Getting underway at the Virtual World Cup
We are a go. I repeat: We are a GO.
I'll be honest. When we first announced the format for this tournament - an elite field of players from all over the world, 16 countries represented, 5 players from each country - I was a little nervous about whether it was realistic. It kept me up a few nights these last couple of weeks, wondering what we'd do if we couldn't fill out the full roster of 80 players. Especially toward the end, it was hard not to panic.
But in the end, you all came through. To my surprise, we ended up with more than enough entrants to fill out the tournament - we ended up with an even 140 people filling out the registration form, and 19 countries with a realistic shot at qualifying. Sadly, we'll have to turn a few national teams away.
Based on the average WESPA ratings of their top 5 players, the 16 countries securing a spot will be the United States, Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Nigeria, Ireland, Canada, India, Ghana, New Zealand, Pakistan, Kenya, Thailand, South Africa and the Philippines. Congrats to all! This should be one heck of a competitive tournament. All 16 of these nations are loaded with talent.
I want to say a few quick thank-yous to everyone who helped build this field. Getting 5 players from every country didn't happen overnight, and it wouldn't have been possible without a few key players stepping up and encouraging their teammates to sign on. I especially want to call out Wellington Jighere of Nigeria, Rik Kennedy of Ireland, Howard Warner of New Zealand, Michael Quao of Ghana, Akkarapol Kwansak of Thailand and of course the one and only Michael Tang of Singapore. You all are fantastic.
I also want to express condolences to those who just missed the cut. I had no idea that getting more than 16 teams would be possible, so I didn't expect to turn anyone away. I'm sad to say we won't be able to include the nations that didn't make the final 16 - especially Sri Lanka, Hong Kong and Uganda, who all pushed hard to be included. I promise we'll try to put together a more inclusive event next time, so all of you can play.
Without further ado, here are your teams! I'll break the team down into four clusters - the four No. 1 seeds, followed by the No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 quadrants of the field.
NO. 1 SEEDS
United States: Conrad Bassett-Bouchard, Jesse Day, Austin Shin, Will Anderson, Dave Wiegand
Australia: David Eldar, Chris May, Andrew Fisher, Cameron Farlow, Naween Fernando
Singapore: Weibin Toh, Yong Jian Rong, Marlon Prudencio, Hubert Wee, Jeremy Khoo
United Kingdom: Harshan Lamabadusuriya, Piotr Andronowski, Phil Robertshaw, Paul Allan, Calum Edwards
NO. 2 SEEDS
Malaysia: Ganesh Asirvatham, Khoo Way, Vannitha Balasingam, Martin Teo, Chang Ching Wei
Nigeria: Wellington Jighere, Kabir Olaiya, Enoch Nwali, Wale Fashina, Olumide Oyejide
Ireland: Paul Gallen, Kevin McMahon, Lukeman Owolabi, Feargal Weatherhead, Rik Kennedy
Canada: Evan Berofsky, Jeremy Hildebrand, Jesse Matthews, Dean Saldanha, Tony Leah
NO. 3 SEEDS
India: Akshay Bhandarkar, Sherwin Rodrigues, Udayan Grover, Nakul Prabhu, Aditya Iyengar
Ghana: Edwin Boama, Ezekiel Markwei, Charles Tachie, Chrys Placca, Michael Quao
New Zealand: Howard Warner, Blue Thorogood, Dylan Early, Patrick Carter, Liz Fagerlund
Pakistan: Waseem Khatri, Moiz Ullah Baig, Syed Imaad Ali, Hassan Hadi Khan, Sohaib Sanaullah
NO. 4 SEEDS
Kenya: Patrick Litunya, Benard Amuke, David Njenga, Chris Okioma, Joash Manyasa
Thailand: Akkarapol Kwansak, Jakkrit Klaphajone, Napat Vatjaranurathorn, Apirat Choomai, Yannakit Sirisup
South Africa: Steven Gruzd, Jarrod Page, Harry Wiggins, Gerald Davids, Llewellin Jegels
Philippines: Odette Rio, Jowar Ayuno, Melvin Dalangin, Lear Jet De la Cruz, Mohammad Bin Abdul Suma
There's your field. As for next steps, I have something exciting to announce: We're going to have a selection show! Will Anderson, one of the top U.S. players and a pioneer in the world of Scrabble live streaming, has invited me to be on his show Monday night, where we'll announce the pairings for the opening rounds live. We'll hold the drawing on Monday, July 6 at 10 p.m. Eastern in the United States - that's 2 a.m. Tuesday GMT, 10 a.m. Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur, noon Tuesday in Sydney, and so on. Follow Will on Twitch at wanderer15 (which you should be doing anyway, because his stream is awesome), and you can catch the show. If you're awake, tune in! You can find out who you're playing in real time.
After the selection show, we'll send out emails to all players from all 16 countries informing them of the schedule for the first round. Games will then begin this coming weekend.
Thanks again to everyone who helped make this tournament possible. Hope you all can tune in for the opening ceremonies tonight/tomorrow!