By and large, it is just like every other sweepstake, so if you do not want to read all of the rules, here is the abridged version:
Pay £2 to enter, and you will be assigned a team at random. If your team wins the World Cup then you will receive £50.
But knowing how pedantic most Tube Challengers are (myself included), here are the full rules:
- The entry fee for this sweepstake is £2, and this equates to one team. A person may enter up to five times, by paying the corresponding multiple of £2.
- Sam Cawley will be responsible for handling payments. Entries can be made through her at the pub following this Friday's Zone 1 Challenge Cup event, or by sending the entry fee to yeovil_town_fc@hotmail.com via Paypal - please send me a PM to let me know if you are doing this.
- Regardless of payment method, the deadline for entering is 23:59, Wednesday the 9th of June 2010.
- I will be responsible for randomly assigning teams to players. The draw will take place on Thursday the 10th of June 2010.
- If exactly £64 is collected, each multiple of £2 will correspond to one team.
If less than £64 is collected, then an attempt will be made to distribute the 32 teams fairly to all players who have entered.
If more than £64 is collected, then the first priority will be to assign each player one team. Those who have paid more multiples of £2 than they receive teams will be refunded the difference. - The first prize is £50, awarded to the player whose team wins the tournament.
The second prize is £10, awarded to the best-performing "minnow" team, defined as the 16 teams with the lowest current FIFA rankings. This is to provide some additional interest for those who end up drawing the likes of New Zealand, Honduras etc. Performance will be defined by progress in the tournament.
It is not possible to win both the first and second prizes with the same team (but if you have two teams, each can win one prize). In the event that a minnow team wins the World Cup, the second prize will go to the losing finalists.
The remaining money, £4, will cover administration costs.
The prize amounts may be adjusted depending on the total money collected so that the organisers are not left out of pocket.