The ConIFA World Cup 2016 for stateless populations

The ConIFA World Cup 2016 for stateless populations has just started, in Abkhazia. The twelve participants are: Abkhazia, Chagos Islands, Kurdistan, Northern Cyprus, Padania, Panjab, Raetia, Sapmi, Somaliland, Székely Land, United Koreans in Japan, and Western Armenia. This is the official website.
Background info here. Live streaming is promised here.

Any thoughts on this? Who are you rooting for?

Draw:

http://www.conifa.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/news-wfc-draw-2106.jpg

Székely Land, that's a new one on me.

Yep, Hungarians in Romania.

Would be cool if the Romani team won but I suspect it will be Padania. Idk how closely associated with Lega Nord they are but I'd rather it was someone else.

Kurdistan - who I am rooting for - beat Székely Land in their first match with 3-0 (report here).

Had never heard of Padania myself. They do top the ranking though. Pour Tibet, ranked last, isn't present.

iirc Quebec used to take part but have stopped as they aim to be recognised formally by FIFA.

(official twitter account is here btw. Chagos Islands being battered by Abkhazia right now, 5-0 at half time.

xp

Originally, the team was not sanctioned by the Quebec Soccer Federation as the federation was suspended by the Canadian Soccer Association in June 2013 for not allowing players wearing turbans for religious reasons to participate in matches.

:-/

(from wiki, that)

lol

padania is the normcore version of the salo republic

Yep, Hungarians in Romania.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StNEZugOZ_k

falklands islands should probably be here

Panjab beat Padania in the semis and will play Abkhazia in the final.

Government officials took part in a bull sacrifice in October 1993 celebrated to thank the Lord Dydrypsh for the victory over the Georgians, and since then they regularly take part in worship rituals.[8][9]

If only Hibs fans had done the same after the Scottish Cup Final.

Long piece about this here:

http://roadsandkingdoms.com/2016/the-unrecognized/

Abkhazia won with Panjab runners up. Amar Purewal of Darlington 1883 was the top scorer.

Some—like Raetia, representing the Romansh speakers of Switzerland, or Padania, representing Northern Italy—are cultural groups and minorities seeking ways to preserve a distinctive culture or language against the homogenizing forces of modernity.

little bit charitable to "Padania"

padania lost what it would probably call in its padanian fashion 'a great champion' the other week

no thread for hans koschnick, let's remedy that ASAP (R.I.P. April 21, 2016)

Not a buon anno for the lads.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2016/oct/14/desert-fire-the-world-cup-rebels-of-kurdistan-video?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_content=desert-fire&utm_campaign=documentaries