The World Cup

The World Cup is a generational tournament where the world's highest ranked Skyball teams compete for the title of

World Champion. The first World Cup was hosted by New Rybak in 374 since New Albatross at the time was the only city in the world to have a stadium. The reason New Rybak built a stadium in their capital in the first place was to mimic their namesake Empire, Rybak, which famously was the home of the only Skyball arena in the Mid World. That arena was originally built for the city of Skyloft, where Skyball was invented, and remained in the sky even after the creation of the Mid World. The first three World Cups were played by the world's highest ranking clubs as there were not enough countries to have a fully fledged tournament. The first World Cup where countries sent national teams was the fourth which was hosted by the Suffolk Republic.

Rules and Regulations
For the first three World Cups, all of the world's teams were ranked and the top teams were the ones that were allowed to compete in the tournament. For the first World Cup to use national teams, all of the national teams immediately qualified as they all possessed the world's top players. Once there were too many countries in Kedya to allow everyone to qualify unconditionally, the group stage system was incorporated where the top two countries of a particular group would move onto the brackets.

The first World Cup was hosted by New Rybak, and has since been hosted by the winner of the previous cup. Olympique Covington won the first World Cup, so the second one was hosted by Fayette. Additionally, the host nation cannot compete in the tournament.

The World Cup takes place generationally meaning that there is one for every generation. Though not an official rule, traditionally the next World Cup will take place after the death of the monarch/top leader who hosted the previous one. King Vladimir I of New Rybak hosted the first World Cup in 374, and the second one didn't take place until 430, not too long after Vladimir I passed away.

History
This section is dedicated to archiving the results of every World Cup: the host country, location of the stadium, the winner, and the runner-up. Additionally, a summary of any events related to the Cup.

World Cup New Rybak 374
Stadium: New Albatross Arena

Winner: Olympique Covington (Kingdom of Fayette)

Runner-up: Lost Boys (The Kleijnlands)

The 374 World Cup was the first World Cup in Kedyan history. Avatar Mason was in New Albatross at the time watching Kleijnlands' Lost Boys take the whole world by surprise. The Lost Boys formed their team last minute and reached the position of being the second highest ranked team in the Kleijnlands just in time for the cup. They trained hard so that they could send a message to the world that they existed. The name comes from a nomadic group that was living in the Kleijnlands at the time called the ''Verloren Jongens. ''They would call themselves the direct descendants of the Eag people, and wanted a nation of their own. The Kingdom of Eagland was a direct result of the success their Skyball team had during this World Cup.

Additionally, the Santigens living on the Santigen Islands took advantage of the World Cup to expand their borders. While the whole world, including Avatar Mason, was watching the games in New Albatross, the Santigens unleashed a surprise colonization of the Southern Continent. They built a city called Eltresedo, and it was during the final game that Avatar Mason met with King Yves' Invasion force in Kinzington to take the Santigen Islands, renaming them as the Yvian Islands.

World Cup Fayette 430
Stadium: Covington Arena

Winner: Gatekeepers SC (New Rybak)

Runner-up: Les Loups Froids (Gransylvania)

The 430 World Cup was the first to take place in Fayette in the new Covington Arena. The cup began not too long after the Highlands War. The main significance of the cup is the Children of Victoria's involvement in it. Nikolai made it onto the Gatekeepers SC just before the tournament, a lifelong dream of his. Nikolai's close friend and Avatar at the time Kaarle van Ajax was asked by the Gatekeepers coach to be the team's tactician for both the semi final game against République d'Est Memfis and the final game against Les Loups Froids. It is also worth noting that the team Les Loups Froids was named after a Gransylvanian gang that was notorious at the time, and was the last time the gang made international headlines before slowly fading away into obscurity.

World Cup Yakovia 485
Stadium: Albatross Arena

Winner: Norfolk Devils (Suffolk)

Runner-up: République d'Est Memfis (Gransylvania)

Though it was a New Rybaki team that won the previous World Cup, the regime did not last long enough to see the next one. The Kingdom's successor, the Kingdom of Yakovia, inherited its predecessor's victory and hosted the cup in 485, not too long after their revolution came to a close. Defying all odds, the Norfolk Devils managed to climb their way to victory during this tournament, surprising the whole world. This was the first example of a known underdog to win the tournament.

During the tournament there was an active threat on Yakovia's then Prime Minister Alexei's life that led to a series of murders that took place in the city. The murders began with the murder of a Kleijnish detective named Nicolaas whose body was left in the stadium for all the fans to see. By the end of the tournament, several members of the Yakovian parliament were murdered, but the murderer was eventually discovered by close friends of the Prime Minister and hanged in a prison not too far from the city.

World Cup Suffolk 550
Stadium: Nassau

Winner: Gransylvania

Runner-up: Evazia

The World Cup of 550 in Suffolk was the first world cup in history in which those competing were national teams as opposed to local clubs. This world cup was also responsible for bringing an end to the Suffolkan Nation as it led to an economic crisis in the northern region of the nation which coupled with cultural disagreements sparked a civil war. A large part of the stadium was destroyed in a bombing by the northerners in 554. Renovations wouldn't begin until after the war several years later.