The premise

- There are 736 players registered for the World Cup (23 per team, with 32 teams)
- There are more than 736 members on this board

The idea

The top 736 posters on these forums (sorted by post count, not quality, and disqualifying those who have been banned) are each assigned a player to 'adopt'. Will you get Rooney? Or will you get Pak Nam-Chol? How will your adopted player fare at the world cup? Will he struggle to get game time, or will he get the golden boot?

This competition is similar to how groups of people throw in $5 to pick a horse for the Melbourne Cup out of a hat, with a winner takes all mentality. The only difference, is that there is no $5 (just pride) and no hat (just an excel spreadsheet).

I have compiled a list of the top 736 posters, with everyone who has 75 or more posts to their name, and assigned them a player at random [see below to find out who you snagged].

The aim

To win one of the following official FIFA awards:
Golden Ball - Awarded to the best overall player
Golden Boot/Shoe - Awarded to the top scorer
Yashin Award - Awarded to the best Goal Keeper
Best Young Player - Awarded to the best Under-21 player
FIFA Fair Play Award - Awarded to the team with the best disciplinary record
Most Entertaining Team Award - Awarded to the team that produce the most entertaining matches
All-Star Squad - Awarded to the best 23 players of the tournament

The aim is to also watch from the sidelines as your adopted player excites or greatly disappoints you. Who knows, you may be the only person in the world paying ANY attention to your player, so watch him as if he is your son, and hope for success.

The list

Spreadsheet - Listed by User-Names in alphabetic order (Please note that it is a huge image, due to there being 736 players, and so it may take a while to load. If you have any difficulties, feel free to ask for help in this thread and I'll try to sort it out for you).

For those interested to see which other forum members you are teamed up with: Player list - Sorted by squad

Final Comments

So all you have to do is check the above image, find your name, find your player, and watch on vicariously like a father as your new son competes in the World Cup.

If your player is out injured, then feel free to adopt his replacement. If he has not been replaced, then you'll have to take the disappointment on the chin, just as your player did.


HAVE FUN!

Edited by Bill Murray: 9/6/2010 10:40:48 PM

Edited by Bill Murray: 9/6/2010 10:44:34 PM

Edited by Bill Murray: 10/6/2010 10:15:56 PM