Week-end of promotion in Switerland

On April 1 & 2, 2023, "SWISS SUBBUTEO" participated in the 30th Spielfest. Parlour games, speedcubing, Japanese games and Subbuteo were presented.

The separate room for Subbuteo table football was visited by about 200 people. Great prizes offered by the local football club FC Wil 1900 could be won in a competition.

For the spectators organizers held WASPA games.

Tournament 1: Winner Edin Mulasmajic (Wuppertal). Participants: Clinton Gähwiler (Cape Town) and John Imbrogiano, Martin Wiesmann, Peter Erb (subbuteo.ch).

Tournament 2: Winner Milan Knezevic (Baden-Baden). Participants: Pietro (Suttgart), Clinton Gähwiler (Cape Town) and John Imbrogiano, Martin Wiesmann, Peter Erb (subbuteo.ch).

Link to Swiss Subbuteo: https://www.swiss-subbuteo.ch/

April starts with events in France and Italy

We are glad to start the month with news from France and Italy. 

France: Hervé Fino winner in Buhl

The "Subbuteo Club Alsace" was holding a second tournament on Saturday with six players taking part. After the group stage, there were several games to decide final positions Hervé Fino defeated Jérôme Deffolin (2-1) in the semi and U20 international Lorenzo Lo Preti on shots to claim the title. Hervé Rakowski was the other semi-finalist while Pierre Troestler won the game for the 5th place against new player Martial Foechterlé. More importantly, all players had a great day and there was a TV coverage on France 3, which is a great proof once again that WASPA tournament can be a way to promote the game in a wider scale!

Link to the TV coverage

Link to Alsace Subbuteo Club on Facebook

Italy: French winner in Valponte

This week-end the club of Valponte was organizing a Junior tournament under WASPA banner. There were 11 kids competing in the tournament and besides four players of the homes clubs and six players of the neighbors of Rebels Genova, there was a special guest from France as Liam Lupo (Le Cannet) made the trip. Lupo was on fire and defeated Lorenzo Fazio (Rebels) in the final (2-0) to claim the trophy. Tobia Vallebone was 3rd and Alessandro Gandin was 4th.

Huge thanks to the Valponte organizers for doing an amazing job with the kids!

Old Subbuteo event in Teramo

The latest tournament in Teramo was divided into two categories (Senior and Junior). Massimiliano Bonomo is sending us a report of the games: "The tournament on March 23rd saw the protagonists of the first and second of the internal ranking of the Club (separated by a handful of points) with a good Esposito, who sees the victory of the tournament blown away only for the goal difference by a not exciting Bonomo, who struggles to find the goal and when time runs out during the match with Maurizio Di Francesco, makes a defensive mistake that Di Francesco himself doesn't let slip, scoring the equalizer. The Tournament of 28 March is another story, which sees a continuous reversal of the standings with Di Francesco and Puglia dominating one and the other in the first round but wasting in reverse matches. Tournament that goes to Bonomo who extends the club ranking on a totally out of competition Esposito.

Separate mention for the Junior tournament which sees the debut and victory of Andrea Santoro, new member of the club. Second Bonomo Niccolò and third position for Di Francesco Mattia."

Subbuteo is back in Macerata

We are pleased to see Subbuteo action undr WASPA banner in Macerata, Italy. The club of Old Lions Macerata, in the region of Marche, organized on Sunday March 19th a tournament playerd with Subbuteo Old Rules under WASPA banner. The tournament took place in the village of Sforzacosta in the outskirt of Macerata city, during the day when locals where celebrating Saint Joseph, patron of the village.  

Six players were challenging during 15 matches. The winner was Andrea Senesi. 

Old Lions Macerata is one of the most active Subbuteo Club in the Center of Italy. Founded in 2018, they are counting 15 active players. Team members and guests are meeting every Friday evening in the own site where 10 tables are always ready to enjoy playing.

Special thanks to Vittorio de Pascale for the story!

Vicenç Prats still on top in Barcelona

Some late news from Spain where the third tournament of the "22/23 in Circuit Català" took place on February 26. It was another cracking day organized by the club of Barcelona and 21 players took part.

Once again Vicenç Prats was the big winner of the day but this time, he didn't beat Ferran Coll in the final as Ferran lost his quarter-final against José Luis Márquez in sudden death.

Huge thanks to Ricard Carles Prat and his team for another good tournament!

Quarter-finals:
Ferran Coll - José Luis Márquez 2-3sd
Paco Ucha - Ricard Carles Prat 0-1sd
Ivan Acuña - Marc Ligos 0-5
Álex Araujo - Vicenç Prats 1-2

Semi-finals:
José Luis Márquez - Ricard Carles Prat 1-3
Marc Ligos - Vicenç Prats 2-5

Final:
Ricard Carles Prat - Vicenç Prats 2-8

Shootout Victory for Farrell v Beggs in Ballymena

Finalists Mark Farrell and Kenny Beggs

Dublin's Mark Farrell won the second Round of the Irish Circuit in Ballymena, beating local man Kenny Beggs 3-2 on shots in the Final, following a tense 0-0 draw. Beaten semi-finalists were Simon Stewart (NIR) and John Moore (ROI). Derry's Dee Jenkins beat Donal Convery from Mahgerafelt in the Plate Final and Daniel Kaleszewski won the Junior Final, 3-2 against Eliott Fitzpatrick. Thanks to all 18 players for travelling, despite the snow, and for making the day such a success. (Report from http://www.nitfa.org.uk)

David Elton wins Munster club night

March 13 - After a very close run night 3 weeks ago, this one was a bit more clear cut with Dave taking the honours with 3 wins and one draw.

Jeff deservedly took second place with his H/W West Ham away team and is certainly the player in the club who is improving in leaps and bounds.

Greg in third place had an interesting record. 4 games | 4 draws | 0 goals scored | 0 goals conceded!

We look forward to doing battle again in three weeks time. 3 April.

1. David Elton 10 pts
2. Jeff Murphy 5 pts
3. Greg Molone 4 pts
4. Cian Hogan 3 pts
5. William Magnier 2 pts

Jurgen Balzan wins first title in Bormla

Bormla Subbuteo Club held a WASPA tournament on Saturday in the memory of Joseph M. Debono, one of the big founders of table football in Malta, who recently passed away. Players from several clubs were taking part and there were several excellent players taking part.

Charles Aquilina vs Jurgen Balzan

In the main event, Jurgen Balzan (Stembert) was the big winner of the day after defeating Charles Aquilina (Bormla SC) on shots in the final. Semi-finalists were Mauro Camilleri and John Zammit.

Consolation final

In the consolation tournament, Jayden Bonnicci (Valletta Lions) defeated Attard's Robert Farrugia Randon (7-3) to claim the trophy.

Top 4 of the day

Huge thanks to Bormla SC for a great event. Special thanks to Josef Camilleri for the good job!

WASPA standings of February 2023

Dear friends, you will find in the attached files the updated WASPA standings as per February 2023. We added 41 regional tournaments, 6 tournaments with the old rules and 3 promotional events for a total of 50 tournaments.

Rankings - Excel file

Results - PDF file

We are glad to see the first tournaments this season played in France and Japan.

Amazing tournament in Donegal (Ireland)

It was great to see many events in Australia, including two tournaments played under WASPA banner during the recent FISTF Melbourne tournament. It was great to have New Zeland's Richard Edeson taking part in these events.

Promotional event for young players in Stembert (Belgium)

England was once again the most active nation with 19 tournaments and some clubs really do an amazing job of promotion. It's really a source of inspiration and many nations can learn from what's done in England.

Youth in action in Genova (Italy)

Numbers are growing in the Netherlands, too. Their recent tournament in Gouda had even visitors from Belgium and Singapore. Well done!

Historic tournament in Bulh, Alsace (France). It was also the 3000th WASPA regional tournament

The Irish circuit stopped in Donegal and 15 players attended a great event.

Other nations such as Singapore, Wales, Belgium, Italy, Northern Ireland and South Africa also had tournaments played under WASPA banner.

Big turnout for Erza Aripin's visit in Gouda (the Netherlands)

We had a total of 420 individual entries in February, which is a new record for the season.

Don't hesitate to run tournaments under the WASPA banner. It's a great way to promote your club, to attract new players and to create local or regional development and we all agree this is what the game needs nowadays.

Northern Falcons tournament in Sydney (Australia)

All your ideas to make the circuit more attractive are more than welcome. Don't hesitate to send your feedback. We also hope to see more and more clubs running events under the WASPA banner in the future.

We also take to opportunity to thank our partners:

- SubKits at https://www.facebook.com/subkits

- Flicks for Kicks at http://shop.flickforkicks.com/

- MAD ABOUT GAMES at http://subbuteo2012.co.uk

31 players attended the Rochford Open in England

Well, that's all for now. Please remember you only need 3 players to register your tournament. Don't be scared to join. It's free and tournament requests can be sent by e-mail to vincent.cop@rsca.com

Keep an eye on the WASPA blog at http://waspa-circuit.blogspot.com as there are updates almost every day.

Please invite your friends to join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/waspasubbuteo/

We also have a WASPA page here: https://www.facebook.com/WASPA-World-Amateur-Subbuteo-Players-Association-231789816834700/

Keep in mind WASPA is also looking for new partners. If you know any company ready to support us (we don’t ask for money but we want some win-win agreements so that we can promote each  other), don't hesitate to contact me at vincent.cop@rsca.com or vincentcoppenolle@gmail.com

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

Vincent Coppenolle, WASPA organizer

News from Ireland and Northern Ireland - February 2023

 Irish Subbuteo Championship Circuit Round 1 Donegal

Venue: Orchard Bar, Letterkenny

A good venue, central to the town. The room was probably big enough to host something 2 or 3 times the size of competition if needed. Did the job perfectly.

Competition: Round 1 of the 2023 Irish Championship. 15 participants. 3 groups of 5. Top 2 plus 2 best 3rd placed teams played out the main event with the remaining 7 playing out a plate competition.

Outcome: In the end no real surprises. Mark Farrell beating Kenny Beggs in a close final. In the Plate Oisín Mór lost by 1 goal to Mark McCrossen who is returning to the game after a few years out.

Although the usual suspects fought out the main prize this competition was a bit closer than meets the eye. We had plenty of close games in the groups as well as the knock-out. The final could of been quite different as both semi's went to penalties with neither victor getting a comfortable passage to the finale.

The standard of Subbuteo is improving big time in Ireland and this competition was proof. The youth policy in young Daniel is really starting to bear fruit as the youngster gave one or two established players a fright in the group stage and only lost on penalties in the Plate Semi. This boy will be lifting trophies in the near future.

Many thanks to Donegal SC and their stalwards Brendan Rodgers and Classically Trained (Frankie) for organising a great day.

The road show moves onto Ballymena next month.

Kenny Beggs at ken@nitfa.org.uk is the contact if you are interested in playing. http://www.nitfa.org.uk/

NOTE: The Irish Subbuteo Championship Circuit is run in 5 venues over the year. The event is open to none Irish players ie. all players are welcome. 

Link: Irish subbuteo Championship on Facebook

Tralee & Munster SC results

On February 20, 2023 the Tralee & Munster SC players had a very entertaining night with many close games. Final standings were as follows:

1. Dave Elton 6 pts
2. Jeff Murphy 6
3. William Magnier 5
4. Cian Hogan 5
5. Greg Molone 5

Link: Tralee and Munster SC on Facebook

Derry City Winter cup

Martinog Bradley narrowly tops the table ahead of Oisin Mór, in our hastily arranged winter cup. The shed welcomed Nick Pearson back for his 4th shed appearance.

Link: Derry City TFC on Facebook

Poster of the next Irish Subbuteo Circuit tournament

Australia: more wins for Kennedy and Tardiota

Another wonderful night at Willoughby Park Bowling Club (Sydney) where the Northern Falcons had a four round Swiss.

Congrats to Eliot Kennedy, well done to Adrian Elmer, and great to see Daniel Sirmai, Johnny Ball and Louis Dettre back in action.

Having fun and sharing lots of laughs was the order of the night.

In Brisbane, five players competed in group format. Giuseppe Tardiota took the honors but the great news was to see Ordon Orr playing his first tournament.

Another good tournament in Brescia

We are pleased to receive more results from Brescia, Italy where the latest tournament played with the old rules was a success as 15 players took part. "It was the third stage of the Lombardia Challenge, a tournament played with Old Subbuteo rules and counting already 21 registered players. It is no longer a local event, but more likely a Northern Italy happening, with challengers coming from Liguria, Lombardia, Veneto, Emilia Romagna and Trentino. The formula is very much appreciated. A late start for a smooth Sunday wake up, many games for everybody and no refereeing. But above all, a priceless friendly atmosphere", commented Vittorio de Pascale.

It is Genova player Enrico Frisone taking the honor of the first place, defeating Vittorio de Pascale at shoot out 5-4, after regular time ended 2-2.  Great performance of the new entry from famous Subbuteo Club Vecchia Talpa Fidenza, Gian Marco Taverna and Francesco Molinari. The last, well deserving the final, after a wonderful match of group 1, won 5-2 against V. de Pascale. It was his last match, a draw 1-1  against Girelli, where Molinari lost two points, thus ending second in his group. Great to see two brothers Mentasti, Lorenzo from Varese and Giorgio from Trento playing their final for the 7th place.

Final table of the day:

1. Enrico Frisone (Ligures Genova)
2. Vittorio de Pascale (Ligures Genova)
3. Gian Marco Taverna (Vecchia Talpa Fidenza)
4. Francesco Molinari (Vecchia Talpa Fidenza)
5. Claudio Colpani (Papata Ponticino)
6. Federico Milan (Subbuteo Verona)
7. Lorenzo Mentasti (Trento)
8. Giorgio Mentasti (Trento)
9. Giancarlo Riva (Ligures Genova)
10. Luigi Bauleo (Ligures Genova)
11. Luca Rajna (Prato Verde Subbuteo Club)
12. Silvano Corleto (Vecchia Talpa Fidenza)
13. Alessandro Girelli (Subbuteo Verona)
14. Abramo Bartolini (Vecchia Talpa Fidenza)
15. Pietro Torri (Vecchia Talpa Fidenza)