TURNING OVER A NEW LEAF
(P.S we'll be coming up with a better logo if we get chosen)
A new era has arrived. Driven and united by their progressive environmental policies, the South Toronto FA and MattijanaFusBand present an official bid for the 68th Baptism of Fire.
On the football pitch, a new era is also dawning. Unprecedented numbers of new nations have joined the fray of international football, hungry for success and with it the chance to put their name into the record books.
About South Toronto (IC)
South Toronto is by multi-universal standards, a very advanced country known for its economy. Our civil rights are reasonably average for a typical nation however, our economy is so good, some would say it is frightening. The economy is broadly diversified and is led by the Tourism industry, with contributions from the of Arms Manufacturing, Retail, and Information Technology. Currently, the president of South Toronto is Trey Deyvon Woods, who saved South Toronto from political and civil rights turmoil during a civil war in which former dictator Tobi Obirito ignited. English, Exzapan, and French are the official languages of South Toronto, with Spanish and a small amount of German being spoken as well. In South Toronto, students from as young as 6 and university students receive mandatory sex education, citizens of the same sex are allowed to marry, and as a caution to tourists, there are AI beings who will be recognised as legal citizens, as failure to do so will result in a hefty fine of 985 raicyans (NS $1713.9). South Toronto is very welcoming of the LGBT community, and we are very protective of the environment.
About Mattijana (IC)
Mattijana is a large portion of North-west Esportiva with a significant, but proportionate population. It spans a fairly large range of climates with the far north a colder area, the central region temperate, the south Mediteranean and the South-East semi-desert. Petrovijanka, the capital city, is located almost exactly in the centre of the country at 214-232 metres above sea level. It has summer highs of around 28°C and lows of -5°C in the winter. There is a high level of sunshine for most of the year with precipitation mostly snowfall in the winter months. In terms of culture, the South and central areas are largely Slavic whilst Northern and Western areas are more Germanic. There is a small Arabic community in the South-East.
The official language is Mattijanan which is spoken by all. English and German are the most popular second languages. Due to Mattijanan only being spoken in Mattijana, the majority of people are bi-lingual. There is no official religion.
Attitudes to drink and sex are fairly liberal whilst there is good gender, sexual and racial equality. Social mobility is also good and the rich earn only twice as much as the poorest.
The government generally follows more socialist policies meaning the tax rate is fairly high, but schools, hospitals and other public services are all well-funded and reasonably-priced. Taxes on large businesses are slightly higher than on small ones. The government building is the MattiStaja, which is situated on Staja square in the centre of Petrovijanka. All six regions have their own smaller congresses however.
Groups will be spread across the country, but will be city-based with existing stadiums in Petrovijanka, Burges, Revinka, Snezn and Puljanka planned for involvement.
Format and Scorination
With 58 nations currently signed up, the following options are presented in order of preference:
-A 64 team tournament with 8 groups of 8. The top 2 teams qualify for the round of 16. Although only a quarter of teams qualify for the knockout round, the longer group stage gives everyone an extended period in which to RP.
-A 60 team tournament with 10 groups of 6. The top nation in each group qualifies for the round of 16 along with the top 6 second-placed sides.
Tiebreakers within groups and for second-placed sides in the case of option 2 are as follows:
-Points
-Goal difference
-Head to head points
-Head to head goal difference
-Goals Scored
-Goals Conceded
-Coin toss (OOC RP bonus)
Scorination will be done with the SQIS formula of Xkorinate, using Xkorinate-style style modifiers.
Note that as Saint Émelie, a Mattijanan puppet is entering, Saint Émelie's side of the draw will be scorinated by South Toronto.
RP Information
As Mattijana and South Toronto both share extensive environmental policies, a nature and sustainability theme has been chosen. As coming up with a portmanteau was always going to be a stretch, the tournament's motto will be "Turning over a new leaf", also reflecting the entrants' fresh start in international football.
Some RP prompts will be provided, most likely encouraging nations to talk about their own environmental attitudes, as well as their younger players, but these will be finalised in the RP thread. There'll definitely be something for people to get their teeth into.
In addition, due to the abnormally high number of entrants, we plan on publishing a guide to roster-making and football RP to elaborate and add to advice given in this guide from BOF 66 as well as the guide to sports roleplaying. This should help first time users get going, increasing the volume of RP present at the BoF and World Cup 81, but will hopefully also help retain new nations for future tournaments in a range of different sports.
About the Hosts (OOC)
The senior host of the two, Mattijana has previous BoF experience having co-hosted the 66th edition alongside Barunia as well as solo-hosting the 20th Campianato Esportiva. In addition, Mattijana has hosted the most recent Field Hockey world cup as well as co-hosting the 8th T20 Cricket World Cup alongside Liventia. A Mattijanan WGPC team has been in the sport for the last three seasons with good levels of success and the nation will host the coming season of WGP2 racing, the second-tier of NS motorsport. Mattijana has also been frequently involved in RPs in NSTT, Rugby 7s, handball and Cricket throughout the last three years. World Cup participation has been regular for around the last three years, as well as participation in the summer and winter Olympics.
Junior host South Toronto successfully hosted the inaugural South Toronto Invitational Cup, a warm up tournament for world cup 80, to its completion and had a domestic newswire running for some time until it had to close the newswires down due to RL reasons.
South Toronto first got involved in NS Sports when it signed up for 66th BoF and the World Cup 79 Qualifiers. It finished runners-up to Filindostan in the final and came seventh in the qualifying group. It then reached the CoH and got to the Round of 16 phase, but were defeated 3-0. South Toronto reached the semi-final in their own tournament, the STIC, before losing 5-4 to The Frozen Forest on penalties, although they came third through a narrow win against Qasden. In the World Cup 80 Qualifiers, South Toronto finished fifth in their qualification group but fell horribly in the CoH, losing all their games and coming bottom of their group. South Toronto then participated in the World Lacrosse Championships 29, and the IBC 25. South Toronto took part in the Independents Cup 4, and also recently took part in the AOCAF, but again also went out in the group stages with no points.
Anything Else?
Thanks for taking the time to read the bid. Should you have any questions, queries or comments about this bid (or indeed anything else), feel free to contact Mattijana or South Toronto by telegram or post in the thread below.
