the person that makes that wrong move - could you imagine the media frenzy? Luckily, I don't work for the FMF...

In Other News...
> Bus Crash Revealed to be Caused by Dangerous Driver
> Street Racing Ring Shut Down in Kurtz
> Union Government Criticises Corvidae Film

---

[Pasarga]

Torgos Tribune ~ Where In The World Are The Wanderers?

San José Guayabal, a nation which may as well be synonymous with the middle of nowhere for most of Pasarga's citizens. Yet this is where the national football team has found themselves after the Qualifying process, settled in nicely as the 8th best team in the world according to the WCC rankings. While the qualifying was not overly impressive for the Wanderer's now lofty expectations, qualification to the Finals themselves was never truly in doubt despite the occasional hiccup by the squad. What is left with now is what the squad will do with the opportunity presented before them, as the draw has been overly kind to our side, in such a heft manner that it would truly be a failure should the squad not find themselves in the knockout rounds.

This is a team full of experience, a bit long in the tooth according to the skeptics, with the majority of the squad retained from the those that made the foray into the knockouts two years ago. It is a last hurrah for many of the current squad, part of the extended "Golden Generation" of Pasargan football. What was thought to be over six years ago, has been extended into two more cups, thanks in large part to efforts by Tobias Möller, the striker who has single handedly raised the profile of Pasarga football both domestically and abroad to such a point where the Wanderers are indeed among the power few. Their rise could not however come without the fall of some established names however, with Starblaydia, Valanora, Bears Armed, etc... having faded back into the middle tier of the community.

Getting back to the here and now though and the group that the Wanderers are to navigate through. The cohosts are there, given the special status as a de facto first seed, causing the Wanderers and Valladares to be bumped into second seed status. While it has worked out well for our side, getting the cohosts who would normally have been a fourth seed, Valladares has to contended with the mighty Polar Islandstates as their first seed. A conspiracy to keep Rushmore in the status quo and help Esportiva rise or just pure coincidence? I leave it up to you the readers to decide what truly has happened with the strange circumstances. Never the less, San José Guayabal will hope to give a good showing of themselves given their hosting and they may well be pumped up for the event. With having to face them in the second matchday, it will be a crucial matchday, as both sides will be going for the win to either stay alive or clinch their spot forward. A draw is what is to be expected at the least, while a win is what truly should be desired, where the Wanderers could coast on that third matchday and prepare for the knockouts.

Buyan and Rüntenbach are our other opponents, both of whom are unknown qualities for the Wanderers. By rank, Buyan is the weakest team in the group, though that weakness could easily be turned into a motivating factor, taking the pressure off the side and creating an "us versus the world" mentality that works so well for the underdogs. Rüntenbach on the other hand, are by rank a middling side, but one I know nothing about, not even where they are from. It is as if they appeared out of thin air and are into the Finals. The braintrust of the squad obviously is more informed than I and will without a doubt have a gameplan in place for their side.

All in all, the Wanderers should look to get the full nine points that will be available, though seven would be ultimately acceptable, given the uncertain nature of the game. All the same, the squad should be going into the knockouts and from there, it is anybody's guess as to what will happen. Will Möller have a ride into the sunset with a trophy in hand, will the side be usurped by some another up and comer, or will and old nation thought to be on the decline suddenly find a resurgence? All is possible in this wacky game that we are so enamored with, perhaps that is why we love it, for any given matchday, any result is ultimately in play. Let the gauntlet begin.

[Nephara]

After the last group match of the Confederations Cup
Auburn Bywater could feel the fire.
So they'd beaten Isula ge Ru, Baptism of Fire champions, 3-0. That was a good scoreline against a good team. But people were still focusing on the first match... a 9-3 defeat wasn't easy to forget. God knew she'd lost sleep over it.
"Right, let's get this out of the way," she told the press. "I heard we're out, so there's preparations to be made."
"And Mortlock is busy making them?"
"Dealing with the press is part of what I'm paid for."
"How on earth did Diandra Ballard survive after the first match?"
Right. Going easy on me, I see... Auburn licked her lips. "Di had to be thrown on in the 28th minute after Reece was sent off. We were two down by then, she didn't have a chance to warm up, and immediately she had to go up and save a conceded penalty. She couldn't. Can you imagine the sort of mental state she'd been left in? And yes, she was badly shaken throughout the rest of the first half, and one could say responsible for one or two of the goals. I'd say she did well for the second half, all we can ask for."
"But why was the decision made to start her in the next match against the Equestrian States?"
"Mortlock's decision, not mine," said Auburn glibly.
"But surely you must know something, right?"
"Reece was suspended. As I understand it, the gaffer asked if Di felt ready for the next match. Di said yes. Fifteen bad minutes for the individual shouldn't rule someone out forever."
"Was your hand forced by a lack of faith in Seward, your third-choice?"
Auburn's smile twitched. "Of course not." Idiot.
"Are you disappointed to be bowing out at this early stage? Furious with your team for underperforming, even?"
"Look, the players showed genuine character - we got together after the Osarius match, the management decided they needed that night and the next day off just to get the defeat off their chests. We concede nine-" That hurt to say. Nine goals conceded in one match! It was absurd, and beat their previous record of seven. "... We concede nine. Right. But we go on from that and clock up two clean sheets in two games against two good teams. No shell-shock, no fear. Just getting the job done."
There was a pause in the throng of journalists. Auburn sighed with relief - nobody seemed to have noticed she'd basically dodged the question.
"So... thoughts on your World Cup hopes?"
"We're aiming for the top four."
"Making the knockout stages would be a- wait, what?"
"Top four," repeated Auburn firmly. "We have the squad, we have the spirit, and we have the management. Okay, so things might not have gone well in qualifying, and we took one bad loss. Fine. But this is the World Cup. The Cormorants have always done best in the big tournaments - and this is the world stage, for christ's sake. So when I say I hope for a top four finish? That's what I damn well mean. Now, if you'll excuse me..."

Two weeks later...
Sebastian Seward was fucking pissed off.
He threw open his locker with genuine venom, nearly ripping it off the hinges.
"Christ, Seb," came Brescia Stubbs' voice. "Easy there." She was the only other person in the changing room then - the others were all waiting a while before heading back in after training, it seemed.
"Have you heard the fucking news."
"Uh... maybe?"
He turned to face the Chatswood defender, leaning on the lockers. "Our time's run out with that Felixan hotshot. You hear now shit's finally rebuilding in his home country he's gonna redeclare for 'em?"
"So?" said Brescia evenly. She could already tell this was going to go badly...
"'So'. Christ. So it means all this shit about wanting to represent Nephara - our fucking country - was all a sham. A goddamn placeholder while he waited for shit to cool down back home."
"He's within his rights."
"Yeah, well. Shouldn't fucking be, should he. He pulled on a green shirt, and he should've been prepared to stick with it."
"He pulled on the red shirt first, Seb."
"Felix changed. Nephara stayed the same. It's a disgrace-"
"What's a disgrace, Seward?"
Brescia groaned, as the Sabrefell Athletic goalkeeper turned to face the very man he'd just been paying out.
"Kunibert Mathias. Exactly who I'd wanted to see."
"Not even going to pretend you mean that sincerely, are you?"
"Fuck you."
"Alright, boys, time to stop waving your cocks around," muttered Brescia. "You're meant to be part of a team here-"
"How could you think to understand the position I'm in?"
"I understand being Nepharim. Better than you, apparently."
Kunibert sighed. "Don't shoot your mouth off when you're so fucking ignorant of the situation. Have you been living under a rock these past few years? Were you even aware of the political situation in Felix, my-"
"Yeah," said Sebastian, catching the perceived slip. "Your fucking country."
"My homeland," said Mathias coldly.
"And yet you're wearing the green fucking shirt. Enough to make me sick-"
"So go grab a basin while you're warming the bench! Not like you'll be on the pitch all Cup..."
"Oh, for fuck's sake," muttered Brescia as the goalkeeper launched himself forward with a bestial roar. After letting them scrap at each other for a few seconds, she calmly got stuck in, hoisted Sebastian off Kunibert, and threw them both against seperate walls.
"Right," she said firmly as they tried to regain their footing. "Are we done, or what?"
Sebastian mumbled something, and limped off to the showers. Kunibert just glared, before stalking over to his locker.
Brescia sighed. "Good enough..."

THE BRINEMOUTH HERALD
THE GROUP OF LIFE? CORMORANTS STRONGEST IN GROUP DESPITE BEING WEAKEST SECOND SEED
by Theodora Kenway

After a shaky qualification campaign and an utter annihilation at the hands of Osarius in the Confederations' Cup, the Cormorants will be sighing with relief at a group this leniant.
This is with all due respect to the nations we are facing - the Sarian, the Equestrian States and Sargossa all boast very powerful national teams, and will all fancy themselves to be in with a strong chance of making the next round. It will be a fascinating group to watch for the neutral. But it will not be at our expense as long as we play anywhere near our standard - we're the strongest team in the group, that's all that has to be said.
The rhetoric from Jess Mortlock's camp, of course, has all been bullish and conservative. 'There are no easy groups', 'we've always wanted a challenge', 'we're out there to win' - make no mistakes, Mortlock, Bywater and her cohort of players now cut down to 23 were breathing a sigh of relief when the draw was done. Even someone as optimistic as Keith 'well, 9-3's the same as 3-1 innit, when you do the math' Rowland would take heart from it.
So that said, we have our opponents - what about them?

The Sarian
The second highest-ranked team in the group, the Sarian will be looking over their shoulder and hoping the home advantage of the States or the experience and dynamism of Sargossa can't bridge the gap. We've played them just once, and it was recent - beating them on penalties in this last Campionato Esportiva, on home soil. We know the Bustards are a threatening, aggressive opponent, and we know they're going to go right for the throat from the off. Which is admirable, but it will leave them vulnerable on the break, and after that ... 'performance' against Osarius, the likes of Marlowe, Belfast, Brandon and Coleman seem to have taken their clown shoes off and put their boots back on.
Who are their most threatening players? Jacobo Yap might be a locally-based 21-year old, but he was Golden Boot in the Super League and voted overall Player of the Season. He comes extremely highly-rated. And the theme of faith in youth continues throughout their squad - 23-year old Peters captains, 22-year old Meeuwessen's his deputy, and even 17-year old Shaw managed to get into the squad. Still, there's no doubt the Cormorants can weather the storm, win the midfield battle and press on to victory. The one snag? Reece Coleman's going to have a hell of a job trying to sweep behind the high back four, and it might just be easier to sit back a little to make sure the Bustards can't leverage their pace to devastating effect.
Realistically? We're going to go in expecting to win, but the Sarian definitely have a goal in them. It'll be a close-run thing, but 2-1 sounds right.

Sargossa
Oh, we have history with Sargossa.
Granted, the Corsairs have been in the international sphere for a long time. One wouldn't be entirely surprised if they regarded us as just another team, just like any other. But the World Cup 66 Qualifying is the single most gripping story of Nepharim heroic failure. In fact, the very testament to its appeal is the fact that a Nepharim failure can be considered heroic in the first place. Over a quick, dynamic and unbelievably tense ten matches, Sargossa pipped Nephara to the single, automatic qualification spot by just one point.
This particular vintage of the Corsairs is, well, vintage. Plenty of veterans in those ranks, though Sosa and Defederico are the only two consistent starters of the mid-thirties crowd. It will, however, give them a lot of options on the bench late in games. Goalkeeper Abad is the hero of the defence, and his ability to rush off his line to sweep is crucial, allowing the back three to push further up the field. Up front, Bustos is the big lad who gives plenty of space for the more talented Quinteros and Noyola to work their magic. This will be an incredibly high-pressure, high-intensity match, but I can't help but feel Sargossa will break first - 3-1 looks likely.

Equestrian States
When we played the Equestrian States in the Confederations Cup, it was a battle of the goalkeepers. Expect a different story in the World Cup proper, where the pressure will be well and truly on and the rest of the Cormorants will (barring a couple of disasters) not be under the same kind of hangover that lead to such lethargic, lacklustre attacking play in that match, where only Kurtis Quinn ever really threatened to score for the Cormorants. They're bringing some familiar faces to the table, but like the Nepharim ourselves, there's a locally-based core supporting them. Traditionally, they tend towards the aggressive (though not strongly) and usually favour a back three - but they do have the players to shift things around, and Gentle Breeze behind that back three is no easy prospect. Oh, and home advantage isn't exactly something to sniff at, either. A rough fight, and it might well end a draw, but a tight 1-0 victory looks right for Nephara.

What Next?
Three victories looks optimistic on paper, and any of these teams could easily take points off us or even win. But realistically, for all the Sarian's grit, for all Sargossa's experience, for all the States' home advantage, we should get through this group.
Where does that leave us? Group B looks fierce, a sort of Group of 75% Death with the experienced Legalese, Esportivan leading lights Felix, a resurgent Calanian Union and an unfortunate Brenecia. Taking it for granted that all three of these teams pump the Patriots for three or four goals apiece, Legalese are the clear favourites to win. But on paper, the Calanian squad looks just as powerful, as does the Felixan team, despite occupying three different seedings! Even Brenecia has some modest riches at their disposal. And it has to be said, all three of the realistic candidates for runners-up would give Nephara an even fight.
That said, with either Felix or the Union there are bragging rights on the line. Felix have overtaken our rank and issued a decisive challenge to our claim as the strongest team in Esportiva, while the Union have a score or two to settle with us after our freakish tendency to always be drawn against each other in the most important fixtures possible. A win against either of those would set the Cormorants up as a force to be reckoned with in world football yet again, and whoever we were drawn against in the quarterfinal stage would know one thing for sure.
They're in for a hell of a fight.

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[Polar Islandstates]

*coughs*

*splutters*

*emerges from the darkness*

*brushes snow off his shoulders*

Wow! That weather system was intense, wasn't it?! Storm after storm after storm after storm... I thought we'd never have another solid connection to the outside multiverse ever again at one point. Easy to see how the Valhallan islands were isolated for all that time during Rushmore's founding centuries now, isn't it? This was just a seasonal bluster of storms... imagine what a full on ice age would've done. In fact, a little bird told me that whilst we were busy trying to catch whatever little snippets of news about the Terns we could manage, the weather was so bad at one point we almost failed to get our submission through to the UICA in time. Nevermind the fact that Koolhaas was late to the draw for the finals...

Yes, finals. Despite that two-nil home defeat to Beauce in the last qualification match (and just what the ever-loving Thor happened there I have no idea) we made it through to another finals. And not only that - whilst we've been waiting for the whole thing to kick off, we've gone and won the fourth Confederations Cup as well! Hooray for us, hooray for Rasmussen, and hooray for KKV. Another trophy. Three finals in that competition we've reached now, and we're making something of a habit of this 'winning stuff' act. So let's hope we can keep it up into the World Cup itself because we have been drawn in a hell of a group.

Nova Anglicana are the underdogs, yes, but we'll be looking out for them. Particularly as they're our crucial last match in the group stage. If it comes to it, we may need a result against them, in which case we will need to be on our toes and not making any allowances or relaxing at all. They must be good, else they wouldn't be here, and they'll be as keen as the rest of the teams here to get a result against us and prove they deserve to be at the tournament. I say, let's just believe them when they tell us they are, and work on a gameplan that'll outdo theirs. Better than that underestimate an opponent. Because Beauce, that's why.

The second match in the group will be interesting, however. Farfadillis. The crazy Farfadillans are just... well, you've seen us play them before, you know what I'm talking about I'm sure. They may not be quite the unknown underdogs anymore, and the shock value attached to seeing their name in the upper echelons of the sport just isn't there these days. Their game has been figured out by the big boys to a certain extent, and they may take the opportunity to change things up a bit when we play them. Or, they may do what they usually do, in which case Rasmussen will be looking at the back six to be thoroughly drilled and regimented. Hopefully, they'll manage that. Twelve goals conceded in sixteen games in qualifying certainly isn't bad, particularly when you consider two of those twelve came in that freak result at home to Beauce, when none of the starting back six started the match. KKV and Bjerregaard are on fire, Otkupshchikov and Nordenberg's understanding appears to be developing perfectly, and Lillehammer is in the form of his life at the moment for both domestic and international sides. Even Kirilaunen is looking a lot more drilled these days, and less likely to come flying off his line. I mean, something I'm very glad he does that but at other times he does make you think carefully about what your next pre-match meal should be.

The most interesting match in the group will be our first one however, and it's going to be one of the biggest matches in the Guayabalense side of the draw for sure. Valladares vs Polar Islandstates. Number four in the Multiverse versus number seven in the Multiverse, and a cross-Rushmori derby between two of the biggest footballing nations both in our region and in the extended Multiverse. It should be an absolute blockbuster. Most of all, it'll be interesting because we both already know each other's dangerous players quite well.

What I'm hinting at there is that Kolehmainen, Zeljeznicar, and Wolff, won't find things as easy as they had been in qualifying. Sure, Rasmussen changed things around and tried a few experiments in partnerships and formations during the Confederations Cup, but ultimately we know what the starting line-up will be against Valladares, and neither Kolehmainen nor Wolff can expect to just walk through defences anymore like they had been. Kolehmainen in particular will be out to set some records in place before he hangs up his international boots at the end of the next Copa Rushmori, and he'll once again be key to the Terns going forward. Whether he'll get a chance to make a start on that against Valladares is up to the performances of the players behind him. He's on eighty-nine goals going into this game having scored a huge twelve goals this cycle already, and to be honest it's a little touch-and-go as to whether he'll have enough games to become the third player to reach a century of goals for the Terns before he retired. World Cups are quite short competitions if you don't reach the final, and so are Copa Rushmoris if you're not careful... eleven goals in potentially only six more games? He's going to need to play more games than that if he wants the magic hundred, and I know twenty-two other lads who'll be just itching to help him achieve that.

So, like a little side-quest on the way to the big boss level at the end of a computer game, there's Kolehmainen's little distraction. To reach the big boss level though, we need to start picking off his henchmen first.

Henchman number one? Valladares, you're up.

Seconds out...

Fight!

Eff

xx

[San Jose Guayabal]

www.elnacional.gu/sjg/world_cup_fever_radio

You are in: El nacional > SJG > Radio Nacional 104.7 FM > World Cup Fever.

Host: Luis Armando Muñoz
Date: 24/12/2014, 22:00. San Salvador time

*Introduction song*

Welcome to this edition of World Cup Fever is a pleasure to be back in the company of you who tuned this program every day, thank you very much. Now we have a very full program information to share with you, about the national team friendlies.

To start we need to talk of the friendlies that were taken during the last days, after the catastrophic Champions Cup where just one point from a possible nine was obtained, although the Selecta faced teams like Polar Islandstates and Vilita, our chances were slim but unfortunately they could not take the biggest chance after the insipid draw against Yttribia. At least Polar Islandstates was against the rope for nearly eighty minutes, until the terrible defense that characterizes our team conceded two goals in three minutes. That is the experience of great players who knew how to attack the weaknesses of the national team. Although my opinion is not shared by many, I would say that style of trying to do maximum damage regardless of goals against should finish, it is a little daring to play against teams of that size is simply daring and reckless because that's what hurt us in the World Cup 68, in the game against Nephara. After going ahead in the game, a serious error of the defense was what gave them the advantage over the opponent, to add a missed penalty. Being also focus a key factor for players, because when the World Cup is played, the opponent will not forgive mistakes is basically kill or die as some old football analysts said, no errors, concentration is a key to knowing properly play factor tough opponents.

To conclude the first part of the program will give space to three phone calls from our viewers, please call 01-2248-7887 to express their views on the subject we are talking about.

And we have the first call, good night, with whom I speak? "With Luis Paredes." From where you call us? "From Usulután." perfect, what do you think about the national team matches in the Cup of Champions? "That was a disaster, I honestly think it's a total failure of preparation, considering that we are very close to the World Cup and we can not take that kind of luxury, at least I think we are just in time to fix the course of the curse of the National Team, considering that our group can be tricky, there must be more positive attitude by the players, and that's what I wanted to say, Merry Christmas."

And we have another call "Goodnight" with whom I communicate? "Hello!" "If you're on the air with Radio National" Al ... "* sound * Good call ended, we lost communication with our listener estimated.

I was informed that I will attend one last call before the commercial break. Good night, you're in the air, with whom I have the pleasure? "With Michael Arana, from Santa Marta" Good night, you think about the topic of the moment? "I think it is a problem not only for the players, I think it's mainly from the coaching staff, it was not able to make players physically prepare for games that require concentration and optimal physical condition to avoid losses, played against teams relevant but that's no reason to afford faults against them, they have to fight to win and failed in that, at least we tried against Polar Islandstates but the defense was a disaster, I hope they improve for the World Cup, as it would ashame being the Cinderella of the group in our party, I say goodbye and wish you a merry christmas."

Well, with this comments, we go to the first commercial break, we will be back with World Cup Fever.

...

We now turn to the second part of our radio program, and discuss a series of friendly matches SJG played against the national team of Equestrian States, yeah yeah ... The co-host of the cup played matches that undoubtedly will help both teams in order to provide a good level of game during the world cup. The first game was played here in the Estadio Cuscatlán in front of a crowd that certainly filled the stadium to see the Selecta in the friendly match.

The new fan group of "Los Borrachos del Sur" (LBS) supporting
the national team during the friendly against Equestrian States.

EQS started strong with the ball, Pristine Shine was the player who's attacked from the start of the game, for five minutes showed that there would be an easy opponent for the defense of SJG, especially James Moreira, who was in charge to pressure the pony.

Rodolfo Zelaya continued to exert some pressure on Brix Hamilton in twelve minutes, the striker of the three times champion with Northbrook Diamonds (Polar Islandstates) did a surprise move to Hamilton, made a fast counter attack and reached the area where he made a dribble and pass Jonathan Fana, who was at the right time and scored the 1-0 for SJG, an advantage that gave some confidence, but would not be very well handled by the players.

Thirty-two minutes into the game, made a strong gallop of Stardust towards the area and James Moreira decided to mount on Stardust, a laughable action except for the referee opinion, who declared a penalty due to Moreira's action.

Stardust was commissioned to conduct the penalty, which was blocked by Henry Hernandez in the keeper forward illegally so the refei decided to repeat the penalty, this time Stardust acted soberly and kicked to the left side of the goal, beating Hernandez and drawing set to 1 goal per team.

The halftime arrived and both teams were tied at one goal each, anything could have happened during the second half of the game, 45 minuts full of action were ahead of us, and many fans were expecting to see substitutions on both sides but nothing happened.

And so, to begin EQS silenced Cuscatlan for short untiempo for 48 minutes, Gentle Breeze cleared the ball straight into the legs of Fire Dash, who lived up to his name and ran with unprecedented speed, perhaps better than a Olympic champion and sneaked into the area where literally did see Hernandez as a spectator graced with the best position to watch the game, a subtle touch of the ball in the middle legs Hernández was what put ahead on the Ponies the result With The 1-2 score. A little surprise that there had pity by Mathias Paatelainen immediately replaced Hernandez and instead entered Ruslan Molodetsov, playing for the first time in a couple of months.

The payoff substitutability was a very good idea by the coaching staff, as Molodetsov expressed in good condition and covered several shots of the offensive of The Ponies.

To finish the game and at least salvage a party that was going the loophole, Sean Fraser defeated Andrea Molovi in a corner and properly headed to score the 2-2 that gave the tie to SJG in added time.

...

And to close the program, unrelated to the World Cup but if something important concerning the national football has happened in these minutes offices of the Guayabalense Football Federation (FGF), according comes the news are drastic changes to the structure of football in San Jose Guayabal.

New football pyramid system on San José Guayabal, will be contested
by seventy teams on four divisions (Source: EN Design) Note: The
graphic may suck, blame on our graphic designers.

According to an official statement from the federation, the dissolution of the current competition format comprising 128 teams in nine divisions is reported, due to alleged ineffectiveness of the system and claim of lack of support from the federation according to the presidents of various directives of teams in lower divisions, this was the straw that broke the camel and led to this change is undoubtedly the most drastic that the league has had in the last fifty years.

Among the changes are the following ones:

- Reducing the number of teams affiliated to the system, from the previous number of from 128 to 70 teams.

- Dissolution of five divisions (From the fifth to the ninth division division)

- Reduction in the number of teams participating in the Premier League and the Second to Fourth Division (Premier League will have 16 teams andthe other divisions will have 18 teams)

- Abolition of Apertura-Clausura format, resulting in a two-round tournament where teams will face reciprocal visit during the tournament.

- The worst team in each division will be relegated, and a playoff between the teams integrating the Top-4 of the league will be played, teams will go head against each other in round robin, the winner will go to a series of back and forth to determine if there one second descent or if the team in danger of descending will remain in the division.

- The National Cup Qualifying criteria will be the top eight teams in each division in the previous tournament, eliminating teams from the same division until get the best team from each division, these four teams will go to the semifinal round and the champion will get the classification to Cygnus Cup.

- The winner of the Liga Premier will get a pass to contest the CEdC.

- A playoff between the top four teams that are not classified to UICA sanctioned tournaments will be held, facing the best in the group against the worst and second best against the second worst team, who wins the series will advance to the final series, which will be played a reciprocal visit, the winner of that series gets second place to participate in the CEdC.

- An Universitary tournament will be held, consisting of two conferences of ten teams each, the winners of the conferences will go to the final, playing a double-legged final in order to determine the champion.

- A U-20 tournament will be held among the Liga Premier teams, they will play under the same format as the Senior League, but with the exception that the U-20 won't have any international spot.

And this is all in our program of World Cup Fever, we hope you to have a Merry Christmas, also keep listening to the radio, right now we are going to the news at Midnight

In Other News:

> General and Presidential Elections has a date, December 29.
> Castro-Vallejo: Creation of a Government Ethics "watchdog" Organization is a priority.
> Car ignites on Fiordo del Norte Tunnel, access blocked in that part of the Coastal Highway.
> Consumer Ombudsman reports abusive price increases on Turkey and other typical food products for the Christmas Season.

[Equestrian States]

Margaret's Game
To the tune of "The Game of Life"

My first cycle was a let-down, just forget I mentioned it
And my second seemed better, 'til I crashed into that playoff wall
Third time was a dismal trek, awful from day one
In my fourth, I qualified but got tot'ly smashed in the group of death

In my fifth cycle, I won a cup - of course it was the C-o-H
My sixth time, I lost the final though I guess it was little fun
Seventh try, I lost so much that all I could do was weep
In my eighth cycle, I won it all, was atop the rankings and everything

This game is one ruled by a vengeful bitch
She screws 'round with us all
Try to escape, but you know your fate has al'ready been set

See how the Goddess of Chance is playing all of us for fools
Dancing all around us, enforcing all her silly rules
See how she looks down on us like we're acting out a show
Throw the dice and let's see how bad you'll lose...

By nine, I was a veteran and knew better than to expect a repeat
My tenth Cup was an ordeal, as the host I went out quick
Next cycle, what, eleven? Sorry I try to forget...
Don't think I got a single win - no I'm terrified to think of all

The things that the Goddess can do, kinda crazy
Commanding everyone's fate
Try to escape, but the cycles repeat and keep you here to stay

See how Margaret's Game is never won, you only play
Bore her and you will find you're beaten up and blown away
Clinging to hope and blaming her when things don't go your way
Such a laugh! HA! Maggie's just playing her game

Crash out in qualifying or hoist the trophy
The chance is one in two hundred
Try to escape, but why not try your luck and see if you can't win?

See how the Goddess of Chance is playing all of us for fools
Dancing all around us, enforcing all her silly rules
See how she looks down on us like we're acting out a show
Throw the dice and let's see how bad you'll lose...

Sickly grinning downward, tosses out her pair of dice
Skipping her way through the forum snuffing out our hopes and dreams
People praying on their knees but there's no one there to hear
She looks down at all her puppets here
All bow down before Maggie the Puppeteer

---

OOC: This is your 24 hour warning for the MD1 cutoff for Groups E-H.

[Vilita]

Kater Struggles to Finalize Roster

Vilitan League Scheduling Issues Linger

Nycflala Kater's Vilita Jungle Cats were a virtually unstoppable force during the World Cup Qualifying campaign. Unstoppable that is, unless the opposition was Mizuyuki - who were able to draw and defeat the Jungle Cats in the two games the sides played in the opening 16.

Normally that would be fine, except that one of Vilita's three World Cup 70 Group Stage opponents is none other than Mizuyuki.

Opposition aside, Nycflala Kater has other things on his mind, namely being able to confidently select his 26-player roster for the World Cup finals. Typically, at this point in the cycle, the Vilitan League season would have already concluded and Kater will have had ample time to evaluate players at the training grounds in Alikki-Corra, with no distractions whatsoever. However, the situation is different this time around:

Grounds crews throughout Vilita have taken off at the most inopportune time, with a freak winter chill affecting much of the Tropics, making pitches unplayable from the coastline through the mountains.

Matches have been postponed and cancelled everywhere from Lonngeylin to Yeaddin and even reaching into Turoki and Turori has mainland based clubs have been unable to reliably travel off the Island.

Traditionally, a time of year where operations throughout the Tropics are short staffed - with workers taking time off for the Holidays, and simply to avoid losing saved up time off, Football Clubs, transportation hubs and public works systems have found themselves majorly understaffed to deal with the unexpected chill.

The repercussions on the Vilitan League schedule have still yet to be fully determined, but it is clear that the season will be unable to be completed on its normal schedule, coinciding with the deadline for entries to the UICA competitions.

While the Vilitan League season is nearly wrapped up, the delay in the schedule has meant that Kater has had virtually no time to assess his potential squad as a unit. Instead, Kater has had to travel to the players, assess their workouts and attend Vilitan League matches. One of the big boosts for the Jungle Cats however was the mid-season transfer of World Cup 68 hero goalkeeper Zelkki Milake. Milake, who was flying high during World Cup 68 as the star of Lonngeylin Coast had seen his side relegated and unable to climb back into the Stellar Division. After being loyal to the club for two full seasons, a conversation with Kater revealed that Milake needed to find his way to a top level club in order to maintain his place in the Jungle Cats squad. Milake wasted no time, moving to high-flying Eastal Lunar to put himself right back into the thick not only of the top flight in Vilitan Football, but also into a title contending position.

The resolving of the goalkeeper situation would take little stress off of Kater's situation, however, still having to negotiate fixture schedules and Stellar Division table positions when calling players to camp for the National Team. Thankfully, Kater did have the opportunity to assess his squad as a unit during the 'Cup of Champions' competition - an event for which Kater's Jungle Cats were the defending Champions.

Vilita opened the competition up against World Cup co-hosts San Jose Guayabal at the Estadio Nacional Barrio El Niño. Kater's side confidently ran out with a 2-0 victory that started to make waves that Vilita were going to not only defend their Cup of Champions title - but also position themselves as World Cup favorites - particularly if they were drawn in the San Jose Guayabal region of the competition.

Any thoughts of punching an early ticket to the World Cup final, however, were quickly dashed at the Estadio Tierra de Fuego on matchday 2, when the Polar Islandstates handily took care of the hodge-podge group of Vilitan players that showed noticeable signs of having not practiced regularly together leading up to the tournament.

While Kater's side recovered on Matchday 3 with a 4-2 victory over Yttribia to advance to the Semi-Finals, the inaugural Cup of Champions winner, Atlantian Oceania rivals Osarius, would oust the Jungle Cats by a 1-0 scoreline. With the 3 previous winners of the Cup of Champions all contesting the Semi-Final stage, it was almost assured that there would be a repeat winner. That was confirmed with the Jungle Cats defeat coupled with the defeat of the hosts, Equestrian States, setting the two sides up for the third place playoff while Polar Islandstates and Osarius contested the final.

While Kater's side would take the third place playoff by a 3-2 scoreline after 120 minutes of play, the Cup of Champions certainly did little to instill confidence that the Vilita Jungle Cats were ready for the World Cup Finals, and Kater will certainly have his work cut out for him to get his time ready; and focused; prior to the opening matchday fixture against Saintland.

[Buyan]

“And here you find the results of all their World Cup classifiers from the last ten editions…”

Alowysz Krupa flipped through his notes, which had acquired the size of a dictionary. Trying to convince Shale of his value, he acted like a puppy who wanted to show he was able to use his box but had forgotten that he still had the remnants of his owners shoe hanging from his teeth. Shale, seated on the opposite site of the desk looked to it as if it were a pile of horse dirt.

“And… The analysis. I didn’t ask you to print the bloody internet,” the Nepharim had a hard time containing his anger.
“Well,” Alowysz proudly continued, “in this section you find all the results of their opponents. It shows Pasarga did drop points against officially weaker teams before!”

For a second, Shale was too baffled to react. Eventually, he kindly told him to leave the room and ‘maybe have a check on some resting guys’. The door had hardly closed when he started to vent to Erica Brewer, his loyal assistant who so far had silently – yet with a meagre smile across her lips – observed the whole scene.

“Is he f’ing kidding me? He must be kidding me. You can’t seriously consider this,” as Shale tossed the stack of papers delivered by the former Buyanese defender in the bin across the room, “valuable. I wanted to see how their opponents had dealt with that bloody 4-4-2, not just some stats and facts!”

Brewer didn’t even respond, but opened a drawer on her left-hand side and brought ten to fifteen pages to the table. The green-red-yellow trim indicated that this was her match preview, a vital one as well.

“They don’t see dropping points as an option,” she spoke whilst leafing through it, “we’re the ugly duckling in the group after all – they’re trying to see the last stand of their golden generation.”

There was no need for her to bring the stats to the table to inform Reinhart Shale of the fact that Pasarga came from two successive quarterfinal runs. The first instant, there had been minor satisfaction over the draw. Runtenbach was an old foe and for inexplicable reasons, they often push the Hedgehogs to their highest level. That was most certainly true for Manuel Schmidt, who might have been included in the squad solely for this game – taking those last tickets along with Erhardt, Ruutu, Lammerschon, Castell, Moen and Pajari. It had put guys with the skill of a Saldlund, Justs, Suhr and Havelund at home, aside of the unfortunate striker Duco Dalmshelf, who recovered from a painful injury.

“Let’s take it from the top,” Brewer spoke calmly as Shale closed his eyes. Years of cooperation had given them certain rituals and envisaging what to do on the pitch by solely focusing on her voice had been one of those for Reinhart Shale. Of course, making a team with a female for such a long time had instigated some rumours but their relationship was purely professional – as was anything with Erica. A bit of an ice queen, according to plenty of guys. The best in the business, Shale knew.

“On goal, Raghid Faysal Halabi who is thirty-four already as well. Of course goalies can tip in longer than anywhere else on the pitch, but the fact that he only across the last four years has appeared from the shadow cast by Dvořák should be a signal. He is reliable, has the authority to stand this kind of spot but explosiveness at that age… It just wears off. If the guys don’t hesitate to shoot, we can take him out.”

Reinhart tried to get this right. Different type of coaches would have cursed one last time over the absence of Dalmshelf again, but he was experienced enough to know that history doesn’t alter that way. A lack of options would probably lead up to an offensive duo with Andrey Rettinger and Damien Balnerii. The former had once again taken a step up in the order of things, was a guarantee for a load of goals for Goodfeather… But untested at this level and more of a working-hard-in-and-out-the-box-guy. All eyes on Balnerii now. He had been a question mark when first called up by Shale, but he had known about his skills. The transfer to St George’s Creek, coming in the national team, … Hadn’t it been a long season for him so far? But what other options are there? Sil Moen had the experience necessary and the brains and was the type he would certainly throw in when necessary. And Risto Pajari hadn’t appeared for the Hedgehogs so far and was the card up the sleeve for Shale – ideal in a sole striker situation. But not for today.

“The centre duo is a quality combination, at the height of their possibilities…,” as Brewer continued, Shale attempted not to think of the limited chances for his strikers, “especially Jukić is a special one. Leader of this team, top material. On the right, there’s Jan Macík. He’s young but already starting his second tier, bloody talented doesn’t even cut the deal. Skilled and I might want to suggest…”
“Vridrich.”

It had been the first thing Shale said during her monologue, but Erica didn’t need more to get what he talking about.

“…want to suggest Vridrich indeed.”

Picking Lammerschon over Plovnarov was a concession to the result and a painful jab on the face of beautiful football. But sometimes you need a guy who’s not afraid to kick a ball – or a player, if necessary – over the stands and there Lammerschon easily enters the picture.

“On the other wing, there’s mister experience with Bendegúz. He’s concrete, so Knutsen will have to bring his drill. If possible, we must lure him to the inside in order to leave some space for rushes of Smetona. Their left winger is Alicea. Sixth time he’s with the Wanderers for the ride, they won’t need to learn him the drill, and he knows where the goal is. But it could leave some offensive options for Ignas if…”
“What if we switch them?”

Even Brewer could get baffled by her manager after all those years.

“Knutsen and Smetona? I don’t really see how…”
“Zemaitis and Smetona,” Shale grinned, “not necessarily all the time, but after a corner or a scrimmage. If someone is capable of doing the wing, it’s Kaz Zemaitis and a two-on-one with him and Knutsen against that Bendeguy could be the key to open their door.”
“I’ll note it,” she nodded, “Ignas and Kaz should have the level of communication to pull that one off. Regularly, Zemaitis will get Valentina Mijatovic as direct opponent. I already know that Zem will grin at the knowledge of ‘covering a chick’, but I’ll give him a mixtape to wipe it off his face. She’s got the whole package, a real threat.”

‘Hah, a chick’. Shale chuckled a little, recalling how those words had been uttered by Zem the first time Erica did the field training. And how he had regretted those after his twentieth lap-with-weights.

“The engine of the squad should be Köhler and Mór. If there is one part of this squad that is not ridiculously experienced, it might be them but it’s the best they’ve got to offer and that does mean a thing in a nation like Pasarga. Do we adapt?”

Shale opened his eyes, it wasn’t her usual to pose a question without a hint to the answer – usually a correct answer. Her slowly nodding head told him everything there was to know.

“Well,” Shale autocompleted what both knew, “Zermin and Devold both have experience with covering more field than one would expect of a regular six or ten. They’ll get there, I’m quite sure. Make sure Bartosz starts warming up soon enough, I don’t want Zermin to be completely worn out.”

“And in attack,” Erica continued whilst scribbling down the last remark of her manager, “Mezei Orbán. Not the favourite of the domestic press but really the kind of guy who brings the goals home. Doesn’t need a lot of space to score and has a mean free kick as well. He might be less hyped than his counterpart, but I wouldn’t give him an inch of space. But their key to any lock is – if I may believe them – Tobias Möller. Rather unremarkable as a youth, he turned into a goal machine and know he is… Well, he should be their guarantee for goals. It will be upon Sigurd to…”
“No.”

Reinhard Shale woke up, paced across the room twice and then reinforced his previous statement.

“Rafal Giertych will cover him. I know we usually consider him the junior part of the defence duo, but Tufte… He’s just unable to carry that weight. Picks up one too many cards and against such a side, this might be deadly.”
“It will be a big game for Rafal…” Erica tried to bring her doubts into words.
“I know,” Shale quickly responded, “he’ll have to step up. But if he does so today, he’ll be a world class player. His pass might be a bit less than the one from Sigurd, but today I just want someone to stop their striker and Rafal can do that.”
“And if he doesn’t?” Erica knew that any protest would be futile. Reinhart was always open for his remarks until the moment the decision was made.
“Well, let’s pray Ulle Seber has got his horseshoe along, shall we,” the manager grinned. It was an attempt to laugh off the knowledge that the slim chances of the Hedgehogs were depending upon the qualities of players who have so far not caught the international eye.

[The Sarian]

World Cup 70 - Our Predictions

With the World Cup on the doorstep, we at the Florican use advanced modeling techniques, to accurately predict just what will happen in this years World Cup. Our Sports Correspondent, Francesca Harte and guest columnist, Leonard Heathwait will evaluate the outcomes and give you the round up of all you can expect this winter in the Equestrian States and San Jose Guayabal. (Disclaimer, scores generated using a weighted number generator and may not - nay, probably won't - happen as we say it will)

Group A

--Group A                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Nephara                      3   2  1  0    3   1  +2    7
2 The Sarian                   3   1  2  0    5   4  +1    5
3 Equestrian States            3   1  1  1    4   4   0    4
4 Sargossa                     3   0  0  3    2   5  −3    0

Francesca says, Arguably one of the best teams in Esportiva, Nephara will be pleased to top the group, although I'm sure Jess Mortlock's side will have wanted all nine points against a relatively easy group for the Cormorants. Regardless, a victory against hosts, the Equestrian States and experience filled Sargossa would be well received if the simulation matches reality.

Against The Sairan, the key battle will be in midfield, where both sides are employing a four-four-two diamond formation; Michael Brandon will be the deciding influence for Nephara while Methuselah Meeuwessen - who plays in the Equestrian States on a regular basis for North Spire HC - will be crucial if the Bustards will actually steal a point from Nephara, as the simulation suggests.

Leonard says, Neutral fans at World Cups always route for the hosts (unless it happens to be the Federation of Free Republics!), so it's always a shame when they go out in the group stage, but as a Sarian fan - I am ecstatic. An unbeaten run in the Group Stage (admittedly with only one win) would be the cherry on the cake after a qualifying display which banished the ghosts of Campionato's past.

A disappointment for home fans would be if the Ponies conceded as much as the simulation suggests - Gentle Breeze, is arguably one of the best goalkeepers currently playing, while defender, Flitter can only add to the defensive capabilities of the hosts.

Group B

--Group B                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Legalese                     3   3  0  0   13   8  +5    9
2 Felix                        3   1  1  1    5   5   0    4
3 Brenecia                     3   1  0  2    6   9  −3    3
4 The Calanian Union           3   0  1  2    4   6  −2    1

Francesca says, I can't help but feel sorry for The Calanian Union, a fantastic side, which in their prime came fourth in World Cup 66 (which they co-hosted) seems to have been spitroasted by the ever deadly Legalese and Esportivan upstarts, Felix. One redemption for Gerald Montier's team would be the high number of goals scored, which can almost certainly be attributed to veteran striker, Jacob Pratt.

Felix have to be seen as one of the dark horses for the World Cup, so only managing one victory would hurt them; however, with no Free Republics (or Holy Republican Empire as they are now known) to knock them out, I can easily see the Phoenix's brushing themselves off and going far in the competition.

Leonard says, Brenecia have all the potential to one day be a great team, and snatching a victory in the Group of Death is well above what the Patriots could have hoped for; I am a great fan of the aggressive play the side has adopted under Catherine Bardsley, although it wasn't popular with Brenican fans mid-qualifying! Cheney Scherzer promises to be a shining jewel for the side, playing in the middle of their four-three-three formation, combining pace and marksmanship to be a lethal striker for both country and Apox's Wye United. As much as I love the Calanian Union, I hope Brenica can replicate their victory over the Calanians in the actual World Cup, because it will do a world of good for the side in future cups.

Group C

--Group C                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Eura                         3   2  1  0    6   2  +4    7
2 The Holy Empire              3   1  1  1    3   2  +1    4
3 Valanora                     3   1  0  2    6   8  −2    3
4 HopNation                    3   1  0  2    4   7  −3    3

Francesca says, The defending champions will have wanted to have come out of the block all guns blazing, in an attempt to stake a serious claim to defend their title. However, Eura have shown time and time again that they are no pushovers, though the current team have nothing on the side that were victorious in World Cup 66. The Holy Empire will have been upset not to score more, they are - after all - one of the most attacking sides in the Multiverse, while Eura - whose defensive ability has been called into question in the past - have seemed to cure that thanks to caretaker boss, Louis Watson.

HopNation are one of my favourite 'Beltane teams' thanks to the uniqueness of their buildup. From their extensive use of the wings to their one touch, short passing style the team is one of a kind in the World Cup, and I genuinely enjoy seeing them play. Valanora, on the other hand, are one of the greatest teams to grace the World Cup - winning the trophy on five separate occasions. While only winning one game, the simulation suggests that HopNation did themselves proud in their premier World Cup.

Leonard says, Eura still hold a certain magnitude around themselves, despite struggling to make any real contributions to World Football since their victory in '66 but could this result be foreshadowing for the re-emergence of Eura on the world stage or just another chance to give the Rushmori nations fans a slice of false hope?

As Francesca said, it is in the wings where HopNation play best, so expect great things from Ike Myer and FC Chippenham transfer target, Eisa Loostin. If the simulation is correct, hopefully HopNation will take this momentum into the next World Cup and beyond.

Group D

--Group D                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Vilita                       3   2  1  0    6   4  +2    7
2 Saintland                    3   1  2  0    6   5  +1    5
3 Super-Llamaland              3   0  2  1    3   4  −1    2
4 Mizuyuki                     3   0  1  2    2   4  −2    1

Francesca says, It's strange, although Vilita won last the World Cup only eight years ago, I don't rate them as a side so I agree with the simulation that they will not get all nine points. Saintland, on the other hand, are one of those sides everyone hates but always seems to perform above par when they need to. Not quite as annoying as The Holy Republican Empire, but I would be lying if I said they weren't up there. Due to the attacking nature of the side, one can reasonably expect Philippus and Stephanus Vagionius to be vital if the side hopes to get anything from a group the two-time World Champions.

Leonard says, Vilita know that if they want to be serious contenders this World Cup, Saintland is a must win game - so the advanced simulation result should cause concern for Eel fans (That is, if they read Sari newspapers...), Nili Ylimaiina will be a crucial player against Saintland - and indeed everyone - while the sides defence will need to be on point if they will hold off the Saintland inquisition.

Group E

--Group E                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 San José Guayabal            3   1  2  0    6   5  +1    5
2 Pasarga                      3   1  2  0    3   2  +1    5
3 Rüntenbach                   3   0  2  1    6   7  −1    2
4 Buyan                        3   0  2  1    1   2  −1    2

Francesca says, I really like this SJG Team, and I think they have the potential to use their home-nation status to their advantage to really go far in this World Cup. Historically, Rüntenbach have always been better than SJG, but I think it is a testament to the hard work that Head Coach, Mathias Paatelainen put in to the side that the simulator has predicted a win for the co-hosts. Attack has always been the strongest point for the Vikings, as shown by the sheer number of goals predicted from the side, and best displayed by star-strikers - Sean Fraser, Rodolfo Zelaya and Jonathan Faña who are among the worlds best when in form. However, the simulations does show some defensive dysfunction from the Iceguys, which could be attributed to Mattías Passarelli, currently out of form in Sieg League 2 side, FC Delare Minon.

I thought Buyan will perform above expectations, and I thought Reinhard Shale's side would kick that off with an upset against Pasarga, but alas, (according to the simulation at least) it wasn't to be. Buyan are one of the best defensive sides in the Multiverse, modelling themselves on Nephara while keeping some aspects of the Sirius Hope era to form a magical blend which has worked wonders for the side, so finishing last will be a real disappointment for the Northern Esportivan team.

Leonard says, San Jose will see this World Cup as the perfect opportunity to banish the ghosts of World Cup 69, where a final day loss to the Bustards prevented them from entering the playoffs. As long as their top players (of which they have many) can perform to the best of their ability, this could be a fantastic tournament for them, and the simulated result shows that.

I was convinced that the Wanderers were destined to become a pointless answer on "Nations Who Participated in World Cup 70", the once fine side really have nothing about them this year, so I thought, but the simulation seems to disagree, and with dark horse status, the Wanderers could really go far.

Group F

--Group F                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Valladares                   3   2  1  0    6   3  +3    7
2 Polar Islandstates           3   1  1  1    1   1   0    4
3 Nova Anglicana               3   1  0  2    2   4  −2    3
4 Farfadillis                  3   0  2  1    4   5  −1    2

Francesca says, Since winning the World Cup, Polar Islandstates have seemed to have lost the flair that took them to successive World Cup Finals and I found it nearly impossible to think that the simulator predicts a side which contains the pure class of Gustaf Kolehmainen to only score one goal!

Nova Anglicana, on the other hand, have come into the World Cup as the lowest ranked side (a title we held four years ago) and to gain a victory in one of the hardest groups in the World Cup is a great achievement for a side who can not decide if they're in Esportiva or 'the uncivilised world'. They can't have expected to get anything from this group, so the result will no-doubt go a long way for the side.

Leonard says, For Farfadillis to come last in a huge shock.The attacking class they show going forward is unparalleled in the World Cup so this will be a wounding result for a team that had all the potential to embed themselves in the Top Fifteen nations. Hopefully the Baptism of Fire 54 hosts will perform a lot better in the real cup, because it will be a loss for the tournament if we don't see as much Friekder Dandalleion as possible.

Group G

--Group G                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Osarius                      3   2  1  0    4   2  +2    7
2 Unified Sunrise Islands      3   2  0  1    8   5  +3    6
3 Blouman Empire               3   1  0  2    5   5   0    3
4 Falcus                       3   0  1  2    2   7  −5    1

Francesca says, The fantastic Osarius, firm favourites for the World Cup, top the group with an almost perfect record. Although a draw against lowly Falcus will want to be avoided, and could be attributed to the Firebird's high line, which is susceptible to the Falcus counter attack.

Behind Osarius is the equally fantastic Unified Sunrise Islands, who have traditionally fallen at the Group Stage. With only a loss against Osarius to blemish their record, the pan-continental team will look to build and progress further than you may have thought before the World Cup.

Leonard says, It looks like it is all starting to come together for Arceus' Eleven. Being supported by the likes of Lucas Galhardo and Rolando, the Unified Sunrise Islands have a real chance of going far in the World Cup, and although a match against Audioslavia in the last sixteen is not the most desirable prospect, I think Mihashi Chiyo's team could impress and have a real chance of shocking the best team in the world.

The simulator predicts one more point for Falcus than anyone else, and I truly think this World Cups's "shock team" will crash out without a win. Of course, their level of comparative obscurity could be used to their advantage if sides become complacent against them.

Group H

--Group H                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Audioslavia                  3   3  0  0    6   1  +5    9
2 Ko-oren                      3   2  0  1    5   4  +1    6
3 Royal Kingdom of Quebec      3   1  0  2    2   4  −2    3
4 Kandorith                    3   0  0  3    5   9  −4    0

Francesca says, Audioslavia were always going to do well in a relatively simple game for the world number ones, getting a +5 goal difference to boot, in a group that contains one of the most defensive teams in the multiverse. No word other than class can be used to describe players such as RJ Styrn, Arturo Hudson-Blake and veteran, Andreij Tal and the Bulls are rightfully up there with the greats of the modern game. Expect them to go far, because everyone else does.

Leonard says, Ko-oren are unique in the sheer emphasis they put in defence, so for the simulator to predict the Fireflies to concede four goals is an almost ludicrous statement. Storm Enshadilsa has proven himself one of the best keepers, so if he does end up conceding as many as the simulator suggests - it would be a disaster for him with the emergence of Cláudia Macedo as an attractive alternative.

[Blouman Empire]

THE EMPIRE TIMES

Eagles Ready For Tough Fixture

The Blouman Eagles have landed in San Jose Guayabal setting up base camp in Ramirez where they will play their first two matches as they compete for glory in the 70th World Cup. This World Cup will be the seventh time the Eagles will be competing in the Cup and have so far failed to get past the group stage with their best performance recording one win and finishing third in the past five editions, a record the Eagles will be hoping to break tomorrow. The Eagles had a tough time during the qualifiers in a strong group and despite winning 11 games only just managed to finish second sending them through to the playoffs. Facing off Paradystopia the team went down 3-1 in the first leg but managed to win 2-0 in the second just earning themselves a World Cup berth thanks to away goals. Despite the unconvincing qualification campaign, Captain Hamish Alpin is confident the team are able to move past the group stage. At a press conference Alpin who will be leading the Eagles for the fourth time said “We have been working a lot since the playoffs and I feel we have the ability and confidence to be able to see ourselves move past the group stage”. Manager Logan October who will soon experience his first World Cup has also praised the ability of his team “These players are here because they are good enough to be here, many know what it’s like and what is needed and I’m sure that we will be playing more than three games this time around”.

The Eagles will first play against the Unified Sunrise Island while this is the first time the team are playing under the Unified Sunrise Islands their predecessors are the Northern Sunrise Islands who have been strong contenders in previous World Cups and saw themselves go through to the round of 16 last World Cup losing on penalties to Antoletia. USI have managed to qualify for this World Cup convincingly finishing first nine points ahead of second placed Calanian Union and only losing one game through the qualifiers and will no doubt be looking to continue their strong run of form. When USI and the Eagles face off in the first match both will be looking to start their campaign off with a win to give them the best chance of finishing in the top two before the next two games.

The Eagles will again play at The 56 Stadium for their second game against surprise qualifiers Falcus and while some say they may have had an easy group, others will point out that they went undefeated through the group stage of the qualifying and beating the highly rated Legalese 2-0 as well. While losing in the first leg of the playoffs against Antoletia they comfortably won the second for their first World Cup qualification. While Falcus aren’t expected to progress past the group stage they could cause some upsets against the other three nations in their bids for World Cup glory and certainly aren’t a team to take lightly.

The Eagles will find themselves on the island of Neryungri for their final group stage match against the formidable Osarius. Osarius have never won a World Cup and despite this they are considered a powerhouse in international football and are currently ranked second. After coming in third last World Cup the firebirds will be wanting to rectify the situation and win the title that has just eluded them so many times. The Eagles have never beaten Osarius in the past recording a draw and a loss in the two meetings between the sides and while the Eagles will no doubt seek a win Osarius will no doubt win easily and should have a perfect record by the end of the World Cup.

[Kandorith]

The Red Dragons Return



Group H
Kandorith
Audioslavia
Royal Kingdom of Quebec
Ko-oren

Kandorith has finally made it's reappearance in the World Cup, though a very tough road lies ahead. Xí-tiang will be the man in charge for the upcoming World Cup for Kandorith, after Yúan had a disastrous run with the team; causing him to resign. Xí-tiang has a huge task on his shoulders as the football association wants to see good results, which could be a tough thing to do in the current group. Kandorith's greatest rival but also most respected team will be facing them; Ko-oren. Among the others in the group are heavyweight Audioslavia and Quebec. surely a very tough group for Kandorith if you look solely at ranking. Can this football team grab the number two spot, we sure hope so. Xí-tiang already said he couldn't promise anything, but he would be aiming for a dream World Cup.


This is the second World Cup Kandorith has qualified for and they will have to keep up the good work or even beyond that to keep performing to their expectations. Many fans would like to see Kandorith move passed the group stage and finally become a world class team, something they have trained for, something which has always been just out of reach. This Kandorese team is young, fit and filled with pride; they want to take the advantage in every match, and hopefully they do. The pitch is ready for this team, the team seems ready for the pitch. The only thing which awaits now; is that first whistle of the game. Kandorith is looking proud and energetic, and their attacking style of football could just be enough to beat the stronger teams out there; as Kandorith has the role which fits them most, the underdog role.


Ko-oren


Before the Kandorese team was fit to even participate in the World Cup qualifiers, Kandorith's most beloved international team was Ko-oren, the team Kandorith has to face on match day one. Ko-oren has always been the inspiration for the Kandorese team to build upon and after a long time they will finally face each other on the pitch. Naturally Kandorith would want to get on top of the match to beat Ko-oren, though being beaten by them would proof Kandorith can still learn a lot from this team. No matter which way the results go, the match will not disappoint the fans or the team.

"Facing Ko-oren is a great honour" Méng said. "As a child I already watched the Ko-oren football, dreaming of becoming a football player myself. Now I have achieved that dream and the first challenge in this World Cup will be facing my childhood favorite team. I don't even dare to pray to win, as I just respect them too much. But of course I will try to grab the win for the Kandorese team, no worries about that." Méng said with a chuckle.

Around the field and among fans the same words are being said. The Kandorese crowd greatly respects the Ko-oren side and is expecting a wonderful match to be played on match day one. Kandorith will be playing to prove itself, hoping to snatch a second place; but they will also play, to finally face off with their heroic team; Ko-oren.


Xí-tiang


Xí-tiang is now in charge for the Kandorese team, many wonder who he is exactly. Xí-tiang is a heavy name in Kandorese football, a man of many awards, prizes and winning teams. Before taking on this job he won the domestic league four times in a row with the now legendary Xiǎngzhóu Ravens. He is known for wanting to play a fluent and attacking style of football to stun enemies in their place. His most preferred style is counter-attack based football, utilizing every side of the pitch. He has already said he was glad the Kandorese national team had so much potential for high balls, as he loves seeing the ball being played from one side to the other side of the field in quick succession. Before Xiǎngzhóu Ravens became the result of the merger between Blue Diamonds Kan and Xía Ravens. (Before the city was renamed.) He coached Nagato Goya, one of the most successful teams in Kandorese football history. They have won the domestic league over 33 times of which 3 times under the leadership of Xí-tiang, who is also a former player at the club.


The Kandorese football association saw Xí-tiang as the perfect successor of Yúan, who left the coaching position after failing to reach the goals set by himself and the board of football. Knowing Xí-tiang's history, he will pull up the level of the entire national football team, as he has done with clubs in the past. He is known for making surprise tactics and even getting surprise wins; even if the odds are against his team. There is a certain magic and mystery surrounding the calm and quiet man; He will rarely stand up and shout at officials or even his players. His hand signals and facial expressions speak for him. In the end he is the coach who speaks the language he loves the most, football.

[Northern Sunrise Islands]

"So, here we are again." muttered Ming to an unsuspecting Ruby. Considerably, the oddballs of Unified Sunrise's roster, Ming had been the first player that, by far, didn't look human by the slightest. Given birth inside Sunrisian territory, though really more of a Prowerician, if the fact her skin was covered by fur and she looked like a fox that happens to walk on two feet. However, she turned out to be a more than decent striker that would later be a very valuable football star on the Daineri market. "World Cup. Showcase of the Immortals."

"Yeah." answered Ruby, smiling. "Kinda scares you up a bit after what happened last time." The memory of last World Cup was still fresh. Now, the Sunrisian team expected to be out on the final rounds, but, to say the least, the Penalty Shootout elimination against Antoletia was, by far, one of the most angering (and memorable) moments of Sunrisian football. Needless to say, it didn't appease to the crowd at all a loss against what, according to many, is one of the most underperfoming football teams to ever have played a World Cup. Antoletia didn't deserve the spot on the Quarter-Finals and that was something that could be agreed by many. It stopped a Sunrisian team that had all to surprise the crowd. Stopped by a bunch of weaklings that pulled an upset on the last minute.

Regardless, the Sunrisians shrugged it off and returned to the World Cup qualifiers and after curb-stomping their Group with only one unexpected loss to similarly underperforming Jeru FC, signed their ticket to San Jose Guayabal. The Sunrisians were back in the game, clad in grey, black and yellow. The Savior Grey. The Arceus' Eleven, The Black-White-and-Yellow, USI... the Victory Road Warriors on a need of a Victory Road, which hopefully was San Jose Guayabal. "Relax. We're prepared, we're on good condition and we're unstoppable." assured Felipe Maniche, before Isaac Suplex-Tilt-a-Whirl broke a hole at the hotel's door with his head, smiling. "BESIDES THAT LOSS TO JERU FC!", which caused an angered Ruby to leap on his direction and kick him out of the door. "Next time, knock the damn door!"

USI's group wasn't too much of a hassle, at least according to whoever predicted the Cup. While Osarius was a serious World Cup contender, it couldn't really be said the same about Blouman Empire and Falcus itself wasn't really considered that big of an opponent this time around. To be honest, the toughest part of the Group, besides the Osarius' match, is having to avoid losing training time because the new World Cup fighting game by Snowflake Games was too addictive. The Sunrisians were also looking up on their rivals. Besides a match against the Audioslavians that could be problematic, the Sunrisians were in fact, trying to find ways to face Nephara or The Calanian Union just for the hell of it.

Ruby decided to look by the window of the hotel to outside, only to find some of the Sunrisians' roster playing football with some locals and among them, she could find a number 25 dashing through the field. red hair dashing through the field. Ruby still could hear a voice saying that she was meant to be with Red and they would then unleash a nightmare only known as the Deadly Alliance through the world. "Food for thought, Ruby?" asked Ming, smiling after noticing where her eyes were looking at and later pointing to a bunch of ladies on the crowd. "You should be quicker with those kinds of things."

[Super-Llamaland]

Alaric
Part One...ish?

Yes, I already wrote part one. But then I re-wrote it!

chapter one

Winter had struck the land hard.

The harvest that year had been withered by famine, and by the time the chill air and blowing leaves of October had faded away to November’s bleak landscape, a farmers’ migration had begun towards more fertile lands. Now winter had pounced upon the unlucky who hadn’t left like a wolf. Whatever last efforts had been made to salvage some profit from the dying year were squashed under lupine pawprints, and now Rocagne starved.

Yet from inside the confines of Castle Rocagne, Henri Geroux saw none of it. When he’d pressed his father for more information, he’d received a curt “you won’t starve, Henri,” and nothing else. It maddened him, not knowing what the people wanted. But if Paleis was to be reunified, he was told over and over again, it was the only way.

Like he would be doing the unification instead of Duke Christian Geroux. The fat b***ard had probably forgotten how to die in the midst of his active court life, Henri reckoned. And his younger brother, Charles, was shaping up to be a carbon copy, more prodigal than a prodigy.

But for now, Henri could study. Some day, his father would die, and then he would lead Rocagne, the castle from which North Paleis was governed, into a new era. He just hadn’t thought of what it might be yet.

A knock on the door interrupted his lucubrations. He turned around. It was a royal messenger, and he sighed as he realized who it was from. Typical of his father to send him roaming the corridors at nine-thirty in the midst of a Paleisan winter, but ever since he’d asked to be moved farther away so as not to be distracted, it appeared their relations had soured to the point where this was standard behavior.

“Hullo, sir,” he said boredly. “What news does my father bring?”

“You’re to speak with your father, Duke Christian, immediately. And bring nothing with you.”

“I would be glad to prepare for his visit.”

“You’re to report to his antechamber by nine forty-five,” the messenger said curtly, and left.

Henri followed, absentmindedly beginning the trip to his father’s antechamber. No doubt he would be tongue-lashed again, but the real question is whether his father would stop with his tongue or move on to a real whip.

His footsteps echoed emptily on the stone chamber as he walked. The prince regent out so late was apparently enough to cause a few glances or downright glares, and he subtly ignored them.

He came to the door of Duke Christian Geroux. Ruler of all of North Paleis. And his father. Henri knocked gently on the door. “Come in,” the Duke said.

He was escorted into the room by a servant. “He’s angry today,” the attendant whispered to him nervously. Henri nodded grimly, then steeled himself for the meeting. He would need any courage he could muster.

“Hello, father,” he said nervously, stepping carefully into the chamber. He’d been whipped for “that infernal stomping” too many times to do otherwise.


Castle Rocagne was by no means a court of prestige, but Duke Christian made his best efforts to make it look like one. The entire room was decked with velvet, and the throne chair - already plated thickly with pure gold - had apparently been replaced with a new, better model. Henri thought of the peasants starving an hour’s walk outside, and not for the first time, his father sickened him.

“Hello, Henri,” the Duke said evenly, “be a good son and sign this, for me? And sit down, please.”

Henri sat down and looked at the paper the Duke had indicated. A fine vellum contract, with eight spaces at the bottom for signatures. The first seven had already been written in. Henri read off countless tutors, mentors, and relatives. The eighth was left empty, and underneath it in carefully scratched pen read: HENRI GEROUX, FORMER HEIR TO THE THRONE OF NORTH PALEIS.

With a sinking feeling, Henri skipped to the top. The paper was titled: ABDICATION OF HENRI GEROUX FROM THE TITLE OF ELDEST PRINCE OF ROCAGNE.

“I see,” he said, trying to keep the shakiness from his voice, “that you’ve come up with another way to threaten me into doing something. You’re a regular haven of innovation, father. Is it a marriage this time? Some princess’ mother catch your heart and you want a dual binding?”

“No,” the Duke said, and smiled. Henri’s heart plummeted.

“I-” Henri caught himself before he said any more. “I...er, didn’t think Charles was ready for the throne.” Charles was his younger brother, only fifteen.

“He isn’t,” Duke Christian Geroux, who called himself Henri’s father, said. “But he’s certainly better than you.”

Henri was tired of playing games with his father. “How so?”

The Duke smiled again, but it never reached his eyes. “Charles, for one, doesn’t write papers advocating the overthrow of the Paleis monarchy and its replacement with a democratic society.”

Henri flinched, tried to catch himself, and realized it was too late. With trembling hand, he reached for the pen and signed his abdication papers.

“I’ll give you twenty minutes to pack,” the Duke said, “and if I see you again, I’ll order my men to shoot you full of arrows. You are hereby banished from Paleis. Now get out.” Henri stood in shock and turned stiffly.

“Goodbye, Duke Christian,” Henri whispered. “Had you only been my father, Paleis could have prospered.” And before the Duke could reply, he turned and left the room, and his future with it.

chapter two

Packing was easy. Henri brought all of the money he owned and as many books as he could carry. From there, he could buy whatever he needed. He’d certainly be able to seek refuge in a nearby country - Yves, to the south, seemed the obvious choice, but Cårlssen and its northern neighbors were also good options.

Packing was impossible. He had been banished from his own kingdom by his own father, and the too-sweet stink of irony filled his heart as he mechanically placed books in a rucksack until it could hold no more.

Henri walked out of the castle and desolately into the bitter cold. A light snow dusted the landscape, making an already-cold winter night freezing. Blinded by the loss of his future, Henri managed to stumble on for a few miles before he managed to buy a single room in a rough inn and sleep until he was evicted at two o’clock the next afternoon.

At the very least, he was finally getting to see his own nation. But it wasn’t a sight one would want to remember.

Everywhere he searched for food that wasn’t an inn, the same answer popped up with distressingly increasing regularity. Starving farmer after starving farmer informed Henri that there was simply nothing left, no matter how much Henri offered to pay.

So he walked. Walked until he found another castle that would accept him. He’d tried to keep his royal identity a secret, and so far it had succeeded. He could work his way up, make something of his life. In a foreign military, perhaps, or a scholar in the great cities of Yves-Gascony or Gutenbürg.

And one day, he would return to Castle Paleis and overthrow his father, he consoled himself as he walked down a lone alleyway one night. He walked besides another man, and as they glanced at each other, the man’s eye sparked as if in confusion. Or recognition, Henri thought, shuddering.

And suddenly a knife materialized in the man’s hand, and a razor blade cut through his chest. He screamed, doubling over and stumbling forwards, hand clutched over the gaping wound. “Shut up,” somebody said, and the knife cut him again.

Henri dropped like a rag doll, gasping in pain. “Don’t you dare steal from me,” he gasped out in the heat of the moment, “I’m Henri Geroux.”

“I know,” the man said, grinning. “That’s why I stabbed you.”

Henri stared at the man. A soldier, probably. But he seemed too different to be a sent by his father. After his initial shock, he managed to pluck his words out of his rolling pain.

“That’s...stupid,” he said between gasps. “If you wanted me dead, I would be dead right now with a knife or six through my head.”

“Well, yes,” the man said, and his grin widened. “But I want to make this as painful as possible.” and the knife came slashing in again, driving a cut across his stomach. He doubled over and gasped out of despair: “I’m not the heir anymore! I don’t need assassination.”

The man’s knife paused halfway to Henri’s throat. “What?”


“I’ve been abdicated. For treason,” he added hopefully.

“Treason?” the man still glared at him, but it had changed to something more sardonic than the fury and scorn of before. Henri hoped that the man wouldn’t finish the blow - it would be cruel, being hacked to death on the cold cobblestones of the streets. He tried to ignore the pain and adrenaline coursing through him, and replied: “Yes. Plotting the overthrow of Duke Christian.”

“Well, tell me your story then, and I’ll bring you back to the castle,” the man said, sheathing his knife. Henri exhaled in relief. The action made his ribs hurt, and he winced. “Can’t,” he gasped.

“Can’t?”

“I can’t go back,” he said. “The Duke will kill me.” the soldier didn’t seem to notice. He was studying a small bottle he’d fished out of his pocket.

“Here,” the man said, tipping the bottle into his mouth. The liquid tasted sour and dark. “This should help. Put you to sleep for a bit, Henri. One day you will come back and overthrow the Duke. And I’ll be ready for it.”

The man must have misread the dose. Henri woke up alone on Paleis’ border with Gutenbürg.

From there there was nothing Henri could do but start again. He worked his way up the social ladder, hopping from city to city, before settling in Jaegensten, a riverport in the southeast. And, though he promised himself he would one day overthrow Duke Christian, he instead fell in love. He never returned to Paleis again. But his son did.

This is his story.

---

---

---

APPARENTLY WE MADE IT TO THE WORLD CUP - A PREVIEW OF GROUP D

Group D - usually, this is a chance for us bloggers to make either a "D is for Death" quip or a "D is for Dull" quip. This Group D, of course, is neither. The group our Llamanean Tigers have been placed in is rich in interesting teams - a Vilitan squad eager to reclaim the crown, a quickly rising Sanctii group, the creative and dangerous eleven from Mizuyuki, and of course the brilliant-half-the-time enigma that is the Super-Llamaland National Team. But Vilita and Saintland are dangerous, top-fifteen squads, and the Tigers and Mizuyuki are not - so this could be either quip, really.

The Tigers at this cup seem the weakest squad, and by rank and qualifying performance they certainly are. But Bogdan held back during quals, and with Henry McNeal back (not starting, of course), a strong offense that's creative and fast, and a defense that may or may not be able to hold their own, their hopes are still more than alive. Still, they'll need to defeat...

Mizuyuki, the 凤凰十一 (Phoenix Eleven, as they're referred to in the southern Xingcheng region), has returned to the World Cup after a brief hiatus, featuring a flexible 4-2-3-1 that attacked contemptuously and creatively both in a dominant qualifiers campaign that saw them finish with thirty-eight points, a mere two behind Vilita. With Kurugaya in front, the dangerous Mikoto, and other threats like Airi and Ruiko, not to mention a more-than-competent defense that conceded sixteen in fifteen qualifying matches, and our chances against them look questionable. Still, if we play well we can take a point or three off them, and the two similar teams should make for a great display of underdog might. If they beat us, though, they'll still need a win against Saintland, or perhaps revenge on...

Vilita, the World Cup 68 champions (and WC20, of course, but that was two centuries ago) and world number-five, the Vilitan Jungle Cats are back after a strong qualifying campaign. Dropping just five points in fifteen matches and automatically qualifying for the Final 32, the Jungle Cats are ready to reclaim the crown they lost in WC69, the Cup of Chaps. The team relies on a strong offense, featuring such stars like Nili Ylimaiina, whose twenty-seven goals on the senior team at just twenty-seven are certainly impressive, as well as the experienced Kiroki Mitaroka to keep ahead of their opponents, a solid defense anchored by Zelkki Milake in the net and a young defense with twenty-four-year-old Endur Rotropii at its head should not be underestimated. If this team doesn't make it to the semifinals, they'll look at it as a disappointment - so expect them to steamroll all in their path, including the Tigers, although if we're on our top game we may be able to put up a fight. Still, we should probably save our top game for the match against Mizuyuki, or perhaps against...

Saintland, somehow even more attack-minded than they are religious, is the second-highest ranked squad in Group D. Seeded fifteenth in the world and with an attack-minded, roughing-heavy 3-2-2-3, the Sanctii, lead by captain and star halfback Prince Andreas, also feature such stars like the attacking trio of Phillippus Vagionius, Stephanus Vagionius, and Herakles Karoki, as well as the competent Alessandro Seius in net. They'll be ready to attack early, probably earning cards multiple times in the process, and Bogdan will either try to hold them off (with our defense? doubt it) or, more likely, strike the first blow. A win here won't be easy, but it's definitely a possibility. At least that will shut the bustards (oops! Sorry, Sarian) up about how baseball and football are different things. We know, Saintland, and if things go right at the Cup we'll prove we can beat you in both.

[San Jose Guayabal]

World Cup 70 Inauguration, Guayabalense side.

The crowd went into a more or less rapid pace into the stadium, some were entering while eating or some staying until the start of the SJG duel against Rüntenbach. The atmosphere was unthinkable, thousands of fans waiting to enter the stadium to reserve seats, while police inspected around ensuring the safety of fans, considerable visitors preferred to enter after having ingested beers like any typical person of Rüntenbach, everything was ready for the duel as also the formal events, such as the opening ceremony of the Guayabalense side of the tournament, which was seen by many as very interesting, including difficult groups and the so-called Group of Death.

The choreographic groups were prepared for the peak moment, what had been tested for several months before it would be implemented, some nervous decided to take a little water to relax or listen to music until the staging of the opening. "This will be very good, but we're not playing but we will enter to the pitch to give the best of us." said one of the participants of the staging, thinking of improving her makeup for the moment. Much of the fans will have their eyes on participants, nothing can go wrong.

The timing of the staging arrived promptly at 5:00 PM time of San Salvador, the act started with a famous song of San José Guayabal. There was no better way to start with a rhythmic song that identifies perfectly as is the music in San Jose Guayabal, rhythmic as is also the other songs that characterize San Jose Guayabal cultural form. With their hats and rancher customes as a symbol of ancient heritage based on livestock, who makes proud to any San Jose Guayabal citizen because it was the cornerstone to build a strong nation as it is now, with precise movements back and forth that captivated the audience.

After nearly twenty minutes of acrobatic moves and dances from various songs in medley, came the time of withdrawal, the audience applauded because of the effort put by the dancers, but has not been a very good presentation as perceived by some of fans.

Several people running around stage to remove all the set used by participants in the choreographic act, while a folder on the grass and a podium was placed, seemingly certain authorities were going to give a speech, which was slightly interrupted by rain ten minutes after the logistical movement began and began to march personalities like SJG Prime Minister, the President of the Republic, the President of the Guayabalense Football Association and also a member of the organizing committee, as a group of translators apparently would be a small bilingual speech. The President of the FA went to the podium and started to talk in Spanish, while the translator did his work and talked in English, at the end he said.

- "Damas y caballeros, después de este corto discurso."
(Ladies and gentleman, after this speech)

"No me queda nada mas que declarar"
(I have nothing else more to do, so I declare."

"La inauguración de la Copa del Mundo en su edición número 70 ahora mismo."
(The opening of the World Cup in its 70th edition now.)

After the president of the FA culminated with his words, a lot of fireworks began to enlighten San Salvador, the fans cheered and only waited impatiently at the start of the game against Rüntenbach.

---

After a busy day at work, a man decided to go to the bar in order to read the newspaper, he felt very stressed but at least he knew that this was his last day of work for the year, asked for the newspaper while drinking a cold beer.

EL NACIONAL
World Cup Group Draw announced, exhaustive analysis of every group.

San Jose Guayabal has been back in the Group E of the group phase as happened in the World Cup 68, back in Legalese and Free Republics. This time we have a rival that although we do not find faced any chance, know them in detail, as two of those are of our own region and the otheris from Rushmore, which is known for the simple fact of having players in competitive teams and also doing it well on WC's, including their best player plays in the same team as Rodolfo Zelaya. Certainly the group may seem strange to some, but we hope that this little guide will facilitate to clarify these doubts.

The Wanderers - Pasarga - Rank: 8th - Star player: Tobias Möller

What a pleasant surprise that we have here, a team that can play neutrally but strangely destroys his opponents, I say oddly in the sense that they scores more goals than you might think at viewing their tactic eye. Pasarga is one of those teams that leave impressed by its neat forwards and good defenders.

Pasarga is a team that should always be taken into account in the qualifiers, they usually have a good average goals per game, which certainly helps in goal difference, so easy to fall into the World Cup most sometimes, though this time they struggled to qualify.

In their qualifying group, they won eleven tied four and only lost one, nevertheless, most of the time spent in second place because of a splendid campaign of Hicaña that unfortunately dwindled in the important games that ultimately left them with the desire to qualify. Pasarga took advantage of the fall of Hicaña and took the top spot, ranking with 37 points, which was enough to qualify directly.

As for the players it is noteworthy that blends youth with experience of players having a good average age, with the classic 4-4-2 is to secure the ball fluidly, but has good individuals as is to Tobias Möller, a veteran attacker maybe this in their recent games with national team but surely seek by all means emphasize, the striker is the top scorer in the Divisjon One, plays in the same team of Rodolfo Zelaya (Northbrook Diamonds) and surely will seek to cause problems in the defense of rivals.

As to how we can play against Pasarga, we have different options, the most appropriate to seek the left to attack next, when you have three veterans on defense, it will be very difficult to go through the right side, so do it in the left side defended by Jan Macík may be favorable due to their relative inexperience compared the rest of the team. Take advantage of the set pieces will be fundamental to beat Pasarga

Pasarga has everything it takes to seek the leadership of the group, has the pressure of being favorite at their backs, perhaps the experience is something that could help them to get the first place of the group.

Die Maschine - Rüntenbach - Rank: 19th - Star player: Hans Wippenback

Die Maschine returns to the World Cup for the third time, a solid team that has established itself among the best in the world, a team that we already know how they play. Interestingly have the same style of play that our selection, so surely is the most predictable team group, we will face in the opening game.

While this is a team that until recently this shuttling between the rankings, it is not rare to see surprises from this team as the did in certain tournaments, they achieved the fourth place in the Cup of Harmony 59 against all odds, that being the starting point of consolidation among the best teams. On this occasion the consolidation helped them to qualify as easily.

In their qualifying group, Die Maschine scored fourty points, placing them on the second place behind Saintland due to the tiebreaker of Head to Head points. they managed thirteen wins, one draw and two losses, being something that catapulted them to qualify as the best second place of the qualifying, showing a good performance in terms of scoring goals and the defense sector.

If we talk about the players, they have much more experience than youth, even though it has great promise as Xhaká, a player of Guayabalense parents who migrated to Rüntenbach, choosing to play for that nation but he had the option to represent our nation because of the nationality of their parents. The way to play them is through 3-1-3-3, basically their game plan is a replica of ours, but employing more experienced than our players and also employ more forceful factor than speed compared to our system.

The best way to play against Rüntenbach is making frequent counte attacks, the speed of their players certainly can not be too much, they are in the normal range but if the attackers of our team apply thoroughly in the match, we may be able to beat them through the speed.

Rüntenbach can be a team that will fight till the end, but this may not be their best participation, they are not seen a very positive outlook, as may already reached a time of generational change for them, they will finish last.

The Blue Hedgehogs - Buyan - Rank: 34th - Star player: Sverre Devold

A team that has been improving rapidly is Buyan, the Blue Hedgehogs is a team that has a very interesting game technique, this is the second appearance of them in the World Cup, after participating in the World Cup 68, this time waiting make progress to the group phase just as we want.

The Blue Hedgehogs managed to win his first tournament, the BoF 54 unbeaten by defeating The Sarian in agonizing in the final, and after making a playoff descente in the World Cup 67, managed to surprise many at qualify for the World Cup 68 for the first time in only their second attempt, strangely lost their chance of qualifying for the World Cup 69 and now in the most recent playoffs, managed classified as first group above Greater Watford and Turori, to the surprise of many they were eliminated.

In this WC Qualifiers, Buyan was a candidate for the playoffs, yet the Blue Hedgehogs managed to take control of the group early on and qualified to the World Cup, beating Turori in key games and keeping at bay Greater Watford with thirty-four points were qualified to WC.

Buyan has a wide range of players can choose to perform feats, from young hhasta veterans. It is a perfect combination undoubtedly with a 4-4-2 diamond shape, this team is conservative but very effective in attacking the opponent. Sverre Devold may be having a bad time but Buyan is one of those teams where the sense of collective game is strong.

How to play them? It is a somewhat dificl question to answer because your gaming system that allows for a good balance, but they have a weakness, the space that they generate in their midfield strangely, these spaces can be exploited to overcome, but as I said it will be difficult because of their sense of collective game.

Buyan will be a formidable rival, but the last game is against SJG, in what will be a direct duel for sorting Round of sixteen the pressure of the fans towards the opponent affect them, we have been in the same role above, when empaamos against Free Republics in the final game of the group phase, and the goal was achieved, the Blue Hedgehogs will finish third in the group.

In resume: SJG has a dream opportunity to qualify for the Round of 16, have the fans on their side, will not cost you adapt to the conditions, knows the pitch and has some knowledge of rivals. It's now or never, SJG has a good overview to qualify for the next round, even in second place, but it's something.

[Nova Anglicana]

Lions Prepare For World Cup Debut

Hayden Landers, Nova Anglican Football Today

After their 4-2 win away to Kalumba to complete the playoff sweep, the Nova Anglicana national football team returned home to Londinium for training. Following an intense workout regimen during their World Cup layoff, they were fêted by the nation with a parade down the streets of our capital as we bid farewell to our heroes who had delivered the first ever World Cup berth to Nova Anglicana. One might think that all this celebration is a bit premature, given that our boys have not actually done anything in the World Cup yet. But to those naysayers, I would respond that our national team deserves all the respect and admiration we can give them. After all, they are the lowest-ranked nation to advance to the World Cup this time around, which indicates that they probably shouldn't have gotten there at all. They pulled off an amazing feat, seeded fourth but finishing second, and then taking revenge on Kalumba for WC 67 qualifying to move on to the main event.

And who are the Lions' groupmates in this 70th World Cup? First in Group F, we have a familiar face, Farfadillis. Farfadillis, along with Kalumba, were in the Lions' WC 67 qualifying group, and while the Lions managed to hold them to two goals in two matches, they could not score a single goal, prompting derisive commentary from some Farf pundits. But how does that Farf team compare to the one the Lions will face this time around? Well, there is one constant. The star power and all-around excellence of Dandalleion lead this Farf team. Playing for Vilita's renowned Jungle Strike FC, this may be Dandalleion's last cycle in such form, but it's one cycle too early for the Lions. With Dandalleion up front and the renowned midfield trio of Tuzzio, Fôx, and Kâí, this team has unparalleled creativity on the offensive end. It remains to be seen whether the Lions' defense, which permitted more than a goal and a half per game, will be capable of stopping the relentless Farf attack. However, there should be plenty of opportunities on the offensive end for the Lions to counter. The Lions' first World Cup match should be a doozy.

Up next is the Rushmori powerhouse of Valladares. The Valladars are ranked 7th in the world, a ranking that is well-deserved. They won all three games in the World Cup 69 group stage, scoring eight goals and allowing two, before falling 3-1 to Turori in the Round of 16. They finished 13-1-2 in qualifying, allowing just 15 goals while scoring 37. They play an extremely wide 3-4-3 that at times can resemble a 3-2-5, a formation not seen since the dawn of football. The Valladars will surely stretch the field, attacking down the wings and challenging Bradley Lancaster and Felix Kelly. Gignac, Rosenthal, and Pedrinho are deadly in front of the goal, while Coupet and Pedretti, the defensive midfielders, challenge and stifle enemy attacks in front of the three across the back. If the Lions can at least hang with the Valladars, it will go a long way towards defining this team.

Finally, there is the Northern King, the nation that every team in the multiverse looks up to (except for maybe Audioslavia), the Terns of the Polar Islandstates. Despite a 2-0 shocker loss to unranked Beauce on the final matchday, they managed to qualify directly anyway. In fact, despite the Lions' three groupmates belonging to three different pots, they all managed to directly qualify for the World Cup, and PIS may be the best of them all. Ranked 4th in the world, which is actually a decline from a few cycles ago, the Polarians are a team that gives no quarter. Extremely physical and veteran, the Terns will take advantage of the Lions' inexperience and punish them for every transgression. Although the defense will get top billing, the forward duo of Gustaf Kohlemainen and Torsten Wolff are among the best in the multiverse. It's the last match in the group stage and the Lions will likely be eliminated, but for the sake of national pride, they cannot have a bad result against PIS.

As for how the Lions will do, who knows? Pundits from The Sarian see the Lions opening with a win over Farfadillis, but losing to Valladares and Polar Islandstates. That would be a fabulous start for the Lions and really catapult them into the conversation for qualifying every time out. I don't think that there's any chance of the Lions moving on; that's just too much to ask, but the Lions really should come away with at least one point so that their debut doesn't feel wasted. Barring that, a hard-fought game in all three matches is all we can ask for. If they fight hard and don't give up, they will have shown the Nova Anglican spirit regardless of their results. The team chose Bradley Lancaster, the starting fullback, to face the press and Lancaster did not disappoint, entertaining local and foreign media with his earnest responses and bright smile. He promised "a good show for all the fans" and "some good, old-fashioned, hard-nosed football." If they deliver on that promise, we'll have a great World Cup debut.


Lions fullback Bradley Lancaster speaking to the media

[Eura]

Reflecting on the drama in Bastion as Eura avert disaster
Eura have a tough group, but will take inspiration from this remarkable last minute victory
Simon Banning reports from Bastion Arena

EURA - 4
Spartan 7
Oslograd 68
Ashtree 90
Sinclair 90+5
Watson s/o 89

ISULA GE RU - 1
Saidosaquera 32
Saidosaquera miss pen 89

Tonight, Eura prepare to face the mighty Valanora, the surprise package HopNation, and their indomitable bogey team the Holy Empire in the World Cup group stage; after two cycles of falling to embarrassing group exits in winnable groups, they now face a difficult and perhaps necessary challenge. To give them encouragement, let's look back at the victory that summed a qualifying campaign that went much better than statistics suggest alone.

It was the final night of qualifying, and the weather in Bastion was ideal. Completely calm, the stadium packed out with the hard core all attending and a formidable away support of 10,000 fans from the most over performing team in the group, Isula ĝe Ru. The situation was tense. Despite having played well throughout qualifying and being denied safe qualification mostly thanks to referees and regrettable reverses, Eura were hardly home and dry and faced a formidable opponent who knew they could still qualify themselves - or at least make a playoff - if they won their game. Meanwhile Nova Anglicana were facing the hardly imposing Western Borderlands on home soil (the team whose only remarkable result had been an inexplicable draw with an under strength Eura). Both games would be rather remarkable, though neither side could see it coming. The odds on result was for Eura to just about see off Isula in a fairly quiet game while Nova Anglicana secured their playoff spot by emphatically beating Western Borderlands. Both teams did indeed win, but not in the manner they might have expected. Nova Anglicana had an end to end goal fest as they put six past their lower seeded opposition but also let in four, meaning that they had done all they could do while Eura had no idea until they had reached full time what the other result had been. So things would be decided in Bastion.

It started off so, so well and for a short while looked like it might be a wrap up. The Isulan's are a good team and considering that this doesn't seem to be their main sport, and they certainly were unlucky in their home game when they met Eura on one of their better days, losing despite taking the lead and dominating the first half. However, they came to Bastion with the same formation and same gameplan, the same lineup even, and they paid dearly for their tactical naivety. Eura appeared to have predicted this, and came out with a tinkered formation; they returned to the more traditional two man front line of Ashtree and Oslograd and threw themselves forward for the first five minutes with remarkable reckless abandon, which unnerved the Isulans who were simply unable to get their possession and through ball based play going in the middle. Their midfielders were too busy dropping deep to deal with Eura, who instead of sitting back and waiting for the counter attack while relying on having in form defenders like last time, were pushing high up the pitch from the first moment and took full advantage of having the kick off. It was only twenty four seconds into the game when Adams flashed a cross into the box that Spartan met on the volley from 14 yards, slicing it just over the bar.

The away side were not ready for this. Ashtree forced Sinha into a painful save by cracking a shot straight at him from 10 yards, hammering into the goalkeepers chest. As the sixth minute ticked over with Eura having already registered five shots on goal, the away side might have felt that the storm was over as Blackthorn blazed a hopeful shot over from 30 yards. They would have been wrong to think so, in fact their defence was unlocked just a minute later as the bouncing Bastion crowd finally exploded in a manner this reporter hasn't heard for years, after five minutes of teasing by the Euran front line. It took some typical technical brilliance from Sinclair to star the move, bringing down an aimless long ball by Gilbert with his left boot on the first touch and nutmegging Ciaba before he could even blink. Sinclair sprinted away, charging down the middle, before chipping the ball over Rusu Lara as the defender charged out to meet him. Sam Asthree had burst ahead and was ready to meet catch the loose ball and prod it past the keeper as he charged out, but Sinha beat him to it and somehow pawed it away. However the ball came straight out to John Spartan, who rifled the ball through the out of position Sinha without hesitating from 25 yards. The Isulan goalkeeper had a right to be frustrated as Eura finally got some luck with a decision, as Ashtree had been played offside by both fullbacks when Sinclair sent the ball his way. No-one had seen it though, as the Sunrisian officials saw off their first controversial decision of the match without too much of a furor.

Learning from the mistakes of yourself and others isn't just something the Isulan's could be better at. Eura learned this the hard way as they slackened off the pressure and let the Isulan's build up some of their own, repeating the mistake the away side had made against Eura themselves after taking the lead in the other tie. The away side might have been naive, but they knew when to take an opportunity. After they had taken a few attempts at goal without success, and the Euran's had kept things even with a couple of half chances of their own, the Isulan's got a goal out of nothing and instilled a very obvious sense of unease in the home crowd. It didn't even come in the way that the Isulan's usually get their goals - through balls, sudden energetic attacks down the middle and flanks or corners. Domique had taken an indirect free kick about 40 yards from goal, taking a one-two with Gea before wandering forward to the 30 yard mark. He then opportunistically decided to have a shot, but it thundered into Gilbert who then fell forward onto it. The Directus defender made a rare mistake; he didn't actually trap the ball and tried to get to his feet before actually doing anything with it. Saidosaquera was standing next to him and simply nipped the ball off of Gilbert's left foot and then before Waller could react, he passed the ball to the Euran goalkeeper's left and began to celebrate. It was an extremely rare error by Gilbert, and killed the game until half time as both sides took stock of their situation.

Eura thankfully injected a bit of urgency into their game after the break, while the Isulan's seemed to keep their act together at the back but without showing much creativity further up the pitch. Their midfield was having an off day, and with their fairly straightforward gameplan a lack of tactical nous or adaptability became an evidently critical flaw in their set up. Their midfield were ineffectual, leaving Eura free to increase the pressure as time went on. After a number of chances went to waste, Bastion was on its feet in the 61st minute as Ashtree found himself through on goal. Remarkably though his finish from just outside the box beat Sinha but also beat the outside of the post, going a couple of feet wide. Finally, in the 68th minute, Eura had the crucial goal that they deserved. At first glance Mike Adams did all the work. He sprinted down the wing as Eura surged once more, cut inside the left back before rolling the ball back to Blackthorn. The defensive midfielder's return pass was unusually bad and overhit, yet Adams managed to keep it in play and then chip in a delightful cross. Yet it was Skorji Oslograd who applied the final world class touch and finish. He was only 8 yards from goal and had two defenders next to him yet he still managed to chest the ball down, turn his back to goal and use his intimidating strength to writhe past them both and toepoke the ball past Sinha.

Once again though the Isulan's came back with their own spell of attacks, but this time it was not Eura's fault and the Isulan's were actually creating some dangerous chances. Saidosaquera put a shot wide from the edge of the box and Domique headed straight at Waller from a Maria cross before Oslograd rattled the bar from nowhere in the 77th minute. Then disaster struck. Saidosaquera had been causing trouble for much of the game apart from his goal and he was about to strike again from an angle in the 89th minute when Andrew Watson cynically hacked the Isulan down 8 yards from goal. Watson saw a second yellow and subsequently red while his namesake, the manager, was forced to sub Churchilli for Madison, adopting a three man back line, assuming the penalty would be scored and that Eura would have to chase the win in the final minutes. Bastion fell silent as Waller faced Saidosaquera from the spot. Ever since Daniel Belgrave had retired, Eura's remarkably good penalty shoot out and in general penalty record had faltered, though this was not the fault of Waller. Tonight, he gave us a sign that things might be changing again with regards to Eura's luck both scoring from the spot, and stopping their opposition doing so. Saidosaquera stepped up in front of 100,000 desperate home fans and calmly shot to the right, only for Waller to dive to his left and get down low to parry the ball away. Madison tracked back and kept the ball in on the backline before beating an opposition player and pushing out. Saidosaquera deserved a better ending after his man of the match performance.

While the fans were in delirium celebrating that pivotal save, Eura were suddenly moving up the pitch. The Isulan's professionalism had dropped for just a moment as they despaired over their missed opportunity, which might have given them a few minutes to go for the win against ten man Eura. Now, as Madison passed to the substitute King (on at the same time as Madison, but for Blackthorn) on the halfway line, the Euran fans suddenly realised they were away and egged on their team as they flew forward. The Isulans were now desperately retreating as King pivoted on the spot and played the ball forward for Spartan to run onto. The captain had miles of space in the middle, and only the defender Rusu Lara ahead of him while Ashtree and Oslograd ran on, with Sinclair quickly joining them. He opted to calmly pass the ball right to Ashtree, who took a moment to look up before drilling the ball accurately into the top left hand corner. Bastion exploded for the fourth time of the evening (don't get too excited, Sameban readers) as Eura tasted victory. They made a final substitution, bringing off Oslograd for a midfielder, Bell, to see out the game. The result was well and truly confirmed now and Bastion sung in celebration, but there would be time for icing on the cake. In the fifth minute of stoppage time (there were seven after an injury to Ciaba), Adams floated a cross at a medium height into the box from the right. It was well delivered but no Euran player appeared to be near it and no Isulan met it. Sinha would be furious then when Sinclair arrived at the far post to meet the ball with his left foot to volley it first time past the keeper. The game was over, and thankfully, Eura's World Cup dream was not.

Player Ratings

Eura - Waller 8, Churchilli 7 (Madison 6), Gilbert 6, Rogers 7, Watson 7, Adams 7, Spartan 8, Blackthorn 7 (King 6), Sinclair 8, Oslograd 8 (Bell 6), Ashtree 7

Isula de Ru - Sinha 5, Goranu 6, Ciaba 6 (Auri 5), Rusu Lara 5, Alassæra 5, Isula Maria 7, Domique 7, Sel Sol 6 (Gaubilha 7), Saida 5, Gea 6, Saidosaquera 8

Match Stats

Shots - EUR 18 - 12 ISL
Shots on Target - EUR 8 - 8 ISL
Possession - EUR 57% - 43% ISL
Fouls - EUR 14 - 14 ISL
Attendance - 109,859
Man of the Match - Elhu Micaila Saidosaquera (Isula ge Ru)

[San Jose Guayabal]

Today we are starting the WC Finals, teams will need to do their best in order to win some points and try to get to the next round, the only sure thing is that we will see spectacular game displays from the participants, good luck and let's do it!

FINALS: MATCHDAY 1 CUTOFF FOR THE EQUESTRIAN SIDE

Wanna break the habit?

THE SCORES

[Farfadillis]

So we're here. After a long road with poor media coverage, the team managed what was most likely the best qualifiers run in its history. The defense looked really solid (!!) and the offense, while not as top-notch as it could've been, was certainly good enough by Farf standards. Most players are in good form, and nothing can possibly stop us from getting to the knock-out round...

except of course being third seed by one ranking place...

and being drawn with the best second seed according to the rankings...

along with the most fearsome team of this era...

Anyway, with the opening matchday almost upon us, I think we should analyze the hand fate has dealt us (hint: it's not a good one).

Polar Islandstates. Yup, we're in the same group as them. Some people might remember them as that team that destroyed us in World Cup 65, or that team that almost won World Cup 65, or that team that almost won World Cup 66, or that team that almost won a bunch of World Cups, or that team that actually won World Cup 67. Anyway, I think I would've picked pretty much anyone over them, with the exception of Audioslavia (maybe). They've got who I consider the best goalkeeper of the moment, a defense renowned around the world, a young and passionate midfield and a terrifying pair of strikers. We'd be lucky to tie with them. I may or may not be hyping them a bit too much here, though. Still, fuck our luck.

Predictied Result: Farfadillis 1-3 Polar Islandstates

Valladares. One of the most respected national teams around, though they've been just as consistent at not winning anything as they've been consistent at doing really well in the World Cup. Their goalkeeper is experienced, their defense good (though just good, as far as I know), their midfield dangerous and very adept at breaking the toughest of defenses (see: not ours) and their offense something we definitely wish we could avoid. Pedrinho's the one I fear the most out of their three strikers, but they're all very good on their own. We were certainly unlucky to be drawn with them, as they would've been top seed if at least one host had been in the top eight. Still, we've got to make do with what we have. I'm hoping we can at least get a tie against them, though a win might be within the realm of possibility, unlike against the Terns.

Predicted Result: Farfadillis 2-4 Valladares

Nova Anglicana. The worst team in the World Cup according to the KPB rankings, and a bit of a sigh of relief for us. Their team is worse than ours, which isn't the case when it comes to the other two teams. I remember them as distinctly defensive (and boring), and so pathetic offensively that they couldn't score against us in two games when played even more offensively than now. However, I believe they've turned into a slightly offensive team, and they sure have gotten better, as they've finally qualified to the World Cup. To think that we hosted the Baptism of Fire these guys were in... Anyway, I think we can win this one, but they can get a tie or a win and they know it.

Predicted Result: Farfadillis 2-1 Nova Anglicana

Final Prediction: 3rd Place.

I think I've made it no secret that I'm not fancying our chances this time around. Oh, well, better get those tasty KPB points and see if we can finally be placed not as the best team in the most inconvenient pot ever (like in both group draws this World Cup), but as an average team that did well enough to get a convenient spot. Damn you, teams ranked first through sixteenth!

[HopNation]

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HopNation Sports

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12-27-14

HDT|2014|v.361

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WORLD CUP – PART 2

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HopNation’s senior leagues are scheduled to kick-off once the World Cup concludes, so Hoptonians we will have more football to look forward to once this current cycle is over. Sure there are a lot of other things going on within HopNation, especially since the Winter Festival is going on right now and will go on in to January. There is also a lot of Hockey going on right now within our boarders, youth leagues, adult leagues, and the HHL in full swing. The Malts will be back in action once a host is determined for the upcoming World Bowl too, so if you’re not finding some form of sport to keep yourselves busy then you have something else wrong that I dare not go into within the confines of this paper. I know that in a past issue I spoke briefly about each of the domestic football leagues so I won’t get into specifics on each other than posting the planned start date for each. Individual team schedules will also be released on the teams’ webpages, so those too will not be covered here.

The first league to get underway is the largest of the four senior leagues within HopNation and that is the Bondporter Vereinigung. Their action will get underway on January 12th with a slew of matches taking place on that day; in fact it looks like all but one of the teams will be in action on the first day. After that the schedule tappers off a little with teams typically having 2 matches per week. From glancing over the list I have here it looks like a key match up on the very first match day will be the Spurs of Captile SC versus the Gardians of Sentry FC. If you’ll remember from before the Spurs are the defending league champions and also the runner up in last season’s HCLC after dominating both the Bondporter Vereinigung and the HCL. The other match I’ll want to make note to watch is the match between Filmore FC Flames and the Toasties of FC Baker. Reason I want to watch this match is because the Toasties of FC Baker are the newcomer to the league after the leagues restructuring this past season. I’m sure all of the matches will be thrilling to watch so choose your favorite and get ready to support your side, or for those of you from Bondporter I’m sure you’ll be gathering to support your club on opening day.

The second league to get the ball rolling is the Hefebayern Liga, closely followed by Liga de Copperwies. After I look at their respective start dates it appears they are only separated, this season, by a single day on the calendar. Hefebayern Liga has slated January 23rd as their start date while Liga de Copperwies is set to get underway on the 24th of January. If I recall from last season Liga de Copperwies started a whole week later than that of the Hefebayern Liga, so it’s interesting to see how close they are in start dates this season. In the Hefebayern Liga I’ll be looking for the Hops of Bayern FC to get off to a good start, especially after a top 3 finish in this league last season and then following it up with a rather poor showing in the HCL. Two of the other top teams, Ghilies of Guile FC and Fire of York FC, will likely finish near or at the top of the league table this season too. Both performed very well in the HCL and finished 1, 2 on the table a year ago. I’ll also be on the lookout for one of the newcomers, Fahrer United Dragons, who are going to be in their first season in this league. As for Liga de Copperwies, I’ll be looking for our HCLC champions, the Zorg FC Phynix, to get things started off on the right foot. It will be key for them after back to back HCLC titles to take an early lead in this competitive league if they hope to make it a three peat. Other teams of not in the Copperwies league are; Timbers of Malt FC and the Footies of Quazar FC. Over all the action on those two days should be exceptional to watch.

The last league to get things underway is that of Konföderation Dunklevine and they will get started nearly a month after that of the Bondporter league as they are scheduled for the first whistle to be on February 2nd. In this league I fully expect the Crew to finish at the top this season, will all likelihood of them going a good number of matches without a loss. The Crew of Gypsum SC have actually finished in the top two of this league for the past four seasons and typically start each year with four wins before a team even comes close to being equal to their skill, that doesn’t mean the games aren’t close it just seems at the start of each season they have trained that much harder and focus on the little tasks in each match. Then after that fourth or even fifth game the other teams wake up and start to play to form. I also expect the Herberger FC Beers and the Knights of Holden FC to do well this upcoming season, but I’m not looking for the two of them to make it back to the HCL this season as I see the Chaps from Jörg FC and the Sneaks of Mansfield FC to make a run for the top this year.

Overall I’m very excited for the season to get underway and can’t wait for there to be a game on TV nearly every day of the week. On a minor note our Hops also played Valanora today too, match report below!

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Group C
Team			Plc*	Pts	+/-	GF
HopNation (41)		2	3	+1	2
Eura (18)		3	0	-1	3
The Holy Empire (3)	1	3	+1	4
Valanora (16)		4	0	-1	1
*places are estimates based on interpretation of tiebreakers
actual place in table will be confirmed after MD2

Match Summary
Hops vs Valanora @

(cap. 48,750)


Score
HopNation 2 – 1 Valanora

Goals
17’ Allandren Fresco
42’ Pheir Droimpol
87’ Ike Myer

Subs
None

Bookings
16’ █ Rayrd Lesamnal

Until next time Brew On! Brew Well Hoptonians!
Ringwald Griffinsmith
HopNation Sports Writer