EQC 2017 Group F Preview

With European Quidditch Cup (EQC) 2017 rapidly approaching, the Quidditch Post takes a look at each of the teams competing in this year’s tournament.

Group F

Werewolves of London

By Hannah Dignum

As the recent third-place finishers at British Quidditch Cup, the Werewolves of London find themselves with a group they can comfortably top. However, a surprisingly lacklustre passing game and lack of true cohesion between their better players was exposed against Velociraptors QC in Rugeley, and there will be plenty of European teams equally capable of exploiting it. It is possible that under the watchful eye of Simon Bidwell, the Werewolves will have ironed out these creases and should therefore demonstrate a greater ability to come together as a team rather than a group of talented individuals.

Danube Cup Recap: The Wiener Does Take It All

General information by Emina Botic Analysis by Martin Hofbauer

The first international quidditch tournament in Austria, the Danube Cup: The Wiener takes it all, took place on the weekend of Oct. 8 and 9 in Vienna.  Eight teams competed in the tournament: the host teams (Danube Direwolves and Vienna Vanguards), four teams from Germany, one team from Slovenia, and one from Slovakia.

World Cup From Their Perspective: A View From Eastern Europe

By Kinga Robutka, with contributions from Marian Dziubiak (Poland), Martin “Hofi” Hofbauer (Slovakia), and Verena Deutsch and Borut Bezgovšek (Slovenia). 

In comparison to the 2014 IQA Global Games held in Burnaby, Canada, the 2016 World Cup expanded dramatically, with 21 teams competing in the tournament held in Frankfurt, Germany – a stark contrast to the seven teams of the previous event. Being invited to the tournament was a unique chance for smaller developing leagues from around the world to challenge themselves and have what remains their only chance to compete against such international powerhouses such as Team USA and Australia. However, a greater number of teams competing naturally results in greater diversity in the level of play across the tournament. To some commentators, this was one of the main drawbacks of the tournament as the stronger teams, presumably, felt less challenged, especially during the group stages of Day One.

World Cup 2016: Spotlight on Slovenia

By Vid Rotvejn Pajič

History

Quidditch was introduced to Slovenia in the summer of 2015, when a group of international exchange students gathered in Sežana. The formation of what remains the only team in Slovenia followed in October of the same year. At first it was mostly a leisure activity, but as more and more serious players joined, the squad began yearning for more competitive play.

Slovenia is Airborne

By Vid Rotvejn

No, we are not Slovakia, and we are certainly not a part of Russia. With one hand patting the tranquil shores of the Adriatic Sea and with the other proudly supporting the roots of the Eastern Alps, we are the small European country of Slovenia. We boast around two million inhabitants, vast forests, dazzling lakes, and, since October. 2015, a quidditch team. It started as just a handful of ludic friends chasing five poorly inflated balls around an oval field, firmly holding improvised brooms between their legs, but it soon began to attract more and more eager players. We even found ourselves under the spotlight of the media when an article about quidditch was published in the biggest Slovenian newspaper, Delo. That article is how I learned about quidditch’s existence outside of “Harry Potter.”