World Cup 100 | RP thread

[Free Republics]

Sporting World

Saintland, Free Republics win convincing victories on Matchday 3 of Imperator's Cup, Free Republics vs Nordernious 1st place match set for Final
By: Clarice Chaussee

After the third and final day of the Imperator's Cup group stage, we now know that the Federation of Free Republics will face Nordernious in the final of the first Imperator's Cup. Saintland opened up the day with a 2 goals to nil victory over Sudernius followed by a 4 goals to 1 Republican rout in the main event.

Following their upset loss to Nordernious in a penalty kick shootout on Matchday 2, it was unclear how the Sanctii would respond against Sudernius, the northern neighbor of Nordernious. Sudernius, which made its competitive international soccer debut at this tournament, was hoping to pull off an upset of their own. But this was not to be as Saintland came out aggressively in the first minute. Moments after the opening kick, Matthaeus Sulpicius passed to Prince Andreas just outside of the box. The Prince attempted a long shot at the far left side of the net. Sudernian keeper Fadime Spel dove for it but was a split-second late and the ball ended up in the back of the net. Saintland's aging team dominated possession for the bulk of the first half and probably should have had 2 or 3 more goals but 2 different Prince Andreas shots were denied by the left and right posts, respectively. Spel also saved a spectacular Petrus Comnenus shot at one point. Sudernian manager Filipe Ay had to have felt fortunate to go into half down just a single goal.

The first 10 minutes of the second half were more of the same but the momentum gradually shifted as the Sanctii players were visibly gasping for air especially after a few Sudernian substitutions to bring on younger, fresher legs and push the pace. Oane Hardenbol even forced Alessandro Suedius, the 40 year old goalkeeper who captained their World Cup teams circa 15-20 years ago, to make a highlight reel catch to deny him an equalizer. It wasn't until the Sanctii brought in the Herius brothers, Thomas and Josephus, to replace their ancient wingers that they showed some signs of life. This proved to be a wise move as Josephus Herius would win the ball from Diyar van den Hombergh and would race down the pitch along the sideline. A pass to Petrus Comnenus would set up a fake shot and pass to Thomas Herius. Spel completely bought the fake shot, leaving the net wide open for Thomas Herius to score the clincher in the 79th minute. After that, the match was all but over and everybody in the Imperator Stadium knew it. This set up Sudernius with a match against Acedonia for 5th place and guaranteed Saintland a spot in the 3rd place match against the loser of the main event.

During the intermission, the Republican cheerleading squad performed an extensive cheerleading routine and also shot 8500 free Republican National Soccer Team jerseys into the stands, 100 for each cheerleader. The jerseys each had a random player's name and number and were a random size. These souvenirs were courtesy of the Grand Immortal Imperator. The Barjavel Academy band and chorus also played both the school song and the national anthem, following a promotional video for the school. This unusual intermission was because there were only 2 elections arranged for this matchday, both of which ended in Nay votes. They involved somebody who was accused of slacking off at work and a gay married couple who'd had a public argument on the kiss cam during matchday 2 that eventually escalated into a fistfight.

Despite the relatively lackluster matchday entertainment, the crowd got their money's worse as the Republican National Soccer Team routed South Libertopia. The match started with a South Libertopian attack. Peter Savage saved a Paige Parkes shot, conceding a corner. Ava Hunt's corner went right to Savage who caught it and kicked it away. Sebastian Andersen headed it out to Rajko Matkovic whose pass found Rainer Savage. Savage's shot would be blocked by Abbie Rhodes but the ball just ricocheted right back to the left foot of Hippolyte Vargas who applied the finish with his weaker foot for a 5th minute goal. 15 minutes later, Mattia Dellucci would score the second Republican goal off of a rebound following a Rainer Savage shot hitting the post. The third Republican goal came off of a defensive mistake by Isabella Fleming who just gave a ball right back to the elder Savage brother. This time, he had no difficulty finishing it with South Libertopian keeper Tegan Sullivan clearly expecting a clearance. The Republican lead was 3 goals to nil in the 34th minute. The final Republican goal would be scored in the 43rd minute as Andersen would score off of a free kick just outside the box. The free kick was awarded on a routine foul by Isabella Fleming who made her second costly mistake of the day. Following the half, Senator Koby Theodore substituted aggressively to rest his team for the final. The Libertopians would get a consolation goal by Savannah Heyer in the 63rd minute but it was too little and far too late for them.

With the group stage in the books, the matches for the final are set. First off will be the Fifth Place Match at noon between Acedonia and Sudernius followed by the Third Place Match between Saintland and South Libertopia at 4 PM. Finally, the Republican National Soccer Team will take the pitch at 8 PM to play Nordernious for the Imperator's Cup championship. The same rules will be in effect for the final as for the group stage. Extra time will not be played. If it is tied after 90, we go directly to penalties. A spectacular show is planned for the intermissions and the Imperator's Broadcasting System will broadcast the entire day's proceedings entirely commercial free. All 6 nations will have the opportunity for live musical performances involving top acts in their nation. The gates will be opening at 10 AM so be sure to arrive early if you have a ticket.

Sudernius 0-2 Saintland

Saintland goals: Prince Andreas '1, Thomas Herius '79

Free Republics 4-1 South Libertopia

Free Republics goals: Hippolyte Vargas '5, Mattia Dellucci '20, Rainer Savage '34, Sebastian Andersen '43
South Libertopia goals: Savannah Heyer '63

Clarice Chausee is Sporting World's new international soccer correspondent starting with Imperator's Cup 1 and World Cup 100. She is a recent graduate of Ren Rep University and the former editor of their student newspaper The Collegian. She is married in a lesbian marriage to her husband and national championship winning quarterback Rule Chausee and their wife and former Ren Rep cheerleading captain Elisa Chausee.

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Sister Polus's Thoughts

Hello and welcome to today's edition of Sister Polus's Thoughts on Sanctustube. I am Sister Maria Polus, the Minister of Education for the Kingdom of Saintland and I just wanted to make some quick comments about current events. Like most of you, I watched the Kingdom of Saintland's penalty shootout loss to Nordernious on Royal One and it is clear to me that Sanctii entry into the World Cup is not part of God's Will at the moment. In addition, I have to question whether Prince Andreas is the right choice for King Paulus XVI's heir based on his record of youthful delinquency and his many controversies even as an adult. For a while, I had kept my concerns private but, with the blessing of our King and our Patriarch, I have chosen to state publicly that I believe our King's successor should be one of his younger sons just as his grandfather Paulus XV The Great's legitimate successor was King Andreas I not his elder son Petrus the Heretic who is currently burning in the scorching hot fires of Infernus! It wouldn't surprise me if he was being punished by having to relive the Mud Bowl over and over again.

On a related note, I am currently in Republica where I will be attending the final of the Imperator's Cup, sitting next to the headmaster of Barjavel Academy, Doctor Kyle Kennedy and the Republican Secretary of Education Mr. Thibaut Chaloux. From what I have seen of the new Free Republics, I approve of the changes. In Republica, the trains now run on time and they no longer tolerate petty crime and disorder much less the more serious criminal acts. While it is unfortunate that the Republican government remains religiously indifferent, their country is unquestionably a much more pleasant place than it used to be. They have also, remarkably, been able to pull this off while maintaining their ancient Constitution with only relatively minor changes such as the creation of the position of Grand Immortal Imperator and a change to the voting system for the People's Assembly to enable the elimination and outlawry of all political parties. They also seem to have shortened the terms of consuls to just 1 year which was a sensible move because so many of them died before their term ended. I had assumed that democracy was incompatible with public order but it seems the Republicans have proven me wrong.

The one thing I do object to, however, is the current trend in fashion in the Free Republics. The so-called "hip" or "cool" youth in this country are typically wearing skin-tight all black clothing that looks more or less identical regardless of gender. Needless to say, I don't approve of this un-traditional approach to fashion and question why it is tolerated. But it isn't just tolerated. The government has even changed their national flag and the colors of their soccer uniforms to reflect the new fashion for black. From what I've been able to learn by asking around, the popularity of black in the Free Republics owes to that being the color of the Grand Immortal Imperator's army during their civil wars that ended with his victory and the restoration of their Federation Government.

I also have serious concerns about their new marital laws including their decision to permit both gay marriage and polygamous marriage, which they refer to as lesbian marriage. But just as alarming, at least on the surface, is the so-called "Christmas Cake" law compelling women to marry before their 26th birthday or potentially be married off to a man of the government's choosing. I have received clarification that nuns are excluded from this requirement to marry and that many women actually apply to join convents because of this requirement. So my feelings on this are ultimately mixed because women dedicating their lives to God is good for their eternal soul. However, I don't think the government should be forcing anybody into a marriage against their wishes. It also isn't clear to me if some of the convents are lowering their standards of discipline in order to attract additional initiates which would be of the utmost wickedness. Nuns, especially those who are new to an order, must be guided firmly and lovingly by older and more experienced nuns. Otherwise, we would risk turning the convent into a sorority house.

Regardless, I have enjoyed my first visit back to the Free Republics since I returned to my homeland of Saintland 14 years ago. I hope to have a productive discussion about education with 2 of the leading Republicans in the field. I feel that there is much that I can learn from them and hope that there is much that they can learn from me. I am Sister Maria Polus and I thank you for watching.

[Atymnius]

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FUTURE SELF: PART III
A Boy

---

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Are you happy?
Did California give you everything that you ever dreamed?
Are you lonely?
Did you find a way to fit in all the little things
That keep your heart beating?

Should I be finding gold in the wreckage?
I don't wanna miss it, no
Wanna look back know that I mean this
Was it worth it after all?

Oh, if I could send a letter to my future self, would it ever help?

---

Future Self, Boehm featuring Melody Noel, 2016

Ghant: Did football give you everything that you ever dreamed?

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Ghant had a keen eye for the ball not merely rooted in its time at Olympia but much more earlier in what would be a spirited childhood.

He takes the shot—

GOAL! A wonderful strike from Ghant sees local team Olympia Rush defeat their downtown rivals Roma Saints.

Well done man! Yeah!

He would receive applause from his most impressed teammates as the parents experienced and novices alike heaped honors for his athletic ability.

Standing at a staggering two foot nine, he was the tallest of his patriots and yet—

“I must want to thank my teammates! Go Rush!” he said gleamingly,

—never took his superior abilities for granted.

Haha! Look how terrible your defense was, Saints!

Stop! Get away!—

He mimicked a Tyrannosaurus and immediately the kids, terrified, ran through the local bush onto the other side of the match stands.

Hope you’re okay!

Hm! Thank you teacher!

The shy boy squeezed Ghant so tightly, this being the sense of immense gratitude instilled in many Dēmosian juniors towards their aids.

Ghant, sympathetic, put on his cap for him, saying:

Why don’t you give this to me when you’re older!

He laughed warmly as his mother, still alive, took him back to the nest for a wonderful bowl of tomato soup—his favorite.

The night sky that day gleamed with far-away stars, as memories of a good childhood drew the boy’s need to control, to control that beautiful moment, and replicate it in the midst of the broken pieces that the other, very same, little boy would soon pick up.

[Of the Golden Harp]

Introduction
After an excellent World Cup 99, The Golden Harp is back again for the monumental one hundredth edition. This edition will be hosted in West Pavola. Expectations are high for the Golden Harpian team led by Sigmund Reynolds and his staff. A fifth place finish in the group is required.
Road to the World Cup
After the most recent cup, The Golden Harpians played in a mini tournament in Connaught. The first match was a simple 1-0 win against a weak Kernovian team. Next was the final against our long time rival, the Visayas Islands. We stayed in the game for most of the match, but a late 86' minute goal put the Visayans up against a weak Golden Harpian attack missing star striker Paul Johnson. The Golden Harpians couldn't get a goal, and a tactical foul from Sloan Mondy on the line of the box was ruled a penalty, and the Visayans sealed the Connaught Cup with that pen in the 93' minute.
After that The Golden Harpian entered the Three Cities Central tournament in Natkr. Match one was a hard fought defensive battle against Natkr, with substitute Ninniau Steed slotting in a tap in from Garbhan in the 71' minute. Afterwards the Holy Harps were set to play Sea People's League. That was a 0-0 draw, but not without controversy, as Midfielder Hal Perrot was questionably tackled in the box late in the game. For the final game of the group stage, the Holy Harps were set to play their final group game against rivals Visayas. That was also a hard fought defensive game, ending 0-0, with a multitude of fouls on both sides of the ball. The team squeezed through as the second place team, and were set to play Sea People's League in the final. The Holy Harps got a chance early with Garbhan launching the ball at the goal from 30 yards out, but it hit the crossbar and fell to the keeper of the Sea People. Not a single shot was taken for 70 minutes after that, until the striker of the Seap People broke through the defensive line and took a shot. It was tipped over the bar easily by O'Finnegan. One more shot was taken before the whistle blew when Arlo O'Burn tapped the ball with his weak foot, but the ball went wide. The final would go into extra time. A very boring 0-0 extra time. The game would go to penalties. First penalty. Garbhan scores. First for SPL. Down the middle. Saved. Second Penalty. Johnson scores top bins. Second for SPL. Bottom left. parried away. Third Penalty. O'Burn steps up, and hits a panenka as the keeper dives right. Final pen for the Sea People. One more chance, but the striker crumples under the pressure, and fires it over the bar. The Golden Harp won the tournament.
Next was the IAC. 3-1 loss to Calgasia. 4-0 Loss to Solgavden 1-0 Win to Crpostan. 1-0 Loss to Dhemixia. An underwhelming performance, but it was an improvement from the previous IAC.
Next was the pre cup friendly tour. First was Edsmontik. A terrible 6-1 loss, with the only bright spot being the emergence of Ninniau Steed as an excellent young prospect. Next was another match against Visayas, the Holy Harp's greatest rival. 1-0 loss. Then, against a weak Andso Mangis, the Holy Harps scored three with a hat trick from Steed. Then a 1-0 win against Riandera, a similarly ranked team to Andso Mangis. Finally for the international games, was a close 0-0 draw against Ostfalen & Hinterpommoren.
Long Live The Golden Harp

[Edsmontik]

Woodhill Underground Tank Museum
Woodhill, Veconne, Edsmontik

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2:30PM, Wednesday, September 29th, 2032

"Lots of them are here."

"Of course! This is THE Edsmon tank museum! What would you expect?"

"Never expected Edsmontik to be so... transparent when it comes to their military."

"Well, they are, other Oddevre. Besides, these more modern tanks have only speed and cannon width displayed on their boards, alongside some fun facts."

"Wouldn't that be enough information for a spy?"

"Well, maybe."

"Still crazy though, how people got all of these tanks down here. I mean, is there some kind of fancy tow truck? It wouldn't be a good idea to recklessly drive a tank into any of those podiums."

"I'm pretty sure they lift them up and put them on the podium with small lifts or cranes. That would explain the high roofs for all of these floors."

"Well, you're not wrong. That makes sense."

"I'm always right."

"Are you though?"

"Yes."

"Well then, Odem. Shall we head to the museum store?"

"Sure! I have to get my hands on some of those collectible models, they are just amazing quality!"

"And expensive, too."

***

Suberrod 75 Northe
Kalse Bay, Neureckaver, Edsmontik

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3:10PM, Wednesday, September 29th, 2032

"Come on, Maartin! Turn the music up. I can hardly hear it!"

"Maybe because we're driving at 100 with the top off, and it's pretty windy today. And anyways, I can hear the music just fine. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Whatever. Where did you say we were headed again?"

"To the lake. Great view there, I'll tell you."

"And is that all we're doing?"

"Of course not, Maktholm."

"Then what?"

"Fishing."

"That's an old person thing!"

"We're old."

"We're in our twenties!?"

"Come on Makt, you gotta take some time and enjoy nature. You're on the field too long. Take a rest and enjoy some fishing."

"Alright. But if I get a good catch don't start saying 'beginner's luck'."

"Deal."

***

Touve Central Square
Touve, Austrankank, Edsmontik

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3:45PM, Wednesday, September 29th, 2032

"Woah, it's pretty warm today."

"Yep, definitely not natural for this area at this time of year."

"Hey Maven, have you heard of the WC100 Update for NSFC?"

"That was fast, I thought they'd take a little longer, knowing how they are just wrapping up the BoF87 event."

"Yep! I found us here! Take a look."

"Wow, we're pretty highly rated. Well, for base cards."

"Yeah. I can't wait for the road to the final cards! I hope we're ranked as highly as we were back in the 98 World Cup."

"Weren't we ranked higher than that in the 99th World Cup?"

"Maybe? I kind of stopped playing."

"They increase the max rank of a player by two every world cup since its release. They started at 100, pretty sure."

"What is it now?"

"I believe 114. The highest ranked card from Edsmontik was the WC99 road to the final Maartin Stuero ranked at 111, which was just one away from the max. A lot of our team ended up with RTTF cards ranked between 107 and 110."

"Oh, that's nice."

"I know, right?"

[Free Republics]

Sporting World

Nordernious upsets Free Republics in Penalty Shootout to win Imperator's Cup 1
By: Clarice Chaussee

The final day of the first Imperator's Cup lived up to the hype with 3 hotly contested matches to determine the final placement of the 6 teams in the tournament. The day culminated with a penalty shootout where Nordernious once again pulled off a shocking upset, earning themselves a spot in World Cup 100's qualifying field on the Grand Immortal Imperator's dime. (OOC: See below. Being the last numbers puppet out worked absolutely perfectly for my purposes.) The upset loss in the 1st place match means Senator Koby Theodore will have some work to do to get his team ready to compete at the World Cup. He has already scheduled a friendly at Baker Park (OOC: This was agreed to via TG a few weeks ago. I haven't seen a result yet but I hope Baker Park hasn't forgotten about it.), a nation that was already an emerging power in international soccer 15 years ago.

The day started with Acedonia facing Sudernius for 5th place in the tournament. I'm not going to spend much time describing the 5th place and 3rd place matches because most of our readership is in the Free Republics and has already seen these matches if they care. But Aggelos Agnatos scored the goal for Acedonia in the 53rd minute on his own rebound after he hit the right post. Acedonia held on despite heavy pressure from Sudernius over the final quarter hour and the 5 minutes of stoppage time. In the 3rd place match, Prince Andreas scored a late winner for Saintland on a second half stoppage time penalty kick following a Phoebe Sims handball. It was a very tough loss for the Libertopians and for all of the ladies who wanted to see the Sanctii lose to girls!

Before I discuss the events of the 1st place match, I should mention that we got a surprise performance from Lady Scarlett. Lady Scarlett performed a new patriotic song entitled God Bless Republica and All the Beautiful Women In It. There was also an appearance by Lady Nova who was there to promote the upcoming Republican Wrestling Conglomerate premium live event spectacular WrestleCade which will be the next major event held at the Imperator Stadium. For the benefit of our foreign readers, I should clarify that Lady Scarlett and Lady Nova are two middle-aged ladies who are close advisors and friends of the Grand Immortal Imperator. They don't make public appearances often and most of their appearances are just to make announcements on behalf of the Grand Immortal Imperator.

All 6 nations participating in the tournament had a musical performance. The foreign performance that stood out the most was the Cantus Virginum group from Saintland. Several dozen teenage girls sang in Latin. Badly. Very badly. The one thing they have going for them is the famous beauty of Sanctii women but I can't understand how this group can be so popular. I also didn't understand what they were singing but have been informed by one of my old college friends from Ren Rep who's fluent in Latin that their songs are mostly about the importance of being well behaved and following the teachings of the Church of Saintland. Supposedly, it's mainly popular with teenage girls but you're not allowed to publicly criticize their singing in Saintland. I was sitting next to my wife in the press box and we both enjoyed the beauty of the Sanctii girls. I'm sure our husband did as well. In our relationship, it's perfectly fine to look as long as you don't touch.

In addition to the musical performances, we also had 3 elections during the halftimes. The first 2 ended in Nay votes then the 3rd one during the main event ended in a Yay vote. It was somebody who'd created a video telling people to commit check fraud, advertising it as a trick to get "free money from the banks". This left many of the idiots who fell for the hoax with overdrafts on their bank accounts. Needless to say, she deserved exactly what she got. Hopefully, this deters other people who make so-called "short form" videos targeting the mentally challenged from encouraging them to do things that screw up their lives.

Along with all of the other excitement, we had a soccer match to determine the champion of this first edition of the prestigious Imperator's Cup. The Federation of Free Republics faced the unexpectedly strong Nordernious who had stunned Saintland in matchday 2's main event match. The big question going in was whether the Republican National Soccer Team or Nordernious was going to impose their style of play upon the other. That was answered quickly as the Republicans came out playing with pace. Offensively, they attempted to move the ball up the pitch quickly. Defensively, they pressed aggressively trying to force turnovers. Nordernious was forced into a match that would clearly be high scoring rather than just playing for penalty kicks. In the first 10 minutes, there were 5 Republican shots on goal but Jens Krueger saved all of them. Nordernious would clearly have to push the pace or at least take advantage of counter-attacking opportunities.

Eventually, Krueger's luck would run out off a corner. Sebastian Andersen's kick to the far post connected with the head of right back Hidetoshi Shirai as the Republicans only had 1 man back defending other than the keeper. Conceding a goal in the 17th minute put even more pressure on the Nordernians and we got a hotly contested next half hour or so with the ball moving up and down the pitch. Eventually, a Jonas Peters cross would set up Niklas Unger. Unger put it past Peter Savage and Nordernious had tied the match in the 44th minute. The crowd thought it would go into the half at 1-1 but Jonas Peters would score shortly after the restart to make it 2-1 Nordernious at the half as the crowd responded by booing the Republicans off the pitch.

Whatever Koby Theodore said to his team at halftime, it wasn't particularly effective because the second half saw Nordernious impose their style of play on the match. They were helped by the fact that the Republican players were visibly tiring at this point of the match. Theodore knew he had to bring on some fresh legs but hesitated until the 72nd minute. After the match, he told me "I felt like I had my best 11 on the pitch and several of them had specifically asked me at halftime to not substitute them out so I went along with their wishes until I was certain they were gassed." As the substitutes started trickling in, the Republicans were once again able to quicken the pace but the second half remained scoreless as stoppage time rolled around. The official put up a board indicating a minimum of 7 minutes of stoppage time. The number was large because of constant Nordernian stalling. The actual amount of stoppage time ended up being closer to 15 minutes and Koby Theodore's team needed every single minute of it. Eventually, Leon Meister fouled Hippolyte Vargas on a corner kick, resulting in a penalty for the Free Republics. Sebastian Andersen would convert the penalty to equalize and send the match to a shootout. Meister was awarded a red card for his flagrant foul. OOC: The match was not called when it should have been because the official had been instructed in advance that he would be put up for "election" if he allowed the home team to lose due to "bad" officiating. Also, the "foul" was an obvious dive. But, of course, Sporting World would never report the truth about this. The Nordernian manager Stephan Eichmann came out onto the pitch to protest and was ejected from the match by the referee. Moments later, the referee blew the whistle to send the match to penalties.

Nordernious would go first in the penalty shootout. They started with Mathias Pfaff who easily converted in the upper right corner as Savage guessed left. The first Republican penalty taker was Andersen whose penalty was spectacularly saved by Jens Krueger. Markus Rothschild converted the second Nordernian penalty with a high kick right down the middle. Jeremy Farwell converted for the Free Republics with a ball that bounced off the left post and into the net. Niklas Unger went right down the middle and Savage, once again, guessed wrong. Hippolyte Vargas hit his penalty wide to the right leaving it 3-1 Nordernious after 3 rounds of the shootout. The Nordernians had a chance to win it but an overly excited Wolfgang Weber hit one so hard it almost went into the upper deck. Louie Pugh made a must-make kick for the Free Republics to make it 3-2. This one was high and slightly to the left. It just missed Krueger's arm by inches and Nordernious would have to convert their 5th attempt to win it. Benjamin Schroeder would take the shot for Nordernious and he placed it perfectly in the bottom right corner to win the Imperator's Cup. The final score of the shootout was 4 to 2.

With the surprise victory, Nordernious now has a trophy. After the conclusion of the match, the Grand Immortal Imperator arrived to present the trophy to Eichmann who returned from his ejection. Along with the announcement that he would personally be covering Nordernious's entry into World Cup 100 qualifying. The loss is a harsh blow to the Republican National Soccer team who had expected to win the tournament in our own capital city. With the World Cup qualifying draw imminent, the Republicans need to get their act together quickly.

Acedonia 1-0 Sudernius

Acedonia goals: Aggelos Agnatos '53

South Libertopia 0-1 Saintland

Saintland goals: Prince Andreas '90+4 (penalty)

Free Republics 2-2 Nordernious (4-2 Nordernious on penalties)

Free Republics goals: Hidetoshi Shirai '17, Sebastian Andersen '90+15 (penalty)
Nordernious goals: Niklas Unger '44, Jonas Peters '45+2

Clarice Chausee is Sporting World's new international soccer correspondent starting with Imperator's Cup 1 and World Cup 100. She is a recent graduate of Ren Rep University and the former editor of their student newspaper The Collegian. She is married in a lesbian marriage to her husband and national championship winning quarterback Rule Chausee and their wife and former Ren Rep cheerleading captain Elisa Chausee.

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Free Republics Locker Room after the match vs Nordernious

After the match, a dejected Sebastian Andersen and Hippolyte Vargas went up to Lady Nova and Koby Theodore for a chat.

Lady Nova - Hello boys. Very tough loss tonight but you played hard and gave it your all.

Sebastian Andersen - We appreciate the kind words, Lady Nova, but we feel guilty about letting the Federation down.

Hippolyte Vargas - What he said! It is unacceptable to perform like that in big moments.

Koby Theodore - Sebastian, Hippolyte, please don't beat yourselves up over it. We lost many matches as well when I was playing. Losing that final to Vilita 32 years ago still stings for me. The worst part was how the Legalites refused to move the final to our home soil after we made it. Vilita later went on to win World Cup 81 on our soil after Gregoryisgodistan knocked us out in the semis.

Lady Nova - Weren't they already called South Covello by that point?

Koby Theodore - Who cares? I still called them Gregoryisgodistan in private. Wasn't a fan of name changes after we had to call ourselves the Holy Republican Empire for a bit.

Lady Nova - Consul Kulseth sure was a weird one.

Koby Theodore - That, he was. I still can't believe Saintland, of all places, was able to rig our elections and foist their puppet Kulseth upon us.

Lady Nova - One of many bad consuls we elected in the years leading up to the chaos.

Koby Theodore - Indeed. We are so much better off now that the elected officials are merely ceremonial and our true leader is "immortal".

Lady Nova - I agree. The peace and stability we know now was hard won and required lots of blood.

Hippolyte Vargas - That's why it is so important to maintain the old forms so that the commoners never catch on that the Grand Immortal Imperator didn't actually restore the Federation.

Koby Theodore - I see somebody has been paying attention in civics class.

Sebastian Andersen - Academics are very important to all of us at Barjavel. We aren't just athletes. We're future leaders and need to act like it.

Hippolyte Vargas - That's why I'm requesting, Lady Nova, that you ask the Grand Immortal Imperator to put us up for election to atone for our failures tonight.

Lady Nova - Are both of you crazy? We aren't going to be executing you! You're too important.

Sebastian Andersen - We want to allow the people to publicly vote on whether or not they are mad at us for our failure. As a kind of catharsis.

Hippolyte Vargas - Obviously, it'd just be the variety where we get beaten if they vote Yay.

Lady Nova - I'm shocked that you'd offer yourselves as a sacrifice for atonement. It shows exceptional character on your part.

Koby Theodore - If you go through with this, please make sure they're in condition to perform for the World Cup. Sebastian and Hippolyte are critical pieces of my team.

Lady Nova - We would make sure they are heavily padded and portray their lack of a reaction as a sign of their stoicism.

Koby Theodore - When would this take place? Surely, it'd have to be before the World Cup?

Lady Nova - Fortunately, we have WrestleCade coming up. Same venue as the scene of the "crime". I also hope that we'd get a "Nay" vote from our fans.

Koby Theodore - In that case, I'll permit the spectacle.

Lady Nova - The good news is that the percentage of "Nay" results is higher than we'd expected when we passed this legislation. Crowds generally only vote "Yay" for those miscreants who actually deserve to be executed or flogged. This surprises us but the "election" spectacles are valuable both for entertainment and for reinforcing the sense that we're now a nation of law and order.

Koby Theodore - Honestly, I probably deserved to stand for "election" over that incident with the girl from Felix.

Lady Nova - Let's not talk about that. It was ugly.

Koby Theodore - I still can't believe I basically got away with it. My only "punishment" was to train in Saintland with the original Prince Andreas for a year or so. That made me a much better player.

Lady Nova - After that, you were arguably just as good as Kyle.

Koby Theodore - I still talk to Kyle all the time. He's just not any good at coaching soccer.

Lady Nova - Or at anything other than playing soccer.

Koby Theodore - And drinking alcohol. Nobody loves Dixon Light more.

Lady Nova - Speaking of alcohol, I hope you're enforcing the new minimum drinking age law.

Koby Theodore - Of course I am. Not that my players need it. We shouldn't have been drinking so much back in the day. There were many times we lost matches because key players were drunk.

Lady Nova - Sporting World did its best to cover that up.

Koby Theodore - They've always been good at spinning for us.

Lady Nova - Did you see the article by Clarice Chausee about the final?

Koby Theodore - I did. She even spun that bullshit goal that set up the shootout.

Hippolyte Vargas - All that time spent practicing my dives was worth it.

Koby Theodore - Yes but you're still nowhere near where you'd need to be to get a fair and impartial referee to fall for that act.

Hippolyte Vargas - I will work on that, coach.

Koby Theodore - Exactly what I want to hear. Now go get some sleep tonight. We're going to be doing conditioning practice in the morning. You guys got gassed way too easily.

Sebastian Andersen - Yes sir. I'll tell the others.

---

World Cup Committee Headquarters

Lady Scarlett arrived at the World Cup Committee's headquarters with plenty of time to submit the official paperwork to enter Nordernious in World Cup 100. Shortly after she arrived on an Imperator Airlines private jet, she received an encrypted call from the Grand Immortal Imperator.

Lady Scarlett - Hello

Grand Immortal Imperator - Hello Scarlett. Have you arrived?

Lady Scarlett - I have. Paperwork is ready to be handed over.

Grand Immortal Imperator - Last minute change of plans. I want you to make sure Nordernious just misses the deadline.

Lady Scarlett - Why?

Grand Immortal Imperator - They weren't supposed to win the tournament and I don't want to spend any of our money funding their team.

Lady Scarlett - OK, will do.

Grand Immortal Imperator - Make it look like an accident. Time it perfectly so they're the first nation left out of the field.

Lady Scarlett- I can do that. Will there be any consequences for that referee for not doing the job he was paid to do?

Grand Immortal Imperator - No. If he had allowed our teens to lose in regulation, we'd have put him up for "election". But since he gifted us an equalizer, we're not going to punish him.

Lady Scarlett - Seems reasonable.

Grand Immortal Imperator - But we are putting the 2 boys who missed their penalties up for "election" at the wrestling event.

Lady Scarlett - What the hell? You can't be serious!

Grand Immortal Imperator - They personally requested it.

Lady Scarlett - But we can't afford to lose them!

Grand Immortal Imperator - We won't. If there's a "Yay" vote, they'll be "flogged" with heavy padding that won't be evident to the crowd. If there's a "Nay" vote, it'll help them feel better.

Lady Scarlett - That works, I guess.

Grand Immortal Imperator - Lady Nova's idea. That said, I am hoping for a "Nay" because I don't want to have to put our soccer players up for "election" every time they lose a match.

Lady Scarlett - That would be very bad. We know they aren't anywhere near ready to win the World Cup.

Grand Immortal Imperator - Of course, they aren't. It took several years to get both of the previous teams to qualification. In each case, hosting the World Cup meant a semi-final appearance followed by a second appearance in the semis a few years later. Then a fade as the first generation aged and the second generation was cut short due to the era of chaos.

Lady Scarlett - I think this generation has a remarkable amount of talent. They may be our best

Grand Immortal Imperator - So do I and so does Senator Theodore. He was the perfect choice to manage the team.

Lady Scarlett - And we put on one hell of a show with the Imperator's Cup.

Grand Immortal Imperator - As much as I enjoy talking to you Scarlett, I have to go. See you later.

Lady Scarlett - Same, Immortal One.

Grand Immortal Imperator - Make sure you do this job perfectly. Goodbye.

Lady Scarlett waited waiting for the appropriate number of signups to arrive at the last minute and then submitted Nordernious as the 274th signup for a World Cup that only had 273 teams. On the eve of the draw, it seemed like the plan to "accidentally" cost Nordernious their spot in the World Cup through a "paperwork error" had worked...

[Paradystopia]

Scandal shocked the footballing Multiverse today as in a stunning and unprecedented development, officials in the Kytler Peninsulae announced that the supposedly upcoming hundredth World Cup would not be taking place. According to our source, a record 269 nations all declared simultaneously that they were, in fact, not actually that interested in contesting this landmark competition and supported the governing body in simply awarding the prize to the nation of Shin-Zetsubo along with their recently claimed Baptism of Fire trophy. Needless to say, this decision has shocked football fans across the nation of Paradystopia, many of whom were making plans for travel to the Rushmori region of West Pavola under the delusion that they might have a chance of seeing their home nation compete for international football's most prestigious accolade.

Questions have to be asked of the current leadership of the World Cup committee as to how they have let such a travesty occur. Our reporters contacted the respective official bodies of The Kytler Peninsulae, Tikariot, and Kwrpania for comment with each denying such an action had taken place and refusing to comment further on what they claim is 'clearly a bogus story'. This, we can only assume, is a veiled attempt to control the narrative over the transpiring events or, at worst, a heinous cover-up.

Top Thoughts of our Readers:

1. I would like to think that we wouldn't of had this fiasco had the World Cup committee awarded hosting rights to the bid from Farfadillis and Paradystopia. Other separate fiascos, indubitably, but not specifically this.

   ---

   - Duke Aim, Bizarro Strategic Command, Somewhere other than Wight
   via e-mail

2. Personally, I blame them Tumbrans. What with them quitting World Cup football. Them's obviously done swayed other teams to follow in their footsteps.

   ---

   - RuddyTumbra123, Pantsdon, West Paradystopia
   via The National Scrutineer Messageboards

3. Football? Again? Aren't we due a Rugby world cup at some point?

   ---

   - Ilikeoddlyshapedballs, Abertynkle, North Paradystopia
   via The National Scrutineer Messageboards

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---

*

1. Terms and conditions may apply. A year's subscription to the The National Scrutineer^TM currently unavailable outside of Paradystopia, as well as in some parts of Paradystopia.
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[Aphrilia]

Emma Rhodes scrolled on her social media page.

Being somewhat of a mini-celebrity felt weird to her. Her posts gets engagement here and there, but not always a lot. Yet whenever she gets a post of hers viral, her notifications are always ringing every second, whether it be from people putting likes or commenting on what she had posted. Though overall, Emma doesn't really think of those who follow her.

She just writes about race horses, does media coverage of races, and that's about it. She does what anyone in her job description is meant to do. Outside of that, she's a fan of football and ice hockey. Primarily the former however, especially knowing the Aphrilian national team. The Anchors are a crown jewel for Aphrilian people even amongst professionals in other industries, horse racing included. She's visited some of their matches, she watched the IAC 24 Finals with the rest of her family. Emma remembers that night quite clearly.

Her dad absolutely going crazy after the winning penalty, her younger sister shaking out of excitement, it was quite the mess. But it was also memorable for her. Because it was one of the times she could hang out with her family, and it was one of the many moments she will forever cherish. Because unlike many Aphrilians, she would spend the rest of her life alone.

Her sister died from a traffic accident just weeks after that match.

Her dad, well, he wasn't in much condition to be working. Not having one of your legs kind of makes you lose out on a lot of high-paying jobs, but he was able to make ends meet. The main issue was his mental health. But what could she do, really? All Emma could do was be there for him, especially since her mother, his wife, one day had decided to up and left without notice. She had ghosted the entire family after what her father had thought was years of a stable relationship. As Emma wondered on it all, a certain notification rang.

Checking the sent email, it was from her workplace. Specifically, the Aphrilian Racing News Network, the largest digital publication for Aphrilian horse racing. If you want the news for races and events, drama and rumors, among such other drabble, you'd go there. Whether to read publications written by others, or to subscribe in order to access more detailed analysis of certain horses and plenty of other such highly informative pages. You could even apply to be a writer for ARNN, and there's much more to ARNN than that.

You want to watch the races on TV? You primarily go to either Super Sports Net's horse racing section or to Genesis Channel. But ARNN allows you to watch races too, live.

Horse information such as records or pedigree? Race Exchange Data, or RED is there. But ARNN has it's own dedicated pages on the site for that as well.

Want to book a visit to certain farms or stables? Usually they themselves have websites to book tickets for official visits or you have to access them through the Aphrilian Horse Racing Association (AHRA) website to do so, but ARNN has been collaborating with farms and stables so that fans can book tickets through ARNN directly.

And if you want to bet on races? Plenty of places to do that, but ARNN is one of those sites that only allow legal aged citizens to bet and is also one of the few to be endorsed by the AHRA for it's legality and transparency. ARNN is so embedded into Aphrilian horse racing to the point that even it's founder and owner, Melantha Kayne, is an avid racehorse owner.

Of course, strict laws regarding gambling, sports, and plenty of other factors contributes to what the ARNN is known as today. But Emma wouldn't have had it any other way. As she was checking the email, asking for her to perhaps write an article about something or anything really, she had also received the notification of Aphrilia's roster for the upcoming World Cup Qualifying. Emma couldn't help it, she's a fan of The Anchors afterall. As well as a select few other national teams that caught her attention.

"Seems like Meyer is Nathaniel's replacement... Hannah was called up? I've heard about some stuff between her and Theresa, so not sure how that's going to go. Squad seems solid overall." Emma mused to herself. This next World Cup, she heard it was going to be absolutely massive. Over two hundred and something countries apparently? Her mind can't comprehend it sometimes. To think there's other worlds out there, it's sort of unbelievable at first. But that's the reality now, isn't it? And speaking of other worlds...

Surely some of these other nations would have horse racing as a sport, right? Maybe the sport is big there, maybe it's young and on the rise. It'd be great to be able to spread more information about the sport's conditions in Aphrilia... Traffic on the Aphrilian Sportsplay Forums always see a spike in activity whenever the national team was playing. Thinking about all of that, Emma had an idea. Quickly, she started writing a response email, saying that she'll get to it, but she'll need a few things. And a pitch on the idea.

It's crazy, but it's crazy enough that it might just work.

[Ko-oren]

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Things that are very much the same:
- The head coach from the 80s is back.
- A silver medal at the CAFA.
- Despite a young team, you've heard almost all of these names before.

Things that are different:
- We made the semifinal of a World Cup.
- The Top League is massive now.

What a cycle for Ko-orenite football. World Cup 99 ended up being a massive success, one of the nation's three best ever finishes at the main tournament, and all that under a transitional coach and with a squad that even the most optmistic of Ko-orenites - of which there are not many, in general - had written off before the qualifiers. And what do we get after all of that is said and done? Has the transitional coach stayed on as the new big man in charge and has the squad earned its right to try again in a similar configuration?

No.

Juliasterinthen is back in charge, the team's younger than ever with the few veterans that kept the team competitive last cycle now retired or otherwise out of contention. Juliasterinthen, the man who got us to our first semifinal back in 87, made sure his protege took over (who took us to our second semifinal in 89) and then promptly earned himself a nice little promotion to the office of World Cup Committee president, a position he held because of (in spite of?) multiple re-elections all the way from cycle 91 to 98, and then the WCC decided on his behalf that his stint was over. One cycle before his term was over, he was booted out, and now revenge is on his mind. His re-appointment to the national team would have been easy with a bad World Cup and/or a bad CAFA.

Unfortunately, neither happened.

Because after the incredible 4th place at the World Cup, we entered the CAFA. Anaia's regional tournament, just 12 editions young right now at the cusp of World Cup 100's qualification, and the Dragonflies have finished second place in it four times by now. Never won it. It didn't look like this was going to be our cycle, but failing upwards has been our forte in regional tournaments for a while now and this cycle was no outlier. After settling two scores with Flavovespia we found ourselves in the final. I mean, even when we're bad, the CAFA's still our palate cleanser after so many terrible World Cup cycles - out of 12 CAFAs, we made the final four times (1 in 3), the semifinal eight times (2 in 3), and the knockouts ten times (5 in 6). We're good in the region, is what we're trying to say. But never good enough: this time, Nova Calania did us in.

Juliasterinthen wasn't to be denied his rightful spot atop the pecking order at the KFA, so despite good results, he's back in charge.

His first order of business, similar to when he was in charge in the early 80s, was to get his idea of 'a good player' in the heads of the selectors and scouts. Much like how Manguele went all-in on his platonic ideal of the perfect player (scrappy, good in possession, good in small spaces, unrelenting), we seem to be heading into a new chapter of the national team once again. Juliasterinthen's idea (defensive, uncompromising, focused) was still lingering somewhere in the minds of those that administered football in the ten or so cycles that he was gone, and it turned out that many football academies still were producing players in the mould that was instilled somewhere in the 80s (or, let's be honest, the 60s or 70s, because we've been banging the drum of 'defensive football is good' since back then. Look where it got us).

That means that a handful of veterans, who were already thinking about turning their back on international football, saw this as their cue to leave quietly through the back door. That includes a few retirements: Archer didn't fancy his chances as the sole starting striker and left. Enokida, who was never really thought of as a starting - or even bench - winger also quit. Bonschotten, who earned quite a few callups as perhaps the country's best player that kind of never was, did the same. Aomelirea, incensed at the idea to have to fight for his place versus some youth players, also dipped. Mulvahil, who only grew out to be the centreback of dreams in his 30s, as well as goalie Malmstroom, and fellow late bloomer Monshouwer, on top of other recent defensive retirees Mallerbury, Hoevink, Van Kalvenhaar... it's a different era.

And then we have yet to mention perhaps Ko-oren's greatest. Geom yCinrhadd, from far southwestern Mauroren, debuting for Zinchester and then vowing to never step foot in the Top League, of 'only signing one-year contract' fame, trying his best to stay off the national team radar but getting called up somewhere between his Squidroidia Inkopolis FC and Quebecois Lakeside stints, and from then on he was always a Greenblue. He had seen it all: nothing fazed him. Life experience of a well-travelled 60-something in his late 20s. At 37, he also called an end to his career. Whether we'll see him coach the second team of Huthwich Et Iduloren FC next, start a turnip farm in Electrum, or heavy metal music journalism in Tikariot: we wish him the best.

That doesn't mean that the Juliasterinthen II Dragonflies are different from what you know. Todaka, Senothonnau, Nakasarudhen - they were already the backbone of the team and will continue to do so. The only names you might not have heard of are backup goalkeeper Starling, third wingbacks Otomo and Norfellow, perhaps the third string centrebacks Sokeden and Nahilden... and that's kind of it. Oh, and attacking midfielder Urwegun, already dubbed the next yCinrhadd at 18. Not because of her hatred for the Top League, but because she's supposed to be pretty darn good.

Speaking of hatred for the Top League: we heard your complaints about it being a two-stage league with just 12 teams, and we've 'improved' it. Enter a four-stage league with 36 clubs. You best just look at the Proof of Concept. It's definitely a format that needed both a concept and proof, and even with both in hand, many are sure that this'll be one for the history books. As in, that it'll be in history books soon, and not in present books. Because it's a boneheaded format, that is. Anyway, we're sure it's going to be awesome.

The 24 clubs that have earned sudden promotions have realised a thing: if they are to enter the spotlight, they better employ a big name, and even that might not be enough to earn their right to be among the big 36. Ko-orenite roster building has always focused on eliminating the worst elements of the team, but we might have witnessed the largest sudden shock to that philosophy. All of a sudden, there was a fight amongst our 'nouveau riche' to secure the services of the two dozen or so players entering their first professional contracts at age 16-20 - and instead of just meeting with a few of the big boys and choosing whatever playstyle they like best, they now had wads of cash waved their way by clubs that all of a sudden have massive sponsor income - at least, as far as their hitherto tiny budgets are concerned - and with little dead weight on the team already, they need a big guy to showcase. Returning veterans had much the same treatment: Bruncester offered a contract the likes the southeast hadn't seen in a decade to 33-year old striker Lemaigre. Arboren FC, always defensive, had according to all pundits a bottom 2 roster until they paid life-changing money to Poullain and Nagatomo. Once-almost-national teamer Marois is the only bright spot on Coloruna de Paraiso. Granon Altair, a rich club with few fans now have Acuna on goal and Tadanobu Tseshutein as their playmaker. The latter only 21 and probably able to make a team like Miradela or even Straudum is now on the second best team of the tiny, rugby league-oriented region. Even Weatherspark Wyvern, once the fourth club of their city, are now a Top League club with multiple studs - Rosie Chelmandery, Cwlcyn yAedanmac, and Henric Laringels.

The effects on the national team are immediate but not massive - we always already selected players from the second tier anyway. But it's still strange to see teams like 'Sauzjaregaun Saulrag' on the team list, not going to lie.

[Vixette]

you belong with me - taylor swift

---

Mia knew a couple when she saw one, and Félicien and Blanchefleur were making things way too obvious.

“They like like each other,” Yolaine pointed out during breakfast. She pointed her fork at the two lovers with a sly smirk on her face.

“Yolaine, I think it’s more than ‘like’,” Mia quipped, herself also watching Félicien feed Blanchefleur in the cutest manner, “Did you see them last time we came around?” Whatever Yolaine’s response was, Mia wasn’t paying particular attention. Instead, she looked at how Félicien gently placed the dessert spoon in Blanchefleur’s mouth. Her sharp gaze saw a few crumbs of the cake fall out of Blanchefleur’s mouth. Maybe Félicien noticed too, because he let out a gentle chuckle and wiped the crumb from Blanchefleur’s chin. Then, she laughed. He laughed along. Mia almost laughed with them as well, but as cute as the scene was, the warmth introduced into her heart was being pushed by the envy that had settled in long ago.

If everything went Mia’s way, she would be the one Félicien was feeding. Her chin the one Félicien wiped the crumbs off of. The one laughing with her… “boyfriend”, but who was she really kidding? He was more of a boy friend, with the space.

Mia continued to munch on her salad, each forkful of leafy greens tasting all the more bitter. Drat, now her jealousy was getting to her taste buds?

Mia continued to sneak some looks at Félicien and Blanchefleur. She tried to be subtle, but she was often caught off guard since she was doing so during training.

“Mia! Focus, please!” her coach shouted at her from across the pitch, “You can’t be dreaming when you’re playing!” Mia shook herself back to consciousness. She was in the middle of a practice match. Why was she so dazed out? Mia shook her head as she jogged back to position. Her first chance came just a little while later, when she found herself with the ball in a one-v-one situation against…

…Félicien. None other than Félicien Mercier. Of course it had to be him. Why was she always put into situations together with him all the time? Was this a coincidence? Was the universe trying to hint at something? Was Mother Fortune perhaps telling her somethi–

Mia, focus.

She parried the ball and carried it towards the goal. Félicien had come off his line to narrow her scoring opportunities. She wasn’t fazed by that, however, and she knew how to counter a sweeper keeper when she encountered one.

Mia looked Félicien in the eyes. The few, what, two? Three? Seconds they looked at each other was mystifying. Félicien looked like he was starving. His eyes didn’t dance around as much as they would when he wasn’t attached. When he and Mia would casually talk to each other as good friends, nothing more. That charm, that mystique in his eyes was gone. Mia in turn gave him an intense gaze. The fire in her irises burned and burned, hungry to devour more, to devour Félicien. She wanted Félicien, and her eyes were her messengers.

Then Mia proceeded to drive the ball between Félicien’s legs into the goal.

Mia let out a prideful hmph as she turned around to celebrate with her teammates. At that moment, she liked to think Félicien was too caught out by her beautiful, almond-shaped, double-lidded eyes to think about football. She just knew he was captivated by her. That’s why he couldn’t save the shot! That’s why, right?

The practice game ended quickly after. It was the first game Mia had played in a while, and even if it wasn’t an actual match, she still felt very, very fatigued. She was rapidly panting to catch her breath as she walked to take a sip of water. Just then, she felt something – or someone – tap her on her shoulder. She turned around, and it was Félicien himself.

“That was a good shot,” he praised, “Good game.” He stretched out his paw for a fistbump. Mia looked at his fist, and then at his face in confusion. Why so sudden? She didn’t waste any time in returning the favour, and gave him the fistbump he’d asked for. The ends of Félicien’s mouth lifted to a slight smile, and he promptly walked towards Blanchefleur. Mia was left thinking about what had just happened. What, how, why… why was he so…

…dry? He had never been this unenthusiastic when congratulating her after a match. He usually struck up a short conversation, and his demeanour would be way more lively than whatever he showed just now. Why so different now? Of course, Mia knew the answer: Blanchefleur. She could understand. Félicien probably didn’t want to make Blanchefleur too suspicious or jealous, and if Mia’s own boyfriend started to strike a conversation with another girl, she herself would feel miffed about it. Still, she couldn’t rub off the feeling of loss. She missed the times when he was more lively with her. Only if she was his girlfriend and not just a friend.

Mia wouldn’t hear Félicien’s voice again until night dawned on them. With the moon up and high in the sky, she was busy working on another one of her books. After all, she was a full-time author, and a renowned one at that. The only reason why she even agreed to play football was because she reckoned it would give her and her works more fame, and it jolly well did. After Vixette’s successful debut campaign, the value of her works tripled, and her net worth ballooned to a size she thought was unthinkable. Enough about her riches though. She had to make sure she didn’t botch this draft. Her editor was chasing her for her latest draft, and she didn’t want to keep him waiting anymore.

“Okay, I just need to think of a climax for–”

“I’m sorry, okay?”

That was Félicien. Mia craned her neck to her back, her ears intently eavesdropping on the conversation happening next door.

“Féli, you should know better than to go talking to other girls,” Blanchefleur scolded, “You’re not a cheater, are you?”

“That’s just presumptuous. I was talking about football, for goodness’ sake!” Félicien exclaimed with an annoyance Mia had never heard. It wasn’t laced with toxicity, but the annoyance still sounded like it tasted bitter. Mia continued to listen into their argument. Blanchefleur was going on about how Féli should be more careful with who he talked to, while he argued Blanchefleur was being too overprotective and assuming. Mia was a girl’s girl, and she empathised with Blanchefleur. Félicien should have known better than to talk to random girls, but why was she feeling real proud of herself for being one of those girls Félicien was talking to?

It felt wrong, but so right at the same time. Paradoxical, or verisimilitude? Mia liked it when she made Blanchefleur jealous. Félicien was hers – Mia’s – and hers only. The sound of their arguments started to sound like music to Mia’s ears, and as she listened on, she couldn’t help but think to herself:

“He’s better off with me.”

Mia then looked back onto her blank laptop screen. The story was supposed to be a fatal romance, a slow burn. She was stuck on a writer’s block, but the argument gave her some inspiration. She then started penning her draft:

“He’s better off with her.”

[Atymnius]

---

FUTURE SELF: PART IV
Gloria in Excelsis Deo

---

---

Are you happy?
Did California give you everything that you ever dreamed?
Are you lonely?
Did you find a way to fit in all the little things
That keep your heart beating?

Should I be finding gold in the wreckage?
I don't wanna miss it, no
Wanna look back know that I mean this
Was it worth it after all?

Oh, if I could send a letter to my future self, would it ever help?

---

Future Self, Boehm featuring Melody Noel, 2016

Ghant: Did football give you everything that you ever dreamed?

---

Ghant? Oh—

He immediately woke up as his chocolate sundae was given to him.

Thanks Oupa! I’ll see myself out!

Hey your sundae! You expect me to eat this?

Ghant was already gone.

Perplexed but sighing, the old man took a full spoon, remarking:

When will that boy ever grow up!?

Walking along the streets, he continued his practice along the goalposts of the College field, taking a couple of rounds wherever he could.

Hey bud!

Heyyy—!?

Shocked, Ghant turned around. It was not the familiar old man he knew. He was tall, had red hair with a hint of cunning—

Deo!

Hehe, in the flesh bud!

Deo, ignoring his reply, squeezed him so tight just like the one he had given him that day, resting his cap on his head. He was a rower from the Dēmosian Regional Rowing Team. Praised for the reach of his arms, they would scatter the regatta until all teams were devastated: leaving them dead. Many pundits often joke, or even wonder to a certain degree, his prospects should he have been a basketball player.

I see you still liked doing this.

Concerned, he pointed towards the goalposts, arched and broken.

Ghant—

You don’t know me.

Ghant!

YOU DON’T KNOW ME!

In tears, Deo once again hugged Ghant, kissing him on the forehead. Don’t worry I’ll handle all your critics. You’ll never have to leave your pores on those creatures again. Laughing, as he did, the same sinical laugh that Ghant understood, Deo gave him a picture frame from his Nike’s, the bag wrote: HEAR THE CALL OF THE SUPREME DEITY: KEEP ROWING FOR CLUB AND COUNTRY!:

Nonetheless, a picture frame popped up. It was the Jonas Brothers. Their necks were strapped in constrangulation as their arteries tap-danced on an industrial wire, some industrial district it must’ve been—

Deo!

Immediately rushing to him, putting his hands on his shoulders, he said:

Thank you Deo! Thank you~

Ghant passed out from the heat. Deo took him to his room. Putting himself on the bed, he stretched as his tall frame mirrored the glass pane on one of the cupboards. Getting inside, Ghant slept peacefully inside the arms he knew well, from every tender and morsel: his savior had arrived.

[Stewartika]

Founder’s Way, Stewartika. Team Meeting Room Four.

The good-sized room is simple, made simply for people to assemble and listen to whoever’s at the main plinth, the crest and flag of Stewartika emblazoned and hung to impress upon them the importance of this place, the heart of Stewartikan football. The people here now, of course, are the twenty-five members of the Stewartikan National Team, called here after the conclusion of the Baptism of Fire and those watching the final having returned home. They murmur among themselves, men ranging from sixteen to thirty-three, of every color underneath the Stewartikan sun. The door opens, and their attention is immediately taken by the man entering.

“Right. Please be seated,” intones head coach Bunta Kunio, stepping up to the podium and readying a holographic slate. They obey quickly, falling each into a chair roughly sorted by standing in the team, although it’s not precise. Kunio takes a moment before beginning.

“I won’t waste your time. There will be change for the World Cup, and it will come right now.”

A hand is raised - right field player Aidan Haggstrom.

“Excuse me, coach, but I have to ask - where is Harren? I haven’t seen him anywhere.”

The aging coach nods once, clearly expecting the question.

“Harren has been sent back to Arsenale, to make way for my changes. All will be explained in time. Let’s look at where we were eliminated.”

The hologram flashes, particles of light swirling into a recording of the Round of 64 match in La Snerra against Konstantino. It shows the final action of the game - Leon Munhoz’s short through ball to Lorenzo Gallejo, which won the match and sent Royal Purple home.

“What do you notice here? Anyone?”

Silence.

“Hans was left completely exposed here. Even with the system, Ott and Cho couldn’t make it in time. What this means is that the back three is no longer viable against competent and determined opposing sides. That means… this is our new formation.”

The old, complicated Stewartikan team shape resolves in the hologram before shifting, the dots representing players moving between lines, altering shapes.

“We will run a 4-2-3-1 for the World Cup. That means, then, that Karl has now been promoted to the starting XI.”

Scattered claps and affirmative statements greet the defender, who smiles pleased. Kunio continues.

“The two pivot midfielders will be Soon… and Jesse. Excellent work in the Baptism of Fire, lad.”

Again, congratulations are given to the young midfielder, who stole the show with five goals until the elimination.

“In the front line, our ten is Jin.”

Kunio’s gaze suddenly turns hard, addressing the players that have now been benched because of this.

“Hawkins, keep your head up - you’ll have your chances when we’ll need your defensiveness and set pieces. As for you, Jens,” his attention fully on Jens Bergmeier, “you’re benched until your locker room attitude improves.”

“As for the wing midfielders, it’s Sung on the left and Arnold on the right as usual. Darius, you are benched, however.”

A look of confusion on the recovered striker’s face.

“Wait, what? Why? Is Polluck replacing me?”

Kunio shakes his head.

“No, not quite. It’s also the reason Harren has gone back to his club.”

Scattered murmurs emerge from the players. Rumors, what they’ve suspected for a while.

“I’ve brought in a new striker for the team. One that I was heavily against fielding for personal reasons, but the SFA has no more tolerance for my issues. So, without further ado…”

He nods to an attendant, who opens the door, and a tall figure steps inside.

“Our new #16, the S League 1 top scorer for four consecutive seasons…”

VIKTOR SJOBERG

Sjoberg cuts an impressive figure at six foot three, towering over most except the center back duo. His impeccably combed blonde hair falls slightly over his face, a lank smile across his features. He bows once, to polite applause from his new teammates.

“Thank you for welcoming me, comrades. I hope to help us all the way through, no matter what.”

With a smirk directed Kunio’s way, he takes a seat beside team captain Sung.

Kunio takes a more authoritative stance as he finishes his speech.

“This is our eleven going forward. We will be rotating in qualifiers but expect this if all goes well for the knockouts. The first game is always the hardest. I know better than anyone. So we don’t find comfort in stability. We don’t let goals scare us. And if we win that, then it’ll all work out.”

This team has been utterly refined, and somehow more deadly than before. Could Stewartika make history in the one-hundredth World Cup?

“We’ll start training for this immediately. That is all!”

Find out… soon.

[Calgasia]

Stöckl Motor Werke: Light My Fire

Introduction

Wolfgang Stöckl Sr. loved two things in life: Italian opera and fast cars.

Wolfgang Stöckl Jr. added a third thing: Italian opera, fast cars and gorgeous women.

Together, father and son forged the finest Calgasian automaker. They didn't build the most practical cars. They certainly didn't build the best-selling. And definitely not the most affordable.

They built the most desired. The most beautiful. And undeniably, the fastest.

The auto industry in Calgasia

One of the most important sectors of the national economy, with companies ranging from behemoths to almost artisanal firms. Let’s quickly review them:

- Klimes Motors: one of the largest companies in Calgasia, part of one of the biggest conglomerates, Klimes Group. Focused on a wide range of affordable, reliable cars from everyone, from small compacts and hatchbacks to large sedans, delivery vans and everything in between. It has also included numerous innovative solutions over the years.
- Camowe: the commercial name for the Calgasische Motoren Werke, the great rivals for Klimes. A generalist automaker, it also offers a wide range of vehicles. Sturdy and reliable, Camowe cars are usually more “conservative” compared to Klimes, as they are less focused on design and mechanical innovations. “If it works, it works” is their unofficial motto.
- Austro-Daimler: perhaps the most famous automaker of Calgasia, their upscale models are known for their reliability and performance, and their owners are often very proud of their cars. Austro-Daimler is a symbol of what the Calgasian engineering is capable of doing.
- Löhner: the most luxurious manufacturer in the country, Löhner produces engines and machinery, but for cars it focuses on large full-size sedans or saloon cars that are favoured by the upper echelons of society, as well as the official cars for the Kaiser and the government. However, the company is stuck in the past and there are no signs that they want to change that.
- CTA: acronym of Bohemian Factory of Vehicles, it mainly focuses on industrial and delivery vehicles, trucks and vans, only producing some inexpensive, economy compact cars and motorcycles for the general public.
- Ritter & Graf: the most extravagant of them all, Ritter & Graf is a synonym for artisanal craft and attention to detail. Their fully-customized approach has granted them a great reputation among artists, socialites and aristocrats, as there are virtually no two identical vehicles, with the engine and mechanical parts being the only “closed” options for the clients.
- Stöckl: the up-and-coming automotive company in Calgasia, with its distinctive sporty feel and a strong Italian influence. Wolfgang Stöckl, an engineer and cars aficionado, started his company 40 years ago as the only pure sports car maker in the nation. His son, Wolfgang Stöckl II, with his larger-than-life personality, playboy lifestyle and bold marketing strategy, has taken by storm the quiet world of automobiles in Calgasia. His new, sporty designs have caught the competition off guard, who, with a mixture of hatred and envy, watch as Stöckl has become a serious threat to their dominance.

"If you're simply aiming to get from A to B, buy a Klimes.
If your goal is to make a lasting impression on your in-laws, choose an Austro-Daimler.
But if you intend to impress the world, only one name is worth knowing: Stöckl."

K. Bernhard, writer, journalist and socialite.

"Stöckl? Garbage. Pretentious rubbish."

A. Huber, chairman of Austro-Daimler.

"You know what? I have nightmares from time to time. It just happens, I'm used to it. 
But my most terrifying dream by far is the one where I see myself driving an Austro-Daimler."

Wolfgang Stöckl Jr.

---

Context & OOC:

- Calgasia is a constitutional monarchy founded by Austro-Hungarian settlers in 1917 after the accidental discovery of an interdimensional portal between the Earth and a very similar planet, evolving from an isolated imperial colony into a modern, democratic, and industrial nation.

- The technological level is comparable to real Earth 1960s. There can be some advanced features, but generally.

- The current year in Calgasia is 2004. Connexions and trade with the rest of the multiverse started only in the year 2000 after more than 80 years isolated. That explains the current backwards tech level.

- Due to the reopening of the nation to the multiverse, Calgasia is experiencing a social and cultural revolution, comparable to the Swinging Sixties in the Western world back on Earth, especially the UK. Arts, music, fashion, multimedia, popular consciousness, feminism, … almost all aspects of the traditional Calgasian society are being challenged and modified by the youth. Mass consumption and the economic boom that the country is having because of the renewed trade are fuelling this movement. This revolution is being felt across the country, but especially in the capital, with the movement Groovy Goldstadt. More real-life info here, if you’re curious: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swinging_Sixties

- Almost all models are based on real Alfa Romeo cars, modified through Gemini AI. Thus all images, unless stated, are AI-generated.

[Sangti and the Filindo Isles]

sportssfi.com

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NEWS | FEATURES | SFI SUPERLIGA | LSIFB | SCORES | CONTACT US

WORLD CUP 100 QUALIFIERS
Agilang Dilaw refreshes kits in landmark qualifying campaign
SFI turns back the clock to don WC 65-72 era kits

NUEVO SAN MARCO - After an anonymous qualifying campaign in World Cup 99 that ended up in another failure, the newly-established Football Federation of Sangti and the Filindo Isles (FFSFI) have turned to nostalgia to make another attempt at qualifying for their first World Cup finals as a union of Sangti and Filindostan.

Releasing the new kits manufactured by Libertad Sportswear for the landmark 100th edition of the multiverse's premier sporting tournament, the Agilang Dilaw turn to earlier kit designs made by Audioslavia's Kirola to mark the occasion, with kits the then-known as Sangti and then The Royal Barangay, the primary kit featured the kits worn when they first qualified to the Finals in the 68th edition, while the change kit is their very first when they first made their competitive debut in the 52nd edition of the Baptism of Fire.

SFI has been no stranger in donning nostalgia kits, as their previous change kit is a nod to the primary kit of Filindostan, with white replacing black, when the Pula Garuda won the Baptism of Fire 66 tournament.

Kit makers Libertad are still open for serving national teams looking for a new kit for their qualifying campaigns, and may visit this website to contact their representatives.

[Kanzlia]

Rarity-o-meter
■
This meter will be important later

Commemorative WC100 Decorative Stamps
"Rejoice! Football is back!" These decorative stamps were made by the Velox Design School.
These stamps are made for promotional use by the VVK and Kanzlian Government, though its still a stamp.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Kanzlia enters the World Cup with a lot in mind. But perhaps the biggest thing in mind could just be, will we regain the highs of WC99? On the last edition Kanzlia was able to squeeze into the World Cup proper and thanks to a well-rounded performance in the proper group stages (Played thrice, won, lost, drew once) Kanzlia progressed into the knockouts of the World Cup for the first time. The Prowlers was expertly dispatched by Chromatika however as Kanzlia lost 2-3. Regardless of the defeat, many saw it as a positive leap forwards as the edition prior to WC98 the Prowlers just missed out on the playoffs spot in qualification. Since then Kanzlian football truly reach an all time high with winning the Campionato Esportiva. It was a close battle against runners up Paradystopia and in the end the score was settled on penalties. On the domestic side of things the countrys two biggest teams (bar VVS) won the CEdC in two consecutive seasons, 1899 Szbedansk for edition 49 and Armada Kotr for edition 50 most recently.

So, Karl Schmidt has a pretty high bar to clear if he were to have a better cycle than WC99. At the very least he had to lead the Prowlers to the World Cup proper, a task made much much harder by this cycle's format. Automatic qualification is only granted to group winners, whilst second place have to go through a play-off to become part of the final 48. In retrospect WC99 was rather favourable as the Prowlers qualified with finishing 2nd in Group 8 of the qualifiers, just behind eventual winners Audioslavia. Now drawn in Group 10, Kanzlia is expected to finish 2nd ranking-wise. But as Kanzlians do know, rankings mean little with teams as determined as we are to be part of the 48. In fact, all the teams will be new opponents, not once had the Prowlers played from heavyweights and fiery (quite literally infact) Farfadillis up to (rankings-wise) newcomers Cassadaigua. The latter of which will be Kanzlia's first opponents in the qualifiers.

The Prowlers, 8 opponents, Group 10, 16 qualification matches if all goes well, and hopefully World Cup 100. That's all to expect from Kanzlian News this upcoming cycle.

---

VVK Broadcast

✹ work groupchat #moresubsidies

_ | ⮌ | ☒

► A.C. - 02:21
"cas, have you seen the news?" ✓✓

► A.C. - 03:12
"caaaasss" ✓✓

◄ C.W. - 07:30
"What are you doing staying up that late???"

◄ C.W. - 07:30
"And no, I haven't seen the news."

◄ C.W. - 07:39
"Is it about the World Cup? You know I don't really care about football."

◄ C.W. - 07:48
"You're sleeping aren't you? For goodness sake."

► A.C. - 08:12
"no i wasnt" ✓✓

◄ C.W. - 08:13
"ANN GET YOUR ASS TO THE OFFICE."

[Free Republics]

Sporting World

World Cup 100 Qualifying Preview
By: Clarice Chaussee

The group draw has been conducted for the 100th World Cup and the first in 15 years to feature the Federation of Free Republics. 15 years ago, Soccer General Rule Theriault led his troops into Farfadillis where they overcame the odds, reached the final and became the Last Real Champions of the World Cup by defeating Nephara 1 goal to nil on Maxim Izmailov's header. That Izmailov was even on the pitch to score the World Cup winner was a miracle after he took a nasty foul from Nephara's thuggish star Rowena Strongbow. At the previous year's World Cup, Strongbow had been accidentally injured on a clean Izmailov tackle so she obviously decided to intentionally foul him during the final as payback. (OOC: Click the links if you want the truth, not the Sporting World propaganda.) I remember watching these matches on TV as a young girl. Izmailov was my favorite player, probably because he was the nephew of the consul candidate whom my parents supported. But more on that later.

At the 100th World Cup, we have been drawn into a group of nations that, for the most part, nobody has ever heard of. This group is numbered group 13 and the nations you will likely be most familiar with are Juvencus, Lisander and Jeruselem. In this article, we will be covering them in the order that we will be playing them. However, I will not be recapping their entire histories in past World Cups because I'm not writing that by myself. Also because the Grand Immortal Imperator has restricted the use of large language models in the Free Republics as they are primarily used for illicit purposes like posting spam on the internet, cheating on your homework and generating pornography. I can't believe that my predecessors as soccer correspondent for Sporting World would actually write all of that out. That's way too much effort and it's probably not very interesting to read either.

Our first opponent will be Lisander, whom we will face on the road on matchday 1 then at the Soccer Palace in Plymouth on matchday 10. The Soccer Palace has been vastly expanded by the Grand Immortal Imperator and now has a capacity of 184,372 making it the largest stadium in the Federation. Lisander made their WCC debut at BoF 51 in United Gordonopia. At the tournament famous for unearthing Saintland and Nephara in the same group, they were in a different Gordonopian group and didn't advance. After a forgettable qualifying run at World Cup 64, they disappeared for 14 years until they made their return in World Cup 78, the same year that the second generation of the Republican National Soccer Team debuted. Lisander would make their CoH debut the following year in CoH 71. After falling short in the World Cup 80 qualifying playoffs against Gregoryisgodistan, they disappeared and returned for a few more World Cups in the following years where they were somewhat competitive in qualifying. In recent years, they've been consistently a bottom of the group team. Through all of this time, they have never faced the FFR in a WCC sanctioned match or in an IAC match. I could have sworn I remember watching them play the Free Republics as a kid but I guess that must have been in a WBC, IBC or World Bowl game. Their lack of recent success explains why they're ranked just 180th in the latest KPB+ rankings which implies that they should be beatable.

Our second opponent and first home opponent will be unranked New Rotterdam City. They seem to be primarily a football and hockey nation with a university called St. Paulus competing in NSCF. Surprisingly, this university is not located in Saintland in the city by that name. They will play at Happy Valley Stadium in Republic College, Rensylvania. My alma mater. This will be the Black Out Match, based on the traditional White Out game that the Pochahontas Panthers play every year. A nation that competes in NSCF should appreciate the incomparable atmosphere at Ren Rep, home of the reigning RCAA National Champions. We Are now THE premier university in the Federation of Free Republics and we will make sure to show it by turning out for our World Cup match.

Third will be a trip to 155th ranked Macbon who debuted 9 years ago in BoF 78. They reached the round of 16 there and have followed that up with several qualifying runs where they were in the bottom half of the table each time. The second match against them will be in the Googolplex in Geattle. Fortunately, the Googolplex has a shopping mall inside the venue and underground tunnels to the Googol campus so you can find something to do if the match turns out to be a snoozer. Based on the footage I've been able to find of Macbon, I'm not worried about them.

Our first challenging opponent will likely be Juvencus. If we're going to make a serious run at qualifying for this World Cup, we will likely need 7 to 9 points from Lisander, New Rotterdam City and Macbon. Juvencus is ranked 24th and is the top seed in this group. If we're going to qualify with an unranked team of teenagers, this is certainly the kind of draw we would need to do it. Juvencus made their debut 23 years ago in BoF 64, reaching the round of 16. But they've had far more success in the World Cup than their fellow BoF round of 16er Macbon, making their Cup of Harmony debut in the same cycle. 2 years later, they'd win their first WCC trophy at Cup of Harmony 71. Instead of defending their title, they qualified for World Cup 80 by making the playoffs and knocking Super-Llamaland out. Over all these years, they somehow never crossed paths with Rule Theriault's legendary team in WCC competition or even in the IAC. Despite a second World Cup qualification 18 years ago, they did not return to the World Cup finals until World Cup 93 despite entering every year and it wasn't until their fourth World Cup qualification 4 years ago that they finally won a match at a World Cup finals. Valanora appears to have knocked them out in a snowy round of 16 match. With the World Cup finals expanding to 48 teams 3 years ago, they have made it to the last 4 World Cup finals and even reached the quarterfinals of World Cup 98. Juvencus is known for their extremely aggressive style of play. They were also in the international news a year ago for the death of their emperor at the age of 100. We extend our belated condolences to them and wish for such long life for his heir. Given our lack of history competing against them, I don't have much more to write here. But this is clearly the class of group 13 on paper.

Now is the point where I state that the match against Juvencus will be at the Samuel Izmailov Memorial Stadium in New City. This stadium hosted the final of World Cup 81 where Vilita defeated Gregoryisgodistan to go 2 for 2 in winning World Cups co-hosted by our glorious Federation. In the years since, Vilita has been banned by the WCC from entering the World Cup. Given that the WCC allows nations to enter the World Cup without even identifying their roster, it is obvious they must have done something really bad. But once upon a time, this was the CoCoCo Stadium named after a Vilitan company that paid for its construction. The naming rights agreement was cancelled during the chaos because we lost all contact with the outside world. This chaos began when Consul Samuel Izmailov was executed as he prepared to launch his signature program to secure a lasting peace by invading the world and inviting the world. An assassin's bullet took Samuel Izmailov from us. Then, from what I can gather, the rest of the multiverse somehow thought we had nuked ourselves based on some kind of optical illusion. At the time, I was just a little girl but I remember the electricity went out throughout the Federation within a day or 2 of the news that our consul had been assassinated and that our other consul had gone into hiding. Our prior consul was incapacitated in the hospital recovering from having been shot by somebody impersonating a supporter of Samuel Izmailov's. She had resigned her position in order to enable her recovery and allowed both of the candidates in the too close to call election to become the new consuls.

With the electricity out throughout the Free Republics, the chaos began as local warlords took over across the Federation. Many of them terrorized and oppressed the local population. A few actually tried to make the most of a bad situation. Hundreds of millions of people died. Then, one day, the power came back on and the wars escalated with deadlier weaponry. At the end of the wars, the mysterious man who called himself the Grand Immortal Imperator was the commander of the last army standing. Upon his victory, he restored the Federation Constitution and re-established the government with a few minor amendments to reduce political tensions and ensure that the chaos never repeats itself again. Over the past 7 years, he was rebuilt our Federation brick by brick with his personal fortune. A major part of this rebuilding effort has been naming the stadium in New City in honor of Consul Samuel Izmailov who was, like Consul Venicio Piazza, martyred at the hands of an assassin's bullet.

Fifth on our schedule is a visit to Sernet, an unranked debutant at this World Cup. This is also their international sports debut. (OOC: I know they're ranked 330th and entered World Cup 99's BoF under the NS nation Sernet and now use The Sernetian Empire as their NS nation but Sernet as the IC name. Keep in mind that this is Sporting World so it isn't exactly known for being reliable or accurate with its facts.) They have provided a roster, which is promising, that contains a rather large coaching staff. They are a religious nation that appears to be heavily urbanized where alcohol consumption is restricted to certain areas. That doesn't sound very fun but make sure you're careful where you consume your Dixon Light if you travel there! They also asked us to change the original text of this paragraph of our article after it was published so we have done so. (OOC: For the sake of transparency in editing, the last sentence is OOCly true. I've rewritten it based on this RP that was inspired by the original text.) We will play them in the second leg at Olden Stadium in Falkamore, Nejax. As they say, you Don't Mess with Nejax. We hope Sernet heeds that warning, for their own sake.

Sixth for us is Yangchenia. More precisely, the Dragon Empress's Domain of Yangchenia. They appear to be a theocracy that worships a dragon and spends an extreme amount of money on sending rockets into space. Their players also appear to be extremely old, for the most part. They debuted in this year's BoF where they had the misfortune of sharing a group with eventual champions Shin-Zetsubo and of facing eventual runners-up Choppyhausen in the round of 64. I have no idea why these nation names are getting so bizarre these days. Whatever happened to the days of nations like Felix, Saintland, Nephara, Yttribia, Super-Llamaland, Gregoryisgodistan, Iesusisgodistan, Ceni, Electrum and the like? At least I could pronounce their names! They'll play at the Olympic Stadium in Baseton on matchday 6. That's the stadium where the X Winter Olympics was held before I was born. I have seen footage of it but the Kulseth era is incomprehensible to me. I have no idea how the Church of Saintland, of all the multiverse's many ridiculous religions, ever ended up running the FFR and launching a major international war. They even forced everybody to use "thee" and "thou" like people do at the Renaissance Faire! Speaking of Renaissance Faires, the geezers on Yangchenia's soccer team would probably feel right at home there.

The seventh opponent on our list is Yuezhou. They get to play in the Imperator Stadium in Republica. That will be the final home match of qualifying. Yuezhou aka Yue Zhou can't seem to figure out how to spell their name but they apparently debuted at World Cup 78 followed by a Cup of Harmony appearance that year where they reached the round of 16 and got crushed 6-1 by Nephara. They entered qualifying for 4 years and made a respectable run at World Cup 81 but then disappeared for 3 years and returned to miss the playoffs on a tiebreaker at World Cup 86. Obviously, we've never played them as they're a Rushmori nation and didn't see them during their first 4 years in the World Cup. They finally broke through at World Cup 88, beating Abanhfleft in the playoffs then drawing Turori and upsetting Farfadillis in the World Cup finals. They wouldn't return to the finals for 5 years and wouldn't make the knockouts until World Cup 94. First knockout round win for them was World Cup 96 against Zenic before they lost to eventual champs Brookstation in the quarterfinals. To this day, that is their only knockout round win at the World Cup finals. Last cycle, they failed to qualify altogether. To date, their only tournament final appears to be the Cup of Harmony final 8 years ago against Saint Eleanor. This appears to be a team that has peaked and thus is eminently beatable if we're in the right form.

The eighth and seventeenth matchdays will be our byes. Each will be followed by a match against Jeruselem who will play us at The Big House which is the home stadium of the University of Yorkoba Coyotes, a major conference rival of Ren Rep. Yorkoba usually plays us tough so I imagine they'll have a good crowd. I just don't like that place very much because my husband got hurt there in his sophomore year. At the time, we were already dating and it wasn't fun having to play nurse. But that's just something you have to do if you truly care for your man. Anyways, Jeruselem were the runners-up at Cup of Harmony 57 which was also the FFR's debut cycle. Rule Theriault's first generation team played Jeru FC at that tournament, which was closely aligned with Jeruselem but wasn't Jeruselem. The two actually played each other in the knockouts of that CoH. The FFR beat Jeru FC 5 goals to 3 in the head to head matchup but did not advance. They qualified for World Cup 68 in Legalese and for World Cup 82 but as far as I can tell, they only faced the FFR at World Cup 84 qualifying. We beat them 2 to nil in both the home and away matches. The home match was in Los Martires, Malifornia at the Coliseum of the Crucifixion. No idea how they managed to secure a World Cup qualifying match. Amazingly, they seem to have somehow qualified for World Cups 88 and 90 and made it to the knockout rounds of both. But they haven't qualified for the World Cup in 7 years and are ranked just 93rd. This is the pot 3 team in this group.

The format of World Cup qualifying this year is 30 groups of 9 as a record 273 nations have signed up. The World Cup finals field expanded to 48 teams a few years ago which means the group winners will qualify directly. The second place teams will go to playoffs for the right to join the hosts and group champs in the finals. If I had to hazard a prediction, I'd say Juvencus is a weak pot 1 team and Yuezhou is a team that seems on the be on the downturn. Jeruselem is an extraordinarily weak pot 3 team. Yangchenia and New Rotterdam City would seem to be the wild cards in the group. Teams that may surprise or may not. While the group of teenagers that blew the Imperator's Cup final to Nordernious and melted down defensively in their first road match at Baker Park do not look to be in strong form yet, this is a group that they'd be expected to win handily a couple years or so from now, assuming they develop the way we expect them to. Qualification is not completely out of the question with this group draw. It isn't like we have to play defending champion Audioslavia like Saintland did in their first World Cup nor do we have to play those irritating talking horses from the Equestrian States or an eternal World Cup power like Valanora or The Holy Empire. Am I crazy or can we actually beat these guys this year?

Speaking of Nordernious, they were left out of the qualifying field because their paperwork arrived moments too late. Sucks to be them!

Clarice Chausee is Sporting World's new international soccer correspondent starting with Imperator's Cup 1 and World Cup 100. She is a recent graduate of Ren Rep University and the former editor of their student newspaper The Collegian. She is married in a lesbian marriage to her husband and national championship winning quarterback Rule Chausee and their wife and former Ren Rep cheerleading captain Elisa Chausee.

[Saint-Lazarus]

FANS AND PLAYERS REACT TO THE WORLD CUP QUALIFIER DRAW
Iloilo City, Federal Capital Territory

As the World Cup qualifiers start to kick off, there are some reactions on the team get into a group of fellow newcomers and experienced nations. They predicted that they could possibly win against Avote, Himurajima, Bithia, and Norway-Sweden-Finland. And the teams that are tough to beat were Woodsmere, Pyazhnaya, Xanneria, and the possible top of the group, Saint Eleanor, ironically they have "Saint" in their name also. What would the Lazarenes react? "At first it look interesting for us.", says a Panay fan. "But beating a team with the possible name could be hard, and even is at the top of the rankings!" "I'll say it's alright for us.", says a Cebuano fan. "But the team needs some improvement before beating them." Some of them said that the group is interesting with them, hoping to get a load of experience from them. As for the players, they might say it's okay with them, even though they wanted to face the likes of Audioslavia and Krytenia. And adding to that, the fans wanted a new coach too to strengthen the team. The first game for the Carabaos is against Bythia in the national stadium and then visit Pyazhnaya in the capital of Krasnograd. Will they either directly qualify or go to the playoffs? The fate is still on these Lazarene hands.

[Bhumi Matawis Empire]

Matawis Kingdom
Matawis Sultanate
Bhumi Matawis Empire - The Establishment (1810-1928)
Bhumi Matawis Empire - The Ealy Years (1928-1950)
Bhumi Matawis Empire - The Second Empire (1950-1971)

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Bhumi Matawis Empire - The Third Empire (1971-1999)

Some important events lead to the start of the Third Empire. In 1968, after postponing their merging process following the clashes between pro and anti-government in the Empire, Tomini’s parliament ratified the Mandala Charta and it was signed by the President which made them officially join the Empire. In 1969, a referendum was held in Papoland, in both East and West Papoland. The result shows an overwhelming support to join the Empire. The territory was then admitted as an overseas state of the Empire and called Papo-Iriya, based on the local term for both areas. However, some groups that oppose the integration continue to uprising. Some uprising got so big that the Empire had to send their troops to control the situation. Uprisings continued to happen until the end of the Third Empire.

The Third Empire was marked by the holding of the fourth general election in the Empire. It was supposed to be held in 1965. But after the clashes between pro and anti-government at the time, the election was postponed until it was held in 1971 under the rule of Prawiroharjo as Mahapatih Anom. Based on the new law enacted by him, only 3 political parties can join the election. 400 seats were contested in the election. Sarikat Rakyat Matawis, led by Prawiroharjo came out as the winner after winning around 62% of the votes followed by Aliansi Nasional (21%) and PSKM last with around 17%. Historians believed the election was manipulated to the advantage of SRM and Prawiroharjo as he intended to lead the Empire again. And his dream came true with full support in Graha Pawongan, he was elected as Mahapatih Anom.

Under the rule of Prawiroharjo, the Empire began to rebuild after the ‘little civil war’. He succeeded in increasing the economy output and developing the industrial base in the Empire. The government implemented a high subsidy for many commodities to keep the price low and made people happy with the country’s situation although some historians feel the happiness was a fake. Nevertheless, the economy of the Empire was boosted by the Oil Boom in 1970s. The country increased their daily pump to around 1 million barrels per day which elevated their status into an exporter. And the last success in Prawiroharjo’s first term was when the country achieved self-sufficiency for their staple foods. An achievement that was continuously maintained for 3 years from 1972 to 1974.

Francisco Lopes da Silva

Nearing the end of his first term, Prawiroharjo made a bold decision as the government decided to meddle with the situation in Galiyao. Galiyao is a small kingdom located to the eastern end of the Southeast Islands Group. The kingdom was under the influence of the Lusitar Empire. But when the Empire pulled their support, the kingdom was in limbo. Two sides arise, one wants to be independent while the other one considers joining the Empire. And despite the support for staying independent was higher, Prawiroharjo supported the other side who wanted to join the Empire. The rift between the two sides can be seen in 1975 after the kingdom’s first election. The pro-independent won but the pro-integration denied the result of the election. Uprising happened across the country and it gradually turned into an open war. Prawiroharjo secretly helped the pro-integration supporters. He gave them military aid and military assistance. This resulted in the turning point of the situation in Galiyao. By mid-1976, the pro-integration soldier pushed the pro-independence supporters out of the government office. Some of their leaders were captured. While King Dom Lorenzo III was evacuated. In the end, pro-integration won the power struggle. The leader, Francisco Lopes da Silva persuaded the King to enact a law that made Galiyao integrated with the Empire. Despite being reluctant, but knowing the growing power of the Empire, King Dom Lorenzo III realized that sooner or later the kingdom might succumb under the power of the Empire. He together with Fransisco da Silva visited Kartasura in June 1976. There they met Prawiroharjo. The meeting was about the integration of Galiyao into the Empire. And in September 1976, Galiyao ratified the Mandala Charta and officially integrated with the Empire. But there were still pro-independence supporters that clashed with the authority once in a while.

The second election during the Third Empire era was held in 1977. It was once again won by SRM. They held the majority of the seats in Graha Pawongan despite 6 seats less than the previous term. Prawiroharjo extended his term as Mahapatih Anom. In his second term, the country faced a food shortage due to the long dry season. Import was commenced. While domestically, the fertilizer industry was pushed to create a strong fertilizer that can double the rice output, the country’s main staple food. This period of time was the time when the country started to rely on chemical fertilizer to increase their agriculture production. The practice was done continuously which greatly affected the soil condition. The impact was not seen until decades later.

Andy Ruband

In 1978, Malalaime, a former Holanda colony, surprisingly joined the Empire. The country has a huge Jamanese diaspora. Historians believed that Prawiroharjo had long targeted this small territory. Malalaime has huge mineral deposits such as gold, bauxite and oil that can increase the Empire’s economy. Their position in another region was also a huge benefit for the Empire to expand their trade further with Malalaime as their economic hub in their region. These Jamanese diaspora count around 27% of Malalaime’s population, the highest amongst the other ethnic groups. This situation was taken into advantage by Prawiroharjo to assert the Empire's influence on the country. He got an ally there, Andy Ruband the then Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He actively lobbied about the integration within the parliament. Over time, many have been attracted to the idea beyond the Jamanese diaspora itself. It became a national debate in 1975 which saw many support the idea. Their vision was a more secure Malalaime as they see the Empire is economically and militarily larger than them. Finally in 1978, a referendum was held which resulted in a slight win to integration, 51.04% for integration against 43.48% with around 5% voters select abstaining. By late 1978, the Parliament ratified the Mandala Charta which was then signed by the President a month later. Thus, making Malalaime the 14th state of the Empire.

In mid-1980, he had a heart attack which followed by a stroke that paralyzed the right side of his body. With this condition, Prawiroharjo decided to step back from his position as Mahapatih Anom. He was replaced by Murjiono Ali after he won an internal selection of SRM leader. He continues the legacy left by Prawiroharjo. He also led the party to win the 1982 general election where they gained 10 seats from the previous election and still continue to control the Assembly. Murjiono Ali focuses on innovation and technology. Pushing the evolution in the transportation and military industry. BUMKA (Bhumi Matawis Kereta Api, Bhumi Matawis Trains) was established in 1983 as a rolling stock manufacturer company. IPTN (Industri Pesawat Terbang Nasional, National Aviation Industry) was evolved from Murtanto Aviation Industry in 1985. ISAB (Industri Senjata dan Alat Berat, Weaponry and Heavy Equipment Industry) was evolved from Pabrik Senjata dan Mesiu (PSM, Weaponry and Ammunition Factory) in 1988.

Murjiono Ali

Murjiono Ali extended his leadership after 1987 election win with a staggering 57 seats increase. SRM hold the super majority in Graha Pawongan as they controlled 299 out of 400 seats in the chamber or almost 75% of the seat, the first and only time a party can achieve it. The rise was because the religious faction who previously always supported Aliansi Nasional have pulled their support. Leader of Majelis Tinggi Jamangen, Isham Budiyanto declared that MTJ members and supporters were not obliged to vote for Aliansi Nasional.

During this period, Ali faced economic hardship. Commodities prices were falling and oil production had been significantly decreased than in its prime years in 1970’s. The government was unable to continue giving a large subsidy to their growing population. Prices increased slightly as subsidy was decreased. But still the government tried to win back the people’s hearts by giving them direct cash assistance. On the other hand, the government blames Permigas (Perusahaan Minyak dan Gas), the Empire’ state-owned oil and gas company for their failure to modernize the petroleum industry and seek new oil wells which contributed to the low output of the country’s crude oil. At the time, oil export contribute more than 40% of the country's income. A rift was also showing within SRM between their military and civic wings. While the opposition ignited the question about transparency from the government. During their campaign, PSKM leader Munarwanto raised awareness about structural corruption within the government, oppression made by the government to everyone that opposed them, media limitation, economic imbalance between the metropole and other states and lack of basic rights for the people. This situation affected the SRM's performance in the 1992 election where they lost 17 seats but still won the election. However, the result raises awareness of unfairness in the country’s election process.

The economic situation in the early 1990s has not improved. Murjiono Ali had to work hard to keep the people happy while also dispelling any rumors about the government. In 1993, the government established the National Human Rights Commission to monitor human rights abuse in the country. Despite its noble clause, many were skeptical with the functionality of the Commission as it was still under the government's power. The situation brings more and more discontent towards the government. However, miraculously SRM still won the 1997 general election although with a sharp drop of minus 43 seats from their previous election. Murjiono Ali was once again sworn as Mahapatih Anom. But the public grow resentful towards SRM and the government

In late 1997, the economy had become unstable. The price was flying high as the government had been unable to cover the subsidy anymore nor the direct cash assistance. The export crashed. Domestic consumption plummeted. The situation got worse after the stock market crashed in early 1998. Bhumi Bank can no longer hold the currency exchange at its rate. They finally let the Slaka float with the market which made it fall 500% from its previous level. These cumulative events led to an uprising by the college student in late March 1998. It was first centered in the capital before spreading elsewhere, especially main cities such as Labuanjaya, Junggalu, Kembangan, Bergota, Mangkasara and Balawan. The demonstration was peaceful at first but it went violent with provocateur believed to infiltrates the demo. The students occupied the Assembly building and blockaded the road to Kalangan Anom, Mahapatih Anom’s office building making Murjiono Ali unofficially under house arrest. Activities in several cities such as Kartasura, Labuanjaya and Junggalu was stopped for almost a week as the demonstration constantly held with some of it went violent. They demand several points such as demanding Murjiono Ali to step down from his position, freezing the Graha Pawongan, ending military faction presence in the parliament, holding a snap election and many others. Both buildings were occupied for almost a week before the Emperors interfered.

Emperor Puroboyo of Mangkualam in his speech announced the disbandment of the cabinet and the Graha Pawongan. Murjiono Ali was stripped from his position as Mahapatih Anom. He then appointed the reigning Mahapatih Agung, Sangaji Abdul Hayat Islan from Kieraha to establish an emergency government until the situation was peaceful enough for the election to be held. With the speech made by the Emperor, students that occupied both the Assembly building and Kalangan Anom finally disbanded themselves. Abdul Hayat Islan worked fast to establish his cabinet of ministers. He tried to stabilize the economy by merging many banks within the country so these financial institutions are more stable financially. Bhumi Bank is placed as a separate institution independent from the government. Although the President of Bhumi Bank is still appointed by Mahapatih Anom with the agreement from the Assembly. These moves were successful to bring back the confidence from the investor. The currency exchange was stabilized as it found its new equilibrium rate. His next move was to repeal the political law made by Prawiroharjo that restricted the number of political parties. He also dismissed the military faction. A military law was passed that restricted active military personnels and officers from running for civil positions. Another change that was made by Islan was the status of the states. During SRM’ reigned, the country had become more unitary rather than its intended to be, a federal union. This was the reason why the imbalance between the metropole and other states occurs as all the income was coming to the metropole first before going into the states. Islan wants this to go back to its original clause. He also extended the autonomy to the overseas states especially in their domestic affairs. The change was popular in both Papo-Iriya and Malalaime. Islan ended his temporary position by holding the election in December 1999 which also ended the Third Empire.

[Indusse]

Hind Tribune
Historical Season, for who?

By Subrato Shahla

The World Cup hits its centenary edition this season reaching up to the books of history so that this can be note down as an event that happens only once in a lifetime. This Edition is more special that that because it is also the largest edition till date with two hundred and seventy nations competing against each other in the qualification stage. This also marks the twenty first world cup qualifications that the Indussean Football Association has send a team to. From the first world cup champions Crosshill to the recent winner Audioslavia, there has been multiple teams that have won the World Cup once, twice, thrice and multiple times. This edition may mark history with a first time champion, or it may repeat history themselves with a former champion taking over the title from the incumbent Audioslavia.

The Group Draw Ceremony for the Centenary Edition was held at The Jamison Expo Centre, Zube which is credited to be the largest convention centre in all of The Kytler Peninsulae. Shane Newman who is the ex-manager of Indusse’s National Team who received the local citizenship (now holding Indussean as well as Baker Park Citizenship) as well as got himself appointed as the new President of Indussean Football Association succeeding national hero Baskar H Kumar represented the nation in the group draw ceremony. Representatives of competing countries all over the world was present to witness how brutal the groups were meant to be.

When the pots were drawn, the President was surprised to see Indusse getting drawn to Pot Two alongside another bunch of fellow nations. The Draw commenced and at the end the final list showed that Indusse would be competing in Group 24 of the World Cup Qualification Stage alongside eight other national teams. The Group looks very new excluding two teams (HUElavia and The Osnari Federation) with whom Indusse had played matches earlier. Even though all the teams excluding HUElavia is ranked below Indusse, the matches does not look to be as easy as it seems. In these times of brutal upsets, no one knows what is expected to happen.

The Head to Head records of Indusse against the two familar teams is pretty hopeful. The Osnari Federation has played two games against Indusse before, both in the 99th World Cup Qualification and Indusse has not lost any of those. Meanwhile HUElavia has never played Indusse in the World Cup Qualifications but has been a long time rival in the Independents Associations Championship. According to the records maintained by QueData (Indusse’s largest BigData and Database Management Firm), Indusse has faced HUElavia five times where victory was with us thrice and twice for the rivals. One of those victories include the final of the 13th Independent Association Championship which marks the first and the best international trophy that was won by Indusse.

Indusse is all set for the Centenary Edition with a squad that faced major changes including a new manager, multiple new players and better infrastructural abilities. Indusse also participated in the debut edition of the IFA-run friendly series known as “The Unity Series” which was introduced as part of The Centennial Era reforms. Indusse faced the nations of Bonusia, Kronbia, Solgavden, Visayas Islands and Kanzlia as part of this series. Kanzlia was the only team from the lot that won against Indusse as part of the series that too in the Aditya Varma Kulashekara International Stadium with the largest crowd out of the rest. The match against Bonusia also marked the first match played by Bonusia in its footballing history.

First time teams, familiar teams and even teams that keep intense rivalry is set to meet Indusse in this edition of the WCQ. The Team is well prepared with a bunch of young players getting promoted to the main squad after their performances in the domestic seasons. The team has announced that they will be playing in their usual playing squad lead by Antonio Mersiás in the first match of the qualifiers. The Flocking Blues are all set to support their team against their rivals in all the matches this season with multiple chants and tifos. Maybe this is the year of happiness for them? Let’s wait and see. Let the ride begin!

[The Sernetian Empire]

SERNET IN GROUP 13

There was laughter when the Sernetian football fanatics discovered that they were placed in Group 13. Unlucky for some, but for supporters from Sultriost and Livedendrisen, 13 is a great number, worn by Legion SL's legendary midfielder Bob Yarisem. Even the more casual fans gave it a nod, thinking 'hahahaha how funny that our group number is 13.' Some people think this is some sort of message from Margaret, while most view it as a genuine coincidence with no interference from any of the higher orders of the NS World Cup. 'Sernet's first NSWC entry and we are already blessed, cold one.' some say.
Even the cut-throat rivalries between the clubs in Sernet have somehow subsided a little bit - at least for now - with everyone supporting all the Sernetian players, even those traitorous enough to play for a rival club. Yesterday in Pingwood, a man wearing a Stronghold SFC shirt was seen shaking hands with a man wearing a Colliers' shirt. How heartwarming. In the end, all of our local differences aside, we are all Sernetian, and that is what matters most. We are all brothers and sisters, no matter what club we support. This nicely links back to why Sernet was founded in the first place, a united nation for the Sernetian people, because united we stand, divided we fall.
Anyways enough of this rambling, good luck guys

-Don Steakman, former Sernet Player, now aged 60.

[IA3]

Mugel Krygorf let out a sigh after drinking some tea.

Why was he here again? What is he doing here? Some time ago the former goalkeeper clearly remembers living in his home, alone but happy after having retired from football for good. A home away from home you could muse, but is it really that when your home no longer existed? Mugel wasn't really sure about it, in all honesty.

But now he's here, in his office, as the manager of the new Athearan National Team. The Second Blue Guard, this Second Republic deemed it to be when they offered him the job. While in truth he did have plans to start a managerial career, that would have started back home in Atheara. He remembers it clearly, how the Astena Rangers had supposedly been looking for a replacement and that they were willing to give Mugel the start he needed. But unfortunately, then the country completely collapsed as a whole.

What did Mugel do first back then? Contact his brother.

He and Mikel... Even now, despite having been separated for so long, still had a strong bond. Mikel was playing his trade in Ko-oren at the time, is still doing so. The two were on the same level of shock when it happened, but Mikel seems to have coped with it better. It's the job of the older brother to take care of the younger one from time to time.

And their parents are both dead, so the oldest one bears the responsibility. Speaking of responsibility, as the new manager of this revived Athearan National Team, he holds much of it. But in all honesty? Mugel knows for a fact that he isn't the best option out there, perhaps. Afterall, this is literally his first managerial job, you would expect someone with much more experience to be given the task of squeezing every little bit of performance possible from a team like this. And speaking of the team itself... There were plenty of issues that he didn't even have to name for anyone to see. It was years ago the national team was called up, originally all-male was now a mixed team... Among many other issues.

Lucky for him that the expectations weren't all that much.

Well, to begin with, what was this team even hoping for? Some points would be a good start, knowing that Atheara is now classified as an unranked nation. The team also didn't enter the recent Baptism of Fire because they already did so long time ago. So he knew what the plan should be. Get this mixed-level team good enough to snag enough points for a respectable performance. And by that Mugel knows that it means at least not finishing dead last in the group.

Speaking of the groups however, looking at it has made Mugel realize he really has more work to do. He had to research every team, certain players, what tactics they used, among many more things that a manager should be doing. Well yes he did have the rest of the managerial staff to help him out, the former goalkeeper knew as much.

"Is this what being a manager feels like?" Mugel asked himself. Perhaps this is what every manager felt, when they started the job, when they realized the burden and responsibility of the role they were in. He knew how to lead from the goalposts, but not really from the sidelines. And here it was, that first learning opportunity is on the national level. Perhaps constantly ruminating on it wasn't the best idea. After drinking the last of his tea, Mugel got up and left the office that had been graciously provided for him.

The team was training afterall, perhaps a good talk is what he needs to see the path forward.

[United States Of Alpha]

The Alphanian soccer team, bitter from their loss to Colmaijo in the 1st round (and also embarassed that a nation a 30th of our size won the BoF), has regrouped for the real deal: the World Cup 100.

Their team captain, Oofio was a reject from the Roblox Kingdom that got banished for suing the Roblox HQ for slander (the title was "did you just say frick to me"). He will now lead United States of Alpha while JustBry4 does one of 3 things as he returns to the boring job of leader:

Play bullet on tilt and lose all the Elo that he gained last week
Improve the government so it can make people happier
Upgrade the Cookie Clicker bakery that he made a week ago.

Nevertheless, USAlpha is ranked T300/415 with Veleste, who also lost in penalty kicks to their opponent in the first knockout round of the BoF. We are hopeful that we can rise up the ranks, and make the Knockout Round. Knockout Round would be an honor for the USAlpha team to accomplish.

More info will be posted when the group draw happens. Till then, ciao!

[Soviet Kem]

---

The Soviet Kem Group Drawing

After Soviet Kem made a fantastic run in the BoF, having been unraked going into the tournament, football followers across Soviet Kem watched as Soviet Kem drew into group 14. By the end of the drawing Soviet Kem is ranked 5th in the group, with the chances of Soviet Kem advancing statistically slim, followers of Soviet Kem on its journey in its first World Cup may have a disappointingly short campaign. Soviet Kem's star captain, Naskin Putanik has attempted to reassure the fans stating, "We are looking for a challenge, this is a great way for us to prove ourselves on the international stage. We will overcome this challenge, I do not care if we are going against the 22nd ranked nation in the multiverse, we will make it through!"

The manager of the Soviet Kem national team, Ken Stavisk, released a statement after the drawing, "We are honoured to be playing against such great nations. We will fight till the last second to make it past these giants. With our current KPB+ Ranking we are placed 200th in the multiverse, but I know that we can be much greater than that. We must play our way, and control the game."

---

OOC: Good luck to everyone, this will be fun to compete against such great worldbuilders and roleplayers!

[HOT-DAMN]

Ernie Stevenson’s Office, Brewery Stadium, New Hap City, HOT-DAMN
The day of the World Cup 100 Draw

The crew from the HOT-DAMN national team were in two different locations to watch the World Cup live draw, live from the Kytler Peninsulae. Much of the team had situated themselves in the Laughing Pup bar, across the street from Brewery Stadium. Much of the original beer league squad were enjoying cold beverages with members of the current team, as well as a handful of fans that had been important to the beer league team becoming the success it had. It was one of the few times that Laughing Pup would be closed for a private event, and it was only closed because Jimmy Eaton feared the place would be overcrowded if he opened it up to everyone.

The beer, as you would expect of the beer league team, flowed freely, even at this hour of the day. Many of the beer league team and its alumni had a wish list of teams they wanted to face, and teams they would much rather avoid. There looked to be some real tough teams buried deep down in the field, teams that were coming back after lengthy absences, and teams that promised to be real solid contenders. Just because HOT-DAMN was a Pot 1 team for the first time ever (and the first time a Hapiloppian team had ever been a Pot 1 team), that didn’t mean they could simply coast on their successes. Not hardly.

Across the street, the head coach knew it too.

Ernie Stevenson and several coaches were holed up in his office in Brewery Stadium. There was no beer flowing, just lots and lots of coffee. The Big Book was open – filled with hundreds, no, thousands, of pages of information about practically every team entered in the World Cup qualifications. While Laughing Pup hosted a party of the strongest order, Ernie’s wood-paneled office hosted business that was just as strong. There may have been a few wish lists, but Ernie and his team were glued to the television, wondering who HOT-DAMN was going to pick.

And Ernie was a tiny bit nervous about something else going on over in the Kytler Peninsulae.

Jamison Expo Centre, Zube, the Kytler Peninsulae
Around the same time

A heavier-looking mulleted man took his seat in the VIP area of the Jamison Expo Centre and sipped from a cocktail glass. The first thing he had done after arriving in the Expo Centre was look for where the drinks were coming from. He ordered a cocktail, tipped the barkeeper generously and made his way to the VIP area. Lazily, he glanced at his nametag, where it said “DRAKE STEVENSON, HOT-DAMN.”

Drake, the older brother of HOT-DAMN head coach Ernie Stevenson, was a two-time NSSCRA champion, the most prestigious auto racing series in the multiverse. He and his brother were quite close – to the point where Drake moved his family, wife Taylor and son Kenny, to Southern Tip in HOT-DAMN. Drake filled his time with opening a race shop near Southern Tip, where a NSSCRA team would operate when the series got going again. But for now, Drake was representing HOT-DAMN out in the Kytler Peninsulae.

Sitting down next to him – probably because he had to – was Thom Perkins, the head coach of the Hapilopper Football Association’s national team. Officially titled “Ellis Football,” the HFA’s team was looking less and less like Nathan Ellis’s baby and more and more like the HFA’s national team. Dom Probst, the head of the HFA, had taken the team and made it more into his own image. Thom looked at Drake with a disapproving look and sized him up.

“Your brother made you come here?” Thom asked.

“Nah, I was bored,” Drake replied. “We’ve got ten race cars and no place to race them at. But Ernie wanted to war-room the draw and the boys are getting drunk at the bar.”

“I see,” Thom responded.

“They make a pretty mean cocktail if you want one,” Drake responded. “I figure I’m gonna be here a while and Taylor’s driving me back to the hotel, so I might have a few. I’ll buy you one if you want.”

Taylor Stevenson, another NSSCRA champion in her own right, was mingling with some of the guests in the crowd. Perhaps she was trying to find some additional sponsors for both her and Drake for when the NSSCRA season got started again.

“Listen, Stevenson, I really don’t want to get caught speaking to you,” Thom said. “Much less having a drink together. Let me be clear with you since soccer’s obviously not your game. You know what my boss thinks of your brother and that little beer league squad you’ve got?”

“What?” Drake asked.

“He thinks y’all suck,” Thom said sharply. “He’s pissed off at the fact that you boys have stolen from our team. And he’s pissed off at the fact that y’all are stealing what’s supposed to be our moment. This HOT-DAMN bullshit needs to stop. Your brother needs to get his ego in check, realize who’s the boss around here, and your boys need to realize you’re the second national team in one nation. This Anaia shit needs to end and now.”

“Why are you taking it out on me?” Drake asked. “All I wanted to do was buy you a drink. Whatever’s going on doesn’t involve me. I’m just here to have a good time.”

“Well, since you’re here, it DOES involve you, Stevenson!” Thom snapped. “And your asshole brother isn’t about to steal this moment from us. I called him out on his bullshit and he ran off to Anaia. He’s a chickenshit, and I bet you’re not much better.”

“Alright, this conversation is over,” Drake said. “You want to call my brother a coward, I’m not speaking to you. I suggest you drop this whole narcissistic entitled bullshit right now. I’m here to have a good day and I’m not here to listen to your whining. But call my brother a coward one more time and I’m not going to react well to it.”

As Drake got up, a stagehand motioned for him.

“Hey! You with HOT-DAMN?” the stagehand asked.

“Yeah,” Drake responded.

“You’re a pot one team, come on up!”

Drake turned around to Thom and looked at him arrogantly.

“See that, Perkins? We’re a pot one team and you’re not!” Drake responded.

During the group draw, Drake mingled with representatives from the other pot one squads. These were, theoretically, the best of the best in international football – at least as far as the world rankings were concerned. These were nations like the Squornshelan Remnant States, Valanora, defending World Cup Champions Audioslavia, TJUN-ia, and Vdara. When their nations were called, the representatives would come up to the stage.

To Ernie’s relief, Drake walked up to the stage, said nothing and moved on. As far as Ernie was concerned, Drake wasn’t making an ass out of himself, and that’s all that mattered to him. But as the draw went on, some of Ernie’s relief started to go away. Not because of anything related to Drake – but because of the teams HOT-DAMN was drawing. There were some tough teams the team had to worry about.

A little bit of heartburn emerged in Ernie’s stomach when Saltstead was drawn out of pot 9. Chemicala came from pot 8, which produced some jokes at Laughing Pup when some of the drunks suggested mixing whiskey and vodka with “Chemicala” and what kind of reaction that would produce. Brusselstein – not Brusseldorf – emerged from pot 7, a pot that some of the beer leaguers hoped would have led to another nation.

“What the hell is a ‘Lebronsleftnut’?” asked Gael Hicks.

“I don’t even know what a ‘Lebron’ is,” responded Rod Cutt. “I know a ‘Lebaron’, but not a ‘Lebron’. How do you pronounce that, anyway? Is that ‘Lee-bron’ or is it ‘librun’? And what the hell was with a ‘Windows 7 Bliss’?”

“That implies the existence of a ‘Windows 8 Bliss,’ or maybe a ‘Windows 9 Bliss,’” Gael responded.

“Nah, dawg, I think it’s the other way ‘round,” Rod said.

Pot six gave Astograth to the beer leaguers, and the veteran observers amongst them all groaned in worry. It meant one of several major hurdles, for Astograth would always be a threat, even if they were ranked so low. Even in Ernie’s office, the scouts responded with worry. Ernie reacted by remaining stone-faced and sipping on his fourth cup of coffee of the morning.

Pot five put Hanalia, a fellow Anaian nation, into the group. The third-highest ranking team of the pot, Hanalia looked like a threat. So did Olastor from pot four. Pot three put Vaishnavaria into their group.

Then it was time for pot two. Back in the Kytler Peninsulae, Drake, who had been writing these nations down on a legal pad, looked at the nations in the second pot. These included some real scary ones, like Yuezhou, Sarzonia, Recuecn, Drawkland, Kanzlia, and others. Quietly, he wrote down “VAL Z, RECUECN, HAPS” on his list. He looked out to the representatives from the other teams – and what a group of representatives they were. He was, at the very least, relieved that certain nations hadn’t been picked, but was quietly hoping for one of those three nations.

As the group participants were announced, eventually it came time for Group 18.

“From pot two, it’s Hapilopper!”

Drake looked at a screen, saw Audioslavia was in that pot, and burst out laughing in front of everyone. Loudly.

“AUDIOSLAVIA’S GONNA WHOOP YOUR ASS, PERKINS!” Drake shouted, loud enough for everyone to hear.

“What? FUCK YOU!” Thom shouted as he stormed toward Drake.

Meanwhile, back in Ernie’s office, the head coach kept scratching off names until it got time to Group 28.

“And from pot two is Zwangzug!” the voice on the television announced.

Ernie looked at the big book and looked for what to expect from Zwangzug – which was to say, expect a tough matchup from a tough opponent. As he looked through the book, his phone rang. He looked at the phone and saw it was Drake.

“What is it, bro?” Ernie asked.

“Boy, your old boss is an asshole!” Drake responded.

“What happened, Drake?”

“Oh, nothing much, he was a prick to me, I laughed at him because he got Audioslavia, he lunged at me, and let’s just say I asked him to pick a hand.”

“You WHAT?”

“He picked a hand,” Drake said. “So I gave him that hand.”

“Oh, fuckin’ christ, Drake, did you punch him?”

“Yeah, I punched him, he deserved it.”

[Atymnius]

---

FUTURE SELF: FINALE
Bathed in Gold

---

---

Are you happy?
Did California give you everything that you ever dreamed?
Are you lonely?
Did you find a way to fit in all the little things
That keep your heart beating?

Should I be finding gold in the wreckage?
I don't wanna miss it, no
Wanna look back know that I mean this
Was it worth it after all?

Oh, if I could send a letter to my future self, would it ever help?

---

Future Self, Boehm featuring Melody Noel, 2016

Ghant and Deo went outside the dorm rooms and Deo said goodbye as he wished his interest the best of the days to come.

Sighing, Ghant would finally proclaim.

You know.

I don’t know why I do what I do to be honest. Sure I am the vice-captain and sure—

He cackles at his previous remark,

And sure enough I am good at it, but I don’t love it. I just love controlling peop—

He smacked his cheeks. Sighing he finally remarked:

Oh heaven, have you not already a place for me?

He later smiled in tears to the altar, as he later recovered the dead bodies of the Jonas Brothers, doing so, he said a few words before putting the coarse heads and dumping the eucharist’s blood on them.

Divine!

[Montagne Noire]

Grand opening of Le Lièvre Sauteur / The Jumping Hare

The nation of Montagne Noire has been isolated until recently. Restaurants who serve cooked meat weren't needed because we prefer to eat raw meat. Our diet consists of raw duck, hare, deer and beaver. With Montagne Noire introducing itself into the human world, especially with World Cup 100, we have come to the conclusion that some restaurants serving cooked meat are finally needed. On matchday 3, when Britonisea will be visiting Montagne Noire, it will be the opening of two Le Lièvre Sauteur / The Jumping Hare restaurants. One in the capital city of Lac-Ouareau where the national stadium (a small dog park) is located and one in Saint-Sauveur, our largest city.

The match against Britonisea will be played around noon because the stadium has no lights. The two restaurants will open their doors at 11:00 AM and our canine servers will take your order. Please don't forget to tip our servers before leaving. The rustic restaurants are serving game meat hunted by us. There is big screens for customers to watch sports game or just the nature because us dogs we like watching the nature on tv! The restaurants also have a stage and will feature live bands on some choosen days. Mostly on thursdays and fridays. Once the football game against Britonisea will be over on matchday 3, some local bands will take the stage at the two restaurants. In Lac-Ouareau a local band who sings in French will take the stage. This band is called Les Caniches Fringants. They will be the first act and a more famous band called The Beagles (consisting of four beagles named John, Paul, George and Ringo) will follow. In Saint-Sauveur, we will have two bands taking the stage: The Rolling Bones, followed by Pink Fluffy, a psychedelic rock band.

Now I bet you're wondering what's on the menu? The two Le Lièvre Sauteur / The Jumping Hare are open air restaurants with a large outdoor terrasse but during winter months, from december to march, it will be possible to eat inside in a warmer environment. The match against Britonisea will be played in mid february and the expected weather is sunny with -11°C (12°F). Here is the menu:

Starters

Beaver, Deer or Hare tartare (at choice).
Bone marrow with persillade.
Braised Hare Risotto with foie gras shavings.
Duck wings (8) with the choice between BBQ or 911 sauce.
Fried Calamari served with spicy mayo sauce.
Grilled octopus with smoked cheddar, green pea puree, caper and red onions.

Mains

Beaver, Deer or Hare meat burger served with fries or salad at choice.
Beaver Sirloin, smoked beets and Béarnaise sauce.
Braised Deer Ribs with rhum sauce, maple syrup and cranberries.
Civet of Hare (Hare Stew) cooked with red wine and juniper berries.
Grilled duck magret with kale, shallots and wine sauce.
Hare loin fillets with caramelized beetroots, glazed vegetables and a blueberry sauce.

Desserts

Beaver Tails with toppings at your choice!