Some news from around the world

We have a living Subbuteo planet with tournaments held all over the globe. Here are quick results of recent WASPA events held in several countries.

Our sincere apologies for the lack of details about recent tournaments. We still receive many results and are working hard to publish the final standings of the season quickly.

Special thanks to the organizers who take time to write a report and/or to send pictures of their events.

If you still have results on hold, don't forget to send them ASAP.

All ideas to improve the circuit in 2025-2026 are more than welcome!

Romania in action: Michele Sterlechini on top

Small WASPA tournament on Monday won by goal difference by Michele, not far behind was Massimo who is back in action after the vacation. There is still a big gap in terms of skill but I see it as a good thing, we have good players to train with, will determine us to become better! Also today we tested two new EW pitches, huge improvement for our game! Keep on flicking! (report from https://www.facebook.com/subbuteoromania)

1. Michele Sterlechini
2. Massimo DalPrà
3. Cezar Stoilescu
4. Bogdan Panait
5. Ciprian Necula

Finland: International meeting in Helsinki

Helsinki players had their traditional Helsinki-tournament with the FISTF rules on August 23 and were happy to get some WASPA points. the tournament was "international" once again with special guests from Greece and Australia.

To be noted the Finnish championship tournament with the Finnish rules will be on November 30.

1. George Papadopoulos (GRE)
2. Eliot Kennedy (AUS)
3. Robert Green (AUS)
4. Kari Hakkarainen (FIN)
5. Kai Grönfors (FIN)

Italy: Old rules in Terni and Roma

Our friends in Italy keep on playing WASPA tournaments in different cities. The clubs of Terni and Alba Roma had their old rules events in the last few days with wins for Marco Perotti and Luca Di Lullo.

1. Marco Perotti
2. Simone Perotti
3. Giuseppe Gatti
4. Emanuele Perotti

1. Luca Di Lullo (ASD Alba Subbuteo Roma)
2. Riccardo Galieti (SS Lazio TFC Roma)
3. Ernesto Poncetta (SS Lazio TFC Roma)
4. Andrea Alfonsi (ASD Alba Subbuteo Roma)

South Africa: latest Easterns tournament

1. Craig Smith
2. Gary Downs
3. Rui Dos Santos
4. Christopher Paolini

Australia: Western Sydney tournament

August WASPA tournament
Sunday, August 17, 2025, 2:30PM
FitDistrict Studio, Bella Vista

Adrian E turned up full of excuses. "I was in such a rush". "Oh, no, I left my polish at home, can I borrow yours?" "I left my traveling 'keeper at home". "Oh, no, I left my glasses at home". The others weren't having any of it and told him to just get on with it.

And so the five players began a league format tournament, playing each other once. The opening fixtures pitted Franck against Ray along with an Adrian Derby. Franck's 3-0 victory was aided considerably by Ray's traveling 'keeper travails, 2 of Franck's goals coming when Ray's errant 'keeper was stranded on the pitch. The Adrians battled out a typically tight tussle with neither player able to attain full dominance. A solitary goal to Adrian E halfway through the game, and some desperate defending late in the game as Adrian G piled on the pressure, gave Adrian E the victory.

Adrian G and Melvin then went head to head and Melvin caused a minor upset holding Adrian to a 1-1. Adrian had taken an early lead and looked to be in control, but Melvin, in his first WSS tournament in exactly a year, would not give up, clawing back an equaliser before full time. On the other pitch, regular sparring partners, Franck and Adrian E, went at each other again. Adrian took an early lead with a tidy shot on the run and then attempted to hold on. Franck wasn't having it and scored a ridiculous equaliser from an acute angle right under Adrian's 'keeper's nose. He apologised for his celebration, but added - "I'm sure you would have celebrated, too, if you pulled that off!" Both players desperately searched for a winner in the remaining time but it wasn't forthcoming. Until a Magee Swarm in the final seconds. Adrian hit a goalflick deep upfield towards Franck's defense, packed with both defenders and attackers. Somehow, it missed every figure, found its way into the shooting zone and Adrian flung a desperate attacker towards the ball, which connected sweetly and sent the ball clunking into Franck's goal with 3 seconds left on the clock. Adrian's celebration was even louder than Franck's.

The 3rd, crucial, round saw every player make positive moves, but none was able to fully cancel out their opponent. Which meant that Franck & Adrian G, Ray and Melvin, all finished their games in 1-1 stalemates. Every player desperately pushed for a winner in their respective games. After his earlier problems, Ray put away his traveling 'keeper and was much more in control as a result. But, in spite of a few half chances each way in the final few minutes, neither he nor Melvin could press home an advantage. Likewise with Franck and Adrian, the second goal that either player would have been delighted with was not forthcoming, every tied up at full time.

Which meant that a victory by Adrian E in the 4th round would give him a tournament victory with a game to spare. Ray, however, had other ideas, almost scoring in the opening 5 seconds to force a corner and, after almost a decade of trying, earned his first ever competitive victory over Adrian. The 1-0 result probably flattered Adrian as Ray also had a couple of shooting opportunities where Adrian wasn't anywhere near his 'keeper, but sent the shots wide. And, so, Franck's concurrent 2-0 victory over Melvin on the other pitch, slipped him to the top of the table. Franck's performance was commanding with Melvin keeping the score down with some excellent goalkeeping.

Franck had points on the board, but also had the final round bye and was left to cheer for others to hold his position. Any of Franck, Adrian E or Ray could win the title depending on final round results. Franck needed a Melvin victory to have any chance and so spent much of the game hovering over their pitch encouraging Melvin. Their relatively dour draw moved Adrian ahead of Franck due to their earlier head-to-head result. However, this opened the door for Ray who, due to his head-to-head victory over Adrian, could tie with both on points but take the title with a good goal difference. He pushed hard against Adrian G, scoring again but, in the end, a 1-1 result squashed his chances of glory.

And so, Adrian E stumbled over the line, just making his way to the top of the table, his earlier excuses now being seen as a tactical manipulation. In truth, every player had their moments in the tournament, the number '1' in the 'Losses' column for every single player demonstrating just how tight the entire afternoon had actually been.

1. Adrian Elmer
2. Francis Cozzarin
3. Ray Micallef
4. Adrian Grunbach
5. Melvin Singh

Australia: Melbourne TFC tournament

With exactly two months before the Asian Cup of Table Football, Melbourne TFC hosted their August WASPA at East Ivanhoe Bowling Club. Full 30 minute games were played in a Swiss-system format which saw some interesting results and competitve, high-scoring matches across the day. 

George Theocharis returned to the tables, but had a tough afternoon drawn up against some Subbuteo mainstays including Benji Batten, Nathan Kaz and Beth Robin which will prove to be good development for a hopeful entry into the Asian Cup in October. 

Kevin Grant and Nathan Heard played out an intense game in good spirits in round 3, with Kevin coming out a 1-0 winner despite some calls for VAR introduction into the sport from Nathan. 

Matches featuring Adrian Connolly never disappoint, being involved in games that finished 3-0, 3-0, 4-3 and 2-1, to finish fourth overall. 

Beth had a mixed bag of results including a win, draw and a loss against George, Nathan Heard and Kevin, respectively, to finish in an impressive third place. 

Benji and Nathan, both of MTFC, rounded out first and second at the end of the day, both finishing on 10 points each, but with Benji edging it on goal difference; +14 to Nathan's +8, with an absolute clinic put on by Benji in the last round of games, winning 9-0. 

Excellent numbers again for a WASPA as preparation is well under way for all players looking to compete in what is anticipated to be one of the most competitive tournaments held in Australia this decade. 

1. Benji Batten (Melbourne TFC)
2. Nathan Urbaniak (Melbourne TFC)
3. Beth Eveleigh (Northern Phoenix TFC)
4. Adrian Connolly (Northern Phoenix TFC)
5. Kevin Grant (Central Victoria TFC)
6. Nathan Heard (Northern Phoenix TFC)
7. George Theocharis (Northern Phoenix TFC)

New Zealand: latest gathering in Auckland

Nice turnout for a little Saturday WASPA at Chez Shearer’s Subbuteo Playground. Good practice for the NZ Squad travelling to the Asian Cup of Table Football in October

1. Andy Shearer
2. Andy Miller
3. Conrad Mudge
4. Richard Edeson
5. Ian Samsom
6. Phil Samsom
7. Nick McNeil

Wales: last stage of the national circuit

In the last stage of the WSTFA circuit in Treforest, David Lauder took the best on Matthew Rowley in the final, also confirming David as Cymru champion for 2025.

Semi-finals: Matthew Rowley - Darren Barnes 4-2
David Lauder - David Samuel 2-1
Final: Matthew Rowley - David Lauder 1-2

Belgium: SC Flanders players preparing for the new season

This season the SC Flanders players will compete in the prestigious Europa League and the club has ambitions. Players, including some new recruits, met for a WASPA tournament in Antwer earlier in August with some great games and David Wouters was the undisputed winner with 4 wins and a draw after the 5 sessions of Swiss system.

1. David Wouters
2. Salvatore Visconti
3. Yves Peremans
4. Geert Leys
5. Johan Lourdon
6. Frank Lannoy
7. Corentin Boltz
8. Jos Ceulemans
9. Vincent Wouters

Action in Johannesburg

Players at the recent Nevado Cup

Our friends in South Africa are still playing on a regular bases and we are happy to see players of the three different clubs in the Johannesburg area meeting for regional tournaments. Here is a brief summary of results of the last three events held in Johannesburg. All three events were played in league format.

Easterns tournament - July 20

1. Ian Clarke (Easterns)
2. Gary Downs (Easterns)
3. Rui Dos Santos (Easterns)
4. Craig Smith (Easterns)

ETS tournament - August 3 (Nevado Cup)

1. Gary Downs (Easterns)
2. Jason Kennedy (ETS)
3. Fernando Rodrigues (ETS)
4. Liam Chapman (ETS)
5. Johan Niewenhuis (Johannesburg TFC)
6. Shaun Majendie (ETS)

Easterns tournament - August 9

1. Ian Clarke (Easterns)
2. Gary Downs (Easterns)
3. Rui Dos Santos (Easterns)
4. Craig Smith (Easterns)
5. Fernando Rodrigues (ETS)
6. Johan Niewenhuis (Johannesburg TFC)
7. Jarryd Westerdale (ETS)

April 2025: results from around the world

While April was another big month for the WASPA circuit, here is a summary of the latest international results collected from South Africa, Australia, Italy, Romania, Wales and Belgium. It's not to late to send your April results. Results can still be sent to Sunday, May 4 at midnight to vincentcoppenolle@gmail.com

Johannesburg, South Africa, February 8 2025 (group format)

1. Ian Clarke
2. Craig Smith
3. Gary Downs
4. Christopher Paolini
5. Rui Dos Santos

Johannesburg, South Africa, March 22 2025 (group format)

1. Gary Downs
2. Ian Clarke
3. Craig Smith
4. Christopher Paolini

Adelaide, Australia, April 12 2025

Richard Gwynne hosted the latest round of games, the club's fourth different venue over the last 12 months. The next meet is being scheduled for Sunday June 1st.

1. Mick Phillips
2. Stephen Wilson
3. Richard Gwynne

Campomorone, Italy, April 12 2025

Another amazing tournament run in Italy by our friends of Valponte. Rebels genova's Samuele Bignardi took the honors while some players from Tigullio and Le Cannet (France) were also taking part.

Semi-finals: Samuele Bignardi -  Lorenzo Vernazza 2-0
Simone Pennati -  Alessandro Gandin 2-6

Final: Samuele Bignardi -  Alessandro Gandin 2-1

Final 3-4: Lorenzo Vernazza -  Simone Pennati 1-0

Bucharest, Romania, April 14 2025

Another event in Bucharest where local players have the chance to play against italy's Mauro Cavalli. Massimo DalPrà finished on top of a group of 5.

1. Massimo DalPrà
2. Mauro Cavalli (Italy)
3. Cezar Stoilescu
4. Bogdan Panait
5. Ciprian Necula

Drury, Wales, April 13 2025

1. Chris Bedford
2. Ruby Matthews
3. Cayne Matthews
4. Mark Tilling
5. Brendan Ashley
6. Harry Tilling

Next event in Drury will be on May 18!

Nassogne, Belgium, April 24 2025

A great rehearsal for the Wamme players before their FISTF tournament coming up in May. Jean Grosdent took the honors after the three sessions played in Swiss system.

1. Jean Grosdent
2. Noah Dirick
3. Luc Grosdent
4. Vincent Dirick
5. Maxim Grosdent
6. Sophia Grosdent

Néchin, Belgium, April 25 2025

While some of the regional top players were travelling to Mallorca for the FISTF Major, Matthias Averlant was on fire and won the latest Templeuve United tournament.

1. Matthias Averlant (Hennuyer)
2. Michaël Dupret (Tournai)
3. Raphael Dhondt (Templeuve)
4. Jordan Bonte (Wattrelos)
5. Sébastien Sorge (France/Wattrelos)
6. Vincent Coppenolle (Templeuve)
7. Ursule Dhondt (Templeuve)
8. Anthony Meireaux (Wattrelos)

Calabria, Italy, April 28 2025

We are extremely happy to have a new club in Italy organising WASPA events. The guys of "Virtus Calabria" play with old rules but have a Junior section now with 4 young guys having fun playing Subbuteo. We wish them good luck and hope to see them in future tournaments!

Traditional subbuteo:

1. Andrea Pagano
2. Giuseppe Andricciola
3. Angelo De Santis

Junior tournament:

1. Gianpaolo Pulice
2. Francesco Pusia
3. Filippo Parlafore
4. Francesco De Santis

Latest results from around the world - February and March 2025

We have collected a lot of results from round the world and its really hard to publish stories for every tournament so here is a summary of recent events.

Perth (Australia), February 15 2025

Final table (all Perth and Australia Unless noted)

1. Tan Yew Loy (Singapore)
2. Ross McNulty
3. Brian Pearson
4. Alan Kimber
5. Hugh Best (Sports TFC of Western Australia)
6. Noel Mani
7. Ron Byrne

Johannesburg (South Africa), February 22 2025

1. Ian Clarke (Easterns TFC)
2. Gary Downs (Easterns TFC)
3. Jason Kennedy (ETS Subbuteo Club)
4. Fernando Rodrigues (ETS Subbuteo Club)
5. Johan Niewenhuis (Johannesburg TFC)
6. Shaun Majendie (ETS Subbuteo Club)
7. Jarryd Westerdale (ETS Subbuteo Club)

Tralee and Munster (Ireland), February 24 2025

Final table (all Tralee and Ireland Unless noted)

1. David Elton
2. Cian Hogan
3. Barry Higgins (Cork)
4. James Murphy
5. Sean O'Connell
6. Silvia Martin Simal (Spain)

Gouda (the Netherlands), February 26 2025

The "Dutch Legends" had a fantastic night of Subbuteo table football with 12 players taking part, including three players of MVV Rijnmond. it was a perfect rehearsal for those who were travelling to Frameries for the FISTF Major a few hours later. Casey van Os won a all-Rijnmond final against Jerrel van Keimpema.

Final: Jerrel van Keimpema - Casey van Os 0-1

Final 3-4: Rinaldo van Dijk - Patrick de Jong 1-0

Ghent (Belgium), February 28 2025

Before the FISTF Major in Frameries, a tournament was held in Ghent for the "Irish Premier League" players. It was a good way to practice and Gary Moore was the perfect host of the day, giving good games to all his teamates. Congratulations to Kenny Beggs for finishing on top of the league.

1. Kenny Beggs
2. Gary Moore
3. Andy Fitzpatrick
4. John Moore
5. Adrian Pigott

Nassogne (Belgium), February 27 2025

Here again, players needed a few good games before travelling to Frameries. Luc Grosdent finished on top of the Swiss system table.

1. Luc Grosdent
2. Maxim Grosdent
3. Noah Dirick
4. Vincent Dirick
5. Jean Grosdent
6. Sophia Grosdent
7. Lulani Verhoeven

Glasgow (Scotland)

During the FISTF tournament in Glasgow, organizers held two consolation tournaments under WASPA banner. It was excellent to see many exciting games in this WASPA event with a total of 20 players taking part.

Semi-finals of the tournament for 3rd player of each group: Malcolm Lees - Joe Harrington 2*-2 ; Gareth Christie - Josef Camilleri 1-0

Final: Malcolm Lees - Gareth Christie 2*-2

Semi-finals of the tournament for 4th player of each group: Alex Scott - Lawrence Watson 1-1* ; Ian Sharp - Gage Badger 0-1

Final: Lawrence Watson - Gage Badger 0-3

Drury (Wales), February 23 2025

League format final table:

1. Ruby Matthews
2. Cayne Matthews
3. Brendan Ashley
4. Mark Tilling
5. Harry Tilling

Drury (Wales), March 9 2025

League format final table:

1. Brian Daley
2. Ruby Matthews
3. Chris Bedford (Yorkshire Phoenix and Dewsbury Moor TFC)
4. Cayne Matthews
5. Brendan Ashley
6. Dan Nicholls (Morecambe Bay SC)

Néchin (Belgium), March 7 2025

Magic Team Tournai held their first WASPA tournament of the year and, once again, Geoffrey Marain finished on top to claim his 146th WASPA title after the 4 sessions of Swiss system.

1. Geoffrey Marain (Hennuyer)
2. Sébastien Rochez (Stembert)
3. Benjamin Marain (Hennuyer)
4. Matthias Averlant (Hennuyer)
5. Vincent Coppenolle (Templeuve)
6. Jordan Bonte (Wattrelos)
7. Michaël Dupret (Tournai)
8. Sébastien Sorge (FRA/Wattrelos)
9. Thibaut Marville (FRA/Wattrelos)

Melbourne (TFC) (Australia), March 8 2025

Another Fun Afternoon of Table Football attending the Melbourne Table Football Club March WASPA event. Great company and some good competitive games after what appeared to be an eternity since last month's AGP. Congratulations to Nathan on taking out the event and to the BIG Man Kevin Grant on returning the boards after they received the 5-Star TLC treatment whilst back in Redesdale. There will be some upcoming news being released real soon regarding the next Northern Phoenix TFC WASPA.
Look forward to seeing you all at the next one.
(Report from the Northern Phoenix Facebook page)

1. Nathan Urbaniak (Melbourne TFC)
2. Christos Garagounis (Northern Phoenix TFC)
3. Beth Eveleigh (Northern Phoenix TFC)
4. Paul Mercer (Northern Phoenix TFC)
5. Kevin Grant (Central Victoria TFC)

Genova (Italy), March 9 2025

Another amazing event in Genova involved 14 players divided in 2 groups of 7. 3 players made their WASPA debut. Thanks to Luce Bignardi for a great tournament!

Final: Samuele Bignardi - Alberto Capoferri 1-0

Final 3-4: Tommaso Sani - Marco Bertolotti 1-2

Final 5-6: Luca Bignardi - Alessandro Gandin 1-2

Final 7-8: Filippo Careddu - Davide Balito 1-0

Final 9-10: Filippo Sottili - Maurizio Cussotto 1-0

Final 11-12: Fabio Balito - Simone Pennati 0-1

Final 13-14: Andrea Gandin - Filippo Di Rosa 2-0

Cape Town (South Africa), March 9 2025

Group stage:
1. Neil Hampton
2. Simmy Peertuin
3. Grant Lewis
4. Mike Ryder

Final: Neil Hampton - Simmy Peertuin 1-0

Final 3-4: Grant Lewis - Mike Ryder 2-0

Sydney (WS) (Australia), March 4 2025

A string of entries and then withdrawals left the numbers low for our March WASPA tournament and, sadly, our Western Sydney Subbuteo representatives outnumbered by those from the Northern Falcons. On the plus side, all the games could be played in the comfort of inside the clubhouse. With 5 players geared up to play, a full league format was used, with 20 minute games allowing everyone to play everyone else.

The opening round set the tone for the evening. Adrian E huffed and puffed but was, ultimately, rubbish, and Steve took advantage with a 1-0 win. Meanwhile Franck eased to a 2-0 victory over Adrian G. The two Adrians maintained this form for the rest of the evening, with neither managing to trouble the scoreboard at any stage during the evening! Adrian G did manage to keep a tight defense against Steve in the final game of the evening, picking up a second 0-0 draw (following the one against Adrian E) leaving him slightly ahead of Adrian E, but both rooted to the foot of the table.

Franck was on a roll and further commanding victories against Adrian E and Steve left him in a strong position at the top of the table heading into the final round. Steve had a mixed bag of results with a win, a loss and two draws, though one of those draws, against Eliot, had significant implications for the final match. Eliot sat out the first round with the bye but was, predictably, too good on the night for each of the Adrians, before hitting a snag with that 0-0 against Steve.

Which meant, heading into the final match against each other, Franck was heading the table with 9 points while Eliot was in second with 7. The two players lived up to the grand final nature of the fixture. Both players kept things tight in defense, with just the odd half chance each way opening up, but with no big misses for either player to regret. With Franck just needing the draw to take the title, his confidence grew as the minutes ticked down. Then, with just two minutes left on the clock, Eliot made the most outrageous curling flick, threading the needle between two expertly positioned defenders, in order to set himself up for a shot, which he converted with aplomb. Franck couldn't believe what he'd seen and Eliot, not known for outbursts of emotion in his mature years, yelled a loud 'yes!!' as the back of the net rippled. Franck needed to push for the equaliser with under two minutes left and this left him open to a second, counter-attacking goal, the final scoreline a cruel one for the player who had been two minutes away from claiming the title.

Eliot must now have a serious claim as the world's greatest exponent of the curled flick using flat bases, tonight used to directly win the tournament. A small but enjoyable tournament for the month, a good warm up for those present for our FISTF Satellite tournament being held in April. (Original report here: https://sites.google.com/view/westernsydneysubbuteo/tournaments)

1. Eliot Kennedy (Northern Falcons TFC)
2. Francis Cozzarin (Western Sydney Subbuteo)
3. Steve Dettre (Northern Falcons TFC)
4. Adrian Grunbach (Northern Falcons TFC)
5. Adrian Elmer (Western Sydney Subbuteo)

Dublin (Ireland), March 11 2025

1. Andy Fitzpatrick
2. Daniel Kaliszewski
3. Louis Herbert
4. John Kinsella
5. Eliott Fitzpatrick

News from around the world - January 2025

The last few days have been full of subbuteo tournaments in many different countries. We will come back later with all the results from England but here is a summary of the other recent tournaments added in the WASPA records.

Karlsruhe, Germany

Last Saturday, 11 players from different nations met in Karlsruhe, germany, for a wonderful day of Subbuteo. "There were some old faces but there were also some new players. That is the most important thing and the main goal to show the game to others and that's why we organize WASPA events", commented Milan Knezevic, the happy organizer of the tournament. "Results are not important. The important thing is that we meet from different cities and that we had a wonderful day. There were players from Basel, Mulhouse, München, Frankfurt and Karlsruhe attending".

For the records, Milan Knezevic defeated John Imbrogiano (2-1) in the big final to win the tournament.

Final standings of the tournament:

1. Milan Knezevic (Serbia)
2. John Imbrogiano (Switzerland)
3. Janus Gersie (Germany)
4. Peter Erb (Switzerland)
5. Pierre Troestler (France)
6. Nicola Mariconda (Italy)
7. Alessandro Indellii (Italy)
8. Charlotte Troestler (France)
9. Pascal Chevalier (France)
10. Daniele Giulianelli (Switzerland)
11. Gionatan Luppolo (Italy)

Limassol, Cyprus

The 5th stage of the domectic circuit took place last Sunday in Limassol with 7 players taking part. Giorgos Zangylos (Famagusta) finished on top of the main event, which consisted in a group of 5, while Christos Panaretos (Phoenix) won the beginners section.

Main event:

1. Giorgos Zangylos (Famagusta)
2. Petros Kosmas (Famagusta)
3. Marcos Kalopsidiotis (Salamis)
4. Marios Nikolaou (Phoenix)
5. Giorgos Stylianou (Famagusta)

Beginners: 

1. Christos Panaretos (Phoenix)
2. Christos Andreou (Salamis)

Gouda, the Netherlands

Last week the Dutch Legends held another WASPA event with 9 players taking part. Three groups of three in the first round and some three other groups of 3 in the second rounds managed to define the final ranking. Fabrizio cavazza was the big winner. Congratulations.

Final table:

1. Fabrizio Cavazza (Gorizia)
2. Nico Marks (Dutch Legends)
3. Jarno Marks (Dutch Legends)
4. Marco de Bruin (Dutch Legends)
5. Xavier Aret (Dutch Legends)
6. Maurice Montone (no club)
7. Rinaldo van Dijk (Rijnmond)
8. Richard Oranje (Dutch Legends)
9. Cailim Marks (Dutch Legends)

Genova, Italy

On Saturday, the club of Rebels Genova held another WASPA tournament with 10 players from different ages taking part. Three players were attending their very first WASPA tournament, which is a great satisfaction. After the group format, finals were played to define the winners as follows:

Final: Massimo Garatti - Tommaso Sani 0-1
Final 3-4: Samuele Bignardi - Luca Bignardi 2-1
Final 5-6: Filippo Careddu - Alessandro Gandin 1-3
Final 7-8: Rononio Rossi - Massimo Togo 2-0
Final 9-10: Andrea Gandin - Simone Pennati 3-0

Tralee, Ireland

In Ireland, the Tralee club held their latest tournament on January 20. 8 players from 2 different clubs (Tralee and Cork) were taking part and after the 5 sessions of the Swiss system, William Magnier was the big winner. It was also James Murphy's first tournament so we are glad to see another beginner from Ireland.

"Very well done to William who took first place in the Monday night WASPA in Tralee. An excellent turnout of 8 players and with 4 missing through illness the numbers are improving. A closely fought contest with the Cork man just shading it. Keep a close eye on our new recruit James. One point behind in his second outing. Undoubtedly one to watch for the future", commented David Elton.

Final standings:

1. William Magnier (Cork)
2. David Elton (Tralee)
3. Cian Hogan (Tralee)
4. James Murphy (Tralee)
5. Jeff Murphy (Cork)
6. Silvia Martin Simal (Spain/Tralee)
7. Barry Higgins (Cork)
8. Sean O'Connell (Tralee)

Johannesburg, South Africa

The ETS club in Johannesburg, South Africa had 2 small tournaments on December 24. The first one was held to re-introduce Shaun Majendie to the game and the other one was a group format with five players before everyone went on leave. The next ETS tournament will be in February for the club's Anniversary Birthday (5 Years).

First tournament (every player met each other twice)

1. Jason Kennedy (ETS Club)
2. Shaun Majendie (ETS Club)
3. Johan Niewenhuis (Johannesburg TFC)

Second tournament (group of 5)

1. Clifford Graaff (Johannesburg TFC)
2. Jason Kennedy (ETS Club)
3. Fernando Rodrigues (ETS Club)
4. Shaun Majendie (ETS Club)
5. Liam Chapman (ETS Club)

Ian Clarke wins New Year Challenge Cup

South Africa has regular WASPA events and some interesting developments and the three clubs in Johannesburg are doing a great job to keep the game alive in the country. South African is not only the number 1 nation in Africa but is also a top 10 nation in the WASPA circuit (currently ranked 6th).

The recent New Year Challenge Cup organized by Easterns TFC had a good field of 9 players taking part. Ian Clarke, who is currently number 5 in the WASPA Open ranking won the tournament after defeating Fernando Rodrigues (1-0) in the final. Jarrys Westerdale won the Plate final.

Semi-finals: Ian Clarke - Johan Niewenhuis 4-0 & Christopher Paolini - Fernando Rodrigues 0-2

Final: Ian Clarke - Fernando Rodrigues 1-0

Plate final: Jarryd Westerdale - Keegan Paolini 2-0

December 2024: latest results from Australia, South Africa and the Netherlands

The WASPA circuit never stops as we keep on receiving results from many different countries. Here is a summary of results collected from several plces in Australia, the Netherlands and South Africa. Thanks to all local organizers who continue to host WASPA events.

Melbourne (Australia), December 3 2024, home and away fixtures

1. Benji Batten (Melbourne TFC)
2. Nathan Urbaniak (Melbourne TFC)
3. Beth Eveleigh (Northern Phoenix)
4. George Theocharis (Northern Phoenix)

Gouda (the Netherlands), December 4 2024, league format

1. Marco de Bruin (Dutch Legends)
2. René Bolte (Dutch Legends)
3. Fabrizio Cavazza  (DLF Gorizia)
4. Xavier Aret (Dutch Legends)
5. Richard Oranje (Dutch Legends)

Johannesburg (South Africa), December 7 2024, home and away fixtures

1. Ian Clarke (Easterns TFC)
2. Gary Downs (Easterns TFC)
3. Craig Smith (Easterns TFC)
4. Rui Dos Santos (Easterns TFC)

Perth (Australia), December 8 2024, league format

1. Ross McNulty (Subbuteo Perth)
2. Brian Pearson (Subbuteo Perth)
3. Hugh Best (Sports TFC of Western Australia)
4. Chris Thorn (Subbuteo Perth)
5. Noel Mani (Subbuteo Perth)
6. Ron Byrne (Subbuteo Perth)

Ian Clarke is South African champion

The South African Championships took place in Cape Town on Saturday 23 November. 8 players competed in a group format with semi-finals and a final. Ian Clarke (Easterns TFC) defeated Neil Hampton (Cape Town) in the final (1-0) while semi-finalists were Clinton Gahwiler (who now lives in Switzerland) and Sven Schilling (Germany). Mike Ryder won the Plate tournament.

After the main event, an old rules tournament was played with Clinton Gahwiler taking the honors in the final against Ian Clarke (1-0).

Congratulations to the organizers for a great tournament!

WASPA tournaments around the world

Our community has players, clubs and fans in many countries and we are always happy to receive results from many different locations. It's hard to publish stories for every single tournament so here is a summary of recent tournaments held in many different nations.

Wamme (Belgium), September  18 2024, group format

1. Noah Janssens
2. Maxim Grosdent
3. Noah Dirick
4. Thomas Janssens
5. Jean Grosdent
6. Lulani Verhoeven

Bormla (Malta), October 5 2024

We have been very happy to receive results from Malta again. Josef Camilleri and the Bormla players were happy to hold another tournament. "It's a pity the date was the same as the Italian league because 20 people would have turned out", commented Josef Camilleri. Charles Aquilina was trhe winner of the day after defeating Jean Carl Tabone in the final while Robert Farrugia won the consolation tournament. Besides the tournament, 2 friendly games were played between the teams of Bormla and Attard to commemorate the first friendly match played between the 2 clubs 15 ago and also to remember the loss of Joseph M. Debono who organized the first ever WASPA tournament in Malta.

Semi-finals: John Zammit - Jean Carl Tabone 1-2; Charles Aquilina - Mauro Camilleri 2-1sd
Jean Carl Tabone - Charles Aquilina 3-4sd

Consolation final: Isaac Camilleri - Robert Farrugia 0-3

Cape Town (South Africa), October 5 2024, group of 5

1. Neil Hampton
2. Grant Lewis
3. Craig Middleton
4. Mike Ryder
5. Matthew Chadwick

Genova (Italy), October 19 2024, groups of 6 with semis and finals

Young and older players met last week-end in the amazing new venue of the "Club Rebels Genova". Every player had 7 games (!) and this time Alberto Capoferri was the winner after defeating Samuele Bignardi in the final.

Semi-finals: Samuele Bignardi - Alessandro Gandin 2-1; Alberto Capoferri - Andrea Gandin 3-1
Final: Samuele Bignardi - Alberto Capoferri 0-1
Final 3-4: Alessandro Gandin - Andrea Gandin 5-0
Final 5-6: Davide Balito - Filippo Careddu 2-0
Final 7-8: Filippo Sottili - Davide Uva 1-0
Final 9-10: Fabio Balito - Simone Pennati 1-0
Final 11-12: Andrea Bolioli - Daniele Caroleo 2-0

Templeuve (Belgium), October 18 2024, Swiss system

Another great turnout in Templeuve, Belgium with 7 seniors and 4 juniors attending this month's tournament. Matthias Averlant, who will take part to the FISTF Champions League next week-end in Athens, was the clear winner of the night.

1. Matthias Averlant (AS Hennuyer)
2. Vincent Coppenolle (Templeuve)
3. Michaël Dupret (Tournai)
4. Raphael Dhondt (Templeuve)
5. Eric Caillaux (Templeuve)
6. David Sardi de Letto (Wattrelos)
7. Ursule Dhondt (Templeuve)
8. Roman Lamiral (Templeuve)
9. Franck Santer (Templeuve)
10. Mathis Verhelst (Templeuve)
11. Gabin Deman (Templeuve)

Melbourne (Australia), October 22 2024

In Melbourne, the Northern Phoenix club had an Halloween gathering with 4 players meeting in close games. "What a great night of frightening flicks at the inaugural PHOENIX NPTFC Halloween WASPA. A tight Round Robin tournament saw goals galore! We all blew away the cobwebs with Paul Mercer triumphant, taking home the prized pumpkin! Adam Deverell introduced us to Crokinal for a few games! Thanks again to our friends Preston Druids C.C for hosting", reported Beth Eveleigh.

1. Paul Mercer (Northern Phoenix)
2. Adam Deverell (Western Sydney)
3. Beth Eveleigh (Northern Phoenix)
4. Anthony Madiona (Northern Phoenix)

Johannesburg (South Africa), September  14 2024, group of 6

In South Africa, our friends at Easterns TFC sent the results of their September Spring Cup and their October SUBtoberFest Cup.

1. Gary Downs
2. Ian Clarke
3. Rui Dos Santos
4. Craig Smith
5. Keegan Paolini
6. Christopher Paolini

Johannesburg (South Africa), October 19 2024, 9 players, groups and semis

Semis: Craig Smith - Gary Downs 1-1*; Ian Clarke - Jason Kennedy 4-1
Final: Ian Clarke - Gary Downs 0*-0
Consolation final: Fernando Rodrigues - Johan Niewenhuis 0-0*

South Africa: The Eagles take flight again

The Johannesburg Table Football Club aka 'Joburg Eagles' hosted their annual Eagle Tournament after a few months of inactivity.

The tournament was hosted at the Eagle Loft in Broadacres.

A smallish turnout of 6 players dusted off the cobwebs and took to the green baize fields to enjoy a flicking fun filled afternoon.

A special welcome went to Rui dos Santos from Easterns TFC who travelled from Centurion, Pretoria to enjoy the afternoon.

All players were treated to a delicious lunch, courtesy of Nita Graaff,  before starting the tournament.

The six players played in a round robin format with the player ending on top taking the title.

As always, enjoyment was the key component along with the football banter exchanged between all players.

After all the results were tabulated, Clifford ended top, followed by Rui, Greg, Johan, Chris and Raul.

This was Raul's first Subbuteo tourney and he thoroughly enjoyed his games.

Stay tuned as the date for the next tournament, the annual Spring Tournament, will be released shortly.

Final table (all Johannesburg TFC unless noted):
1. Clifford Graaff - 15 points
2. Rui dos Santos (Easterns TFC) - 8
3. Greg Green - 5
4. Johan Nieuwenhuys - 4
5. Chris Dimmer - 4
6. Raul Gonsalves - 2

June and July 2024: results from around the world

We are always happy to see players flicking the plastic in many different countries. In the last few years, we had of course a lot of WASPA event in England but some other nations are still very active with regular tournaments. Here is a brief summary of recent results from Wales, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Belgium, Northern Ireland, Ireland, France and Scotland. Some more news also from Norway!

Drury, Wales, June 16, group format

1. Ruby Matthews
2. Chris Bedford
3. Cayne Matthews
4. Brendan Ashley

Brisbane, Australia, June 16, group format

1. Giuseppe Tardiota
2. Gus Gillespie
3. Gordon Orr
4. Gareth Whalley
5. Wayne Miller

Johannesburg, South Africa, June 16 (group and knock-out games)

Semi-finals: Ian Clarke - Rui Dos Santos 3-0
Gary Downs - Craig Smith 3-1
Final: Ian Clarke - Gary Downs 1-0

Perth, Australia, June 23, group format

1. Hugh Best (Sports TFC of Western Australia)
2. Alan Kimber (Subbuteo Perth)
3. Chris Thorn (Subbuteo Perth)
4. Noel Mani (Subbuteo Perth)
5. Ron Byrne (Subbuteo Perth)

Auckland, New Zealand, June 24, Swiss system

1. Mark Rossi
2. Richard Edeson
3. Conrad Mudge
4. George Miller
5. Andy Miller
6. Craig Wright

Melbourne, Australia, June 27, group format.

1. Peter Thomas (Melbourne TFC)
2. Benji Batten (Melbourne TFC)
3. Adrian Connolly (Western Sydney)
4. Nathan Urbaniak (Melbourne TFC)
5. Anthony Madiona (Northern Phoenix)
6. Beth Eveleigh (Northern Phoenix)

Templeuve, Belgium, June 28, Swiss system (2 categories)

Templeuve United, one of the most active clubs in the circuit, organized a special tournament last month as the club will have to leave their premises in a couple of weeks. The city council decided to rebuilde the local sports center, which means the club will have to find a new venue during the next 2 years before have a great new room is available. 18 players attended the evening and two separate tournaments were organized in Swiss system. Geoffrey marain was unbeaten in the main tournament while returning player Raphael Dhondt, who had not played for more than 30 years, proved the training sessions of the last few weeks were good to win the "promotion" tournament.

Top division with 8 players

1. Geoffrey Marain (AS Hennuyer)
2. Sébastien Rochez (Templeuve)
3. Matthias Averlant (AS Hennuyer)
4. Jann Segers (AS Hennuyer)
5. Vincent Coppenolle (Templeuve)
6. Benjamin Marain (AS Hennuyer)
7. Lucas Père (AS Hennuyer)
8. Michaël Dupret (Tournai)

Promotion group with 10 players

1. Raphael Dhondt (Templeuve)
2. David Sardi de Letto (Wattrelos-SLM)
3. Jordan Bonte (AS Hennuyer)
4. Franck Santer (Templeuve)
5. Eric Caillaux (Templeuve)
6. Sébastien Sorge (Wattrelos-SLM)
7. Thibaut Marville (Wattrelos-SLM)
8. Ursule Dhondt (Templeuve)
9. Mathis Verhelst (Templeuve)
10. Roman Lamiral (Templeuve)

Brisbane, Australia, June 27, group format

1. Chris Burford (England/Andover)
2. Giuseppe Tardiota (Brisbane)
3. Gus Gillespie (Brisbane)
4. Gordon Orr (Brisbane)
5. Gareth Whalley (Brisbane)
6. Wayne Miller (Brisbane)

Johannesburg, South Africa, June 29, group format

Report by Gary Downs: "On Saturday the 29th of June, ETS held a fund raiser fun day.  A 7-a-side football tournament, stalls, food, raffles and of course a Subbuteo tournament were all there. The tournament was a round robin of 6 players. After a tough opening draw between Easterns team mates, Ian and Gary, their days took a different turn. Ian went unbeaten to take the top spot, while Gary battled and went winless to finish 5th. Chris had his best day in a tournament for a long time, picking up two wins and two draws. He was pipped to second spot by Fernando by just one goal. Johan had a mixed bag to take 4th spot while Carl couldn't repeat his good performance in his last outing, and finished in 6th. All players that played and a few that didn't, contributed to the fund raising with donations, that are going to a worthy cause."

1. Ian Clarke (Easterns)
2. Fernando Rodrigues (ETS)
3. Chris Dimmer (Johannesburg TFC)
4. Johan Niewenhuis (Johannesburg TFC)
5. Gary Downs (Easterns)
6. Carl Bolweg (ETS)

Derry, Northern Ireland, June 23, Knock-out games

Lawrence Watson & winner Kenny Beggs

Lawrence Watson and runner-up Marco Bevilacqua

This years Jimmy Watson Memorial Cup was played as the plate competition at the Irish Open FISTF IO. The group was made up from an impressive line up who narrowly missed out on the last 16 from the main comp, so the competition was fierce. Kenny ‘The Legend’ Beggs came out as champion with Derry's own Marco Bevilacqua coming in runnner-up.

Semi-finals: Kenny Beggs - Malcolm Lees 2-1
Paul Lawrenson - Marco Bevilacqua 1-2
Final: Kenny Beggs - Marco Bevilacqua 2-1

Cork, Ireland, July 1, Group format

1. Mario Frittelli (Cork)
2. David Elton (Tralee)
3. Cian Hogan (Tralee)
4. William Magnier (Cork)
5. Timmy Ryan (Cork)
6. Jeff Murphy (Cork)
7. Barry Higgins (Cork)
8. Gerard Heaney (Cork)

Auckland, New Zealand, July 8, Swiss system (2 games each)

1. Mark Rossi
2. Andy Miller
3. George Miller
4. Conrad Mudge
5. Richard Edeson
6. Craig Wright

Edinburgh, Scotland, July 8, Group format

"July's WASPA event in Edinburgh saw 6 players play in a league format. Marco won his opening game against Bruce Henderson which proved to be pivotal, with Marco taking the game 1 - 0 and helping him to achieve top spot. 

Solid performances from Bruce and Peter Morrison saw them finish 2nd and 3rd respectively, with Peter accomplishing a full house of shutouts and conceding 0 goals on the night. 

In the Crammond Derby, Andy Kent and Paul McFadyen played a nail biting affair, with Andy triumphing 1 - 0 . And Lee McMenemy learned the hard way to hold his goalkeeper when getting shots taken against him. All in all, a great night."

1. Marco Bevilacqua (Golazzo SC)
2. Bruce Henderson (Golazzo SC)
3. Peter Morrison (Golazzo SC)
4. Andy Kent (Golazzo SC)
5. Paul McFadyen (Golazzo SC)
6. Lee McMenemy (Golazzo SC)

Wattrelos, France, promotional event, July 3, group format

1. Jordan Bonte (Belgium)
2. David Sardi de Letto
3. Sébastien Sorge
4. Thibaut Marville
5. Nicolas Voet

Norway: Subbuteo project in Terje Ellefsen's school

Terje Ellefsen is still doing an amazing job in his school with many kids involved in a development program. The "Euro 24 tournament" is not a WASPA event but might open doors for future events. The hard work pays as boys and girls are improving week after week and 16 players have been involved in the event. Half-size pitches and teams have been borrowed to kids so they can continue to practice during the summer and Terje is hoping to have tournaments outside school in the future, possibly involving parents, too. "We have a good wave here", reported Terje Ellefsen who has also been very active posting flyers and posters about the beautiful game in the surroundings with some positive answers from former players who will hopefully be back in action soon.