Quidditch World Cup V
November 14th, 2011 by Kidsmomo
This weekend, hundreds of wizards gathered on Randall’s Island, NY, to attend the fifth Quidditch World Cup — and we were among them! We went with a friend from Ravenclaw and, well, a Muggle…
But we guess it’s only fair that the Ministry would relax the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy for this weekend, because after all, this World Cup is for Muggle Quidditch.
The sport follows the spirit and general gameplay of magical Quidditch, but combines it with other Muggle sports such as rugby, dodgeball, and capture-the-flag. You can read the full Official Rulebook to learn more, or just check out some of the action in this video!
The weekend culminated with a nail-biter of a final match between defending champions Middlebury and underdogs University of Florida. The game started off like a Blast-Ended Skrewt: lots of action right away, and about 30 seconds into play, a Middlebury player was injured. Even so, they quickly took the lead — although Florida certainly gave them a tough time. In the end, it came down to the snitch snatch, and Middlebury triumphed again — their fifth World Cup win in a row! Final score: 100 to 80.
Of course, that was just one of many matches and memorable moments at the magical World Cup V. And while we’re no Daily Prophet or even Quibbler, check out the photo gallery below for more coverage from the weekend!
- Quidditch World Cup V!
- The quiet before a game…
- Some younger players in full uniform!
- Ron look-alike?
- Snitch from UMass Amherst team.
- A Brandeis seeker struggles with the snitch.
- Brandeis players defend their goals.
- High-fives after the game ends.
- U.C. Berkeley’s banner
- The “players village”
- Nancy’s alma mater! Unfortunately, there was no Quidditch team when she attended.
- University of Massachusetts Minotaurs banner
- UMass Amherst teammates.
- The back of the UMass sweatshirts! (FAFSA = Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
- Some of the team members had fun numbers!
- View of the players village.
- All forms of tents were in the players village — no enchantments spotted yet, though!
- Players always have to be on their brooms – it can get tough!
- Watching the game in Pitch 2.
- A player corners the snitch!
- Victorious!
- Mascot for Ursuline High School from New Rochelle, NY
- A Michigan State fan keeps warm.
- C. Diggory rises from the grave for the games!
- A Professor McGonagall look-alike!
- Getting into starting position. “Brooms down!”
- A beater goes after the quaffle.
- Player 007 has the license… to play Quidditch! (Nancy acknowledges the lame joke.)
- A Luna Lovegood look-alike represents for Ravenclaw!
- Karen’s new International Quidditch Association shirt!
- Mr. Weasley’s Ford Anglia!
- A seeker wrestles with the snitch.
- Wizard Wrock!
- A Bellatrix-look-alike holds a Ravenclaw hostage!
- A witch dances along to the wrock!
- Two players from University of California, Berkley take a break.
- A team huddles to strategize before the game starts.
- “Athletic style” means that he makes it into a flying snitch shape.
- Golden snitchwitches served by Joe DeGeorge of Harry and the Potters!
- A delicious snitchwitch
- Wizard Wrock band Lily and James singing “Dobby’s Last Word”.
- Go Canada!
- Fervent Canadian Fan
- Harry Potter and Pokemon Fandom (see hat) crossover!
- Wizard Wrock!
- A team from Texas dances to Wizard Wrock!
- More dancing!
- Conga line?!
- “Lupin” from Ithaca
- “Quill” and “Dobby” from Ithaca
- OH NO! A Death Eater!
- A witch visits the Quidditch World Cup with her pet.
- UCLA vs. USC
- UCLA’s pre-game huddle.
- Snitch conference on the field.
- Michigan State University win! Final score: 110 to 100
- Wizard Wrock band Harry and the Potters
- BU gets in position for their game against Charleston.
If you’re interested in joining or putting together your own Muggle Quidditch team, check out the International Quidditch Association! And a Hagrid-sized congratulations to ALL the teams that played in the World Cup this year!
— Karen and Nancy