World Cup 83 - Roleplay Thread

by **Cassadaigua** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 7:49 am

Following the loss to Banija in the consolation game, members of the Cassadagan national team were sure to shake hands with the Kadongo Kamu, congratulating them on their third place effort. As they walked backed to the tunnel and back to the locker room, many players applauded the fans, and showed them their gratitude for the fantastic World Cup in which they had hosted. Several players even handed their jerseys to younger female fans in attendance, giving them high-fives and wishing them well.

After the game, captain Hannah Ranucci, one of the players who gave away her jersey, told reporters that, “The Banijan fans have been great. Everything about this World Cup that they have hosted has been excellent. While we played mainly in Equestria, we were well aware of what was going on out here in Banija. This is a big win for them, and for one of the great all-around sporting nations in the multiverse.” Ranucci said the jersey giveaways were a way of giving back, “While their favorite players will always be the Kadongo Kamu, as they should be, it’s a way for us to show our gratitude, especially for the younger females in attendance. We hope that they can look to us as well as their own national idols as proof that they can do anything that they set out to do.”

The team was in very high spirits. After all, traditionally when Cassadagan teams lose in the semifinals and have to play a third place game, there is not really much intensity and drive for the win, and it is more about having fun and enjoying one last game before the return home.

by **Equestrian States** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 7:15 pm

-WORLD CUP 83 - SEMIFINALS-
PONIES TOP FILLIES, ADVANCE TO FINAL
Pristina Shine double sends Equestria past Cassadaigua to first World Cup Final
by Steve McNotapony

Cassadaigua 2-3 Equestria
at The Crownlands in Manehattan, Equestria
Attendance: 97,108

MANEHATTAN - The last year has been truly incredible for Equestrian hoofball. Between winning the AOCAF Cup for the first time against archrivals Banija and hosting the World Cup, there has been no shortage of memories that will last a lifetime for Equestria's hoofball fans. The Ponies entered the World Cup semifinals against Cassagaigua hoping to keep the dream of a first world championship alive for at least another few days, and 90 minutes later emerged with a spot in the Final for the first time.

The residents of Manehattan, Equestria's most populous city, came out in force to support their team. A flood of purple flowed through the streets towards the Crownlands, where the match was to be played, threatening to drown the islands of pink-clad Cassadagans who braved the crowds to cheer the Fillies on. With over an hour before kickoff, the stadium was already packed well past capacity, as fans jockeyed for standing room tickets. It would be by far the biggest hoofball event in the city's history, both in importance and attendance. Equestria, the perennial also-rans, against Cassadaigua, the resurgent two-time world champions; what more could you ask from a World Cup semifinal fixture?

Well, "a great match" might be something to ask for, and that's exactly what the tens of thousands of hoofball fans at the Crownlands got. The Ponies had been put on the defensive early in the quarterfinal against Eura, but it was the Equestrians that started the semifinal pressing for a go-ahead goal in the opening minutes. Before ten minutes were gone from the clock, Apple Cobbler played Pristina Shine through and the Ponies' striker left the Fillies defenders in the dust, beat goalkeeper Kelsey Morgan and chipped the ball into the net. The Crownlands shook with the celebrations of Equestrian supporters. But the Ponies didn't let up, even with a one-goal lead, and it wasn't long before the Equestrians would be celebrating a second.

A Luminesce shot deflected out by Hannah Shanley gave the Ponies a corner kick. Rosie Tyler whipped the ball into the box, and the Dagans cleared it out, but only as far as Aarón Aiza. The midfielder calmly passed over to Brix Hamilton, the fullback threaded a shot through the mass of bodies into the top right corner, and just like that, Equestria led 2-0. With the Ponies' highly-regarded defense backed by world-class goalkeeper Gentle Breeze, the two-goal advantage felt more like a four-goal lead. One might forgive Equestrian supporters for thinking the spot in the World Cup Final was as good as theirs.

However, the Dagans weren't about to go quietly into that good night, and narrowed the Equestrian lead to one before the first half ended, courtesy of Rachel Schanke. Manager Stephanie Sweeney had the Fillies rearing to go when the match resumed in the second half. Eight minutes later, a Hannah Ranucci long-distance effort was redirected by Sierra Mattison past Gentle Breeze, and the game was tied up at two goals apiece.

One could sense the fear in the stadium as Cassadaigua threatened to score a third unanswered goal, but this Ponies squad has proven that it will persevere in situations where past Equestrian teams would have collapsed. In the 64th minute, captain Rainbow Blitz and striker Pristina Shine charged down the pitch on a counterattack, tearing through the Dagan defense and showing poor Kelsey Morgan no mercy. Once again, Equestria had the lead, and this time manager Pearly White was determined to hold it.

A pair of substitutions brought on Ironhoof and Sunlight for the hosts, shoring up the Equestrian back line in anticipation of a late push from Cassadaigua. Sure enough, that attack began in earnest with 15 minutes to go. But the Ponies held firm as the Fillies gave everything they had left for a second equalizer. Cassadaigua would have one final chance with seconds remaining, with a free kick near the box. Hannah Ranucci stepped forward to take the kick and fired a shot towards the far top corner of the goal, but Gentle Breeze was there to catch the ball and the final whistle blew moments later, setting off a raucous celebration that would spill out onto the streets of Manehattan and would be mirrored in cities all across Equestria.

WORLD CUP 83 - SEMIFINALS RESULTS
 Cassadaigua 2-3 Equestria 
@ The Crownlands in Manehattan, EQS
 Banija 2-3 Starblaydia 
@ Stadium of the Restoration in Busukuma, BNJ

As the party went on into the night in Equestria, the other semifinal was kicking off in Banija with the Ponies' co-hosts and archrivals facing one of the World Cup's most storied nations in Starblaydia. The Starblaydis went after the Kadongo Kamu from the first whistle, and had amassed a 2-0 lead by the end of the first half, quieting the capacity crowd in Busukuma's Stadium of the Restoration. However, just as the Cassadagans had fired their way back into the match against Equestria, the Banijans were far from finished and dominated the Starblaydis at the start of the second half. Kizza Okafor closed the Starblaydi lead to one, and an equalizer appeared inevitable until Mercy Kaufman drew a controversial penalty that was calmly converted by Aaron Cole to restore Starblaydia's two-goal advantage. Assefa Yitebarke got Banija back within one with four minutes to go, but the Kadongo Kamu's last-minute efforts would come up short. Banija's World Cup dreams were over, Starblaydia would head to Canterlot for their eighth World Cup Final.

.
WORLD CUP 83 FINAL

 EQUESTRIA vs. STARBLAYDIA 
Royal Equestria Stadium
Canterlot, Equestria

ROUTE TO THE FINAL
 EQS 2-0 KSK     Match Day 1     QAD 2-2 STB .
. EQS 0-1 VAL     Match Day 2     TAE 0-1 STB 
. COS 0-1 EQS     Match Day 3     STB 0-1 BNJ 
 SRG 0-1 EQS     Round of 16     HIN 2-3 STB 
. EQS 1-1 EUR    Quarterfinals     STB 4-4 MRN 
. CDG 2-3 EQS    . Semifinals .    BNJ 2-3 STB 
.

And so, at last, we reach the end. The 83rd World Cup has seen 168 nations eliminated after 2,114 matches, but there remain two teams left to duel for the right to call themselves champions in the World Cup Final: Equestria, the five-time World Cup hosts and Starblaydia, the five-time World Cup winners.

At Royal Equestria Stadium, the Ponies will have the advantage of nearly 100,000 supporters cheering them on, but historically-speaking, co-hosting the tournament has not always led to success. Out of the eighty-two previous World Cups, eleven have been won by a co-host, with seven of those wins happening on home soil. However, in the last forty World Cups, just once has a team won it all in their own nation: Equestria's neighbors to the south, Valanora, at the 61st World Cup Final in Raynor City, where the Marauders absolutely demolished the Sylvanaes Queendom in a 7-1 rout that remains the largest ever margin of victory in a Final.

Neither of the World Cup 83 finalists is likely to win by six goals though. Both the Equestrian and Starblaydi national teams have shown flaws that will make such a blowout highly improbable. A close contest would be a far safer bet. First, when it comes to the rankings, there isn't much of a gap at all: the Ponies are ranked 7th, with Starblaydia in 9th, just two spots back. The last few World Cups have seen three knockout round appearances for the Equestrians and two for the Starblaydis; neither has made it past the quarterfinals. At the AOCAF Cup, the Ponies have done far better than their opponents as of late, but regional competitions have not always been a great predictor of World Cup success (see the IAC and Rushmori champions failure to even qualify for this World Cup).

After the World Cup 83 group stage, few experts would have picked an Equestria-Starblaydia Final. The Ponies started their campaign off strong with a comfortable win in the opener against lowly Kelssek, but were then humbled by Laborious Hawk and Valanora before narrowly defeating Cosumar to sneak into the knockouts as runners-up. Standing between the Ponies and a semifinal berth: Farfadillis, Eura, and Sargossa. Another second round or quarterfinal exit for the Equestrians seemed almost inevitable, but Pristina Shine scored a late winner to send the Ponies past the Corsairs. Then Gentle Breeze delivered a clutch performance against Eura to give the Equestrians their first ever semifinal appearance. Finally, the Equestrians snuffed out Cassadaigua's late rally to clinch a spot in the Final. The Ponies have cut it close in their last four matches, but have somehow managed to find a way to win them all.

However, as tight as Equestria's matches have been at this World Cup, Starblaydia has had even less room for error in their campaign. They began the tournament with a draw against Qasden, and "tied after 90 minutes" might as well be the Starblaydi World Cup 83 slogan. Starblaydia beat Taeshan in their second game, but were very nearly eliminated on the third and final match day after a loss to co-hosts Banija, only advancing thanks to a Taeshani upset of Qasden. In the second round, it took extra time for Starblaydis to win against Kita-Hinode, and Starblaydia would require penalties to survive their quarterfinal with Mriin. The rematch against Banija in the semifinals was also close, but the Starblaydis again came out in front after holding off the desperate Kadongo Kamu in the second half.

Both Equestria and Starblaydia may well be lucky to be in the World Cup Final, but now that they have reached this last game of the 83rd World Cup, who will win it all? Will it be the Equestrians, with home field advantage, a roster brimming with veteran world-class talent, and the support of the entire multiverse outside of a small corner of Atlantian Oceania? Or will it be Starblaydia, with a team that has the repeatedly displayed the talent (and good fortune) necessary to become the World Cup's first six-time champions?

The Ponies will enter the match as the bookies' favorites, although they will be far from a unanimous pick. Do they have the better story out of the two finalists? Absolutely. The last team to become world champions for the first time on home soil was Casari, way back in the 29th World Cup, and even that victory came at the expense of four-time runners-up Audioslavia, a nation neutrals of the time would be more inclined to pity than despise. If the long-suffering Equestrians were to win the 83rd World Cup, it would certainly be one of the biggest international sports stories in recent memory, dimmed only slightly by the Ponies' victory at the 58th AOCAF Cup that ended the team's streak of never winning a single major championship. Of course, Starblaydia becoming six-time winners after defeating both World Cup co-hosts in front of their own fans would also be a hell of a story, even if it's one that very few non-Starblaydi fans want.

Perhaps ironically, it is the Equestrian roster that has the advantage when it comes to experience, largely thanks to the differences in the flow of time between Equestria and Starblaydia. To an Equestrian, it has been only 20 years since Starblaydia last appeared in the World Cup Final and 36 since they won it all; but for an average Starblaydi, their most recent Final was nearly a century ago and their last title over 140 years ago. As such, the career of a member of the Ponies' World Cup squad could occur in the same time frame in which a human member of the Starblaydi team might be born, develop into a hoofball star, retire, grow old, and die. Thus, it should come as little surprise that the Equestrian players have far more tournament appearances than their rivals; but even within the relatively short span of the average Starblaydi hoofballer's career, the Ponies have been considerably more successful and consistent.

In terms of talent, the gap is much narrower, as the Starblaydis can claim at least equal standing at most positions, aside from in goal and at fullback and striker. Viola Capodanno, in particular, could claim to be a fair match to any of the Equestrian midfielders, including Aarón Aiza and Rainbow Blitz. However, the Ponies would still have to be given the edge, with Gentle Breeze far outclassing Cosmo Leopoldi and Pristina Shine boasting a more impressive resume than even Starblaydi golden boy Sutter McCloud. Managers Pearly White and Ázëwyn Fëanáro will be closely scrutinized in how they react to difficulties as the match progresses, and though the latter has had more success overall, including two World Cup wins as a player, the latter has the edge when it comes to managerial accolades.

Equestrian supporters have remained cautiously optimistic for much of the World Cup 83 campaign, and that is what I would encourage in the Final as well. The Ponies have proven that they are no longer to be trifled with, and have every reason to believe that they can win it all. Starblaydia has history on their side, aye, with five wins from seven Finals appearances, but it's ancient history largely divorced from the present. The Starblaydis could still beat the Equestrians, of course, but an objective observer would be more likely to pick the Ponies as World Cup 83 champions, strange as that may sound to long-time followers of the Equestrian national team.

Regardless of who comes out of the Final victorious, however, we are truly witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime event. History will be made in Canterlot next week, Ponies fans. Savor every moment of it, the good and bad alike, because no matter what, you'll never experience another World Cup quite like this one.

by **Banija** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 8:35 pm

The final cutoff of World Cup 83
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To achieve maximum success, you need to maximize your math, eh? World Cup 83 welcomes Jarongi Sports Statistics as the Official Analytics Partner of World Cup 83.

As for our last cutoff song- well, nothing else would fit but the song of champions, right?

World Cup 83 - Roleplay Thread

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