EPT
![[image loading]](/staff/Plexa/paul.jpg)
Whatever it is, I think I can speak for everyone when I say that the World Cup was a very enjoyable watch this year full of highs and lows and sheer wtfisms. Every time one of these events comes up, we hold a special Liquibet competition and award the winner with a special icon. For football, it is a Golden Ball icon. The last winner of this ball is former staff member Bill307 who still proudly displays
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/images/usericons/world_cup_2006.gif)
This season the competition was fierce, but a clear winner emerged. With 87 points out of a possible 116, Beyonder is the 2010 World Cup Liquibet winner! Bey continues the tradition of staff members taking out this title - no rigging involved I swear! He rapidly rose to first place after a perfect score in the Ro16, he followed that up by correctly guessing the remainder of the bets. The complete top ten were:
1. Beyonder - 87
2. new_construct - 86
3. whatever - 82
4. Speedbump - 80
5. akevin - 80
6. CoMMoDuS - 80
7. lazz - 78
8. Luhh - 78
9. Mykill - 78
10. skyrunner - 78
Also on 78 were RagingFury and Valnyris.
I got a moment to sit down and chat with Beyonder about his success and grab some opinions off of him about the world cup.
Sup bey! Congrats on winning the 2010 World Cup Liquibet. At which point did you realise that you had it won?
Hello mister interviewer! I realized I had great chances the moment Spain beat Germany. That was the match I felt most uncomfortable with. I talked to a lot of people about the match, and no one really knew what to expect.
You predicted everything from the Ro16 onwards perfectly. What was your thought process behind Netherlands vs Brazil, Germany vs Spain and Germany vs Argentina.
Netherlands versus Brazil was a tough one. But prior to the match I felt that the Dutch midfield was way superior and I felt that the Brazilian team was not so strong this year. I could have never predicted that the match would have two totally different faces, though.
Germany versus Spain was the only match I felt uneasy with. Three deciding factors led me to vote for Spain though. First of all, Muller is such an important player in the German team. He was the biggest reason behind the speedy play of the Germans. The second factor consisted of simple logic: most people voted Germany, so I maximized my chances of winning if I voted Spain. And last, a lot of the German players do not play (actively) at the true European top teams, while the Spanish team is filled with Barcelona players. Psychology has taught me that the ones with the most relevant experience are least likely to mess under extreme pressure.
Obviously, you're from the Netherlands yet voted Spain to win the final. What was going through your mind when you did that?
I felt Spain had the stronger team, and the better football. The way they play is such a joy to watch and it made sense to vote for them. In addition, by voting Spain I'd win either way. A world cup online, or a world cup in my country
There were a couple memorable moments from the World Cup - Gyan's fail, Paul the Octopus, France/Italy failing, the English goal that wasn't really a goal - what will you remember the most coming out of this world cup?
I actually talked about this today with my co-workers. I presume the moment where Robben was alone in front of Casillas in the final, but he missed the shot. Predicting a thousand replays on that moment under the notion "What if?" But really, I doubt I will remember much. I watched every game, yet almost none of them were noteworthy.
Which team surprised you the most during the tournament?
I'd have to say Germany. They performed so well with their young, talented squad. I think they were lucky that Ballack got injured. I’ve gained a lot of respect for our neighbours. Holland and Germany kind of switched roles this world cup which I did not expect that at all. I even ended up cheering for the Germans, and I know a lot of other Dutchies did so too. That is something totally new as we've kind of despised them for over 60 years
Speaking of Paul, thoughts on trading in your World Cup Ball prize for a Golden Octopus?
For sure :D Paul guided me like I guide Nyovne and (especially) Pholon with their new Banling job. I guess I will remember the octopus then!
Forlan won the golden ball this year, but who was the player of the tournament for you?
I'm going to pick Muller for his smart and creative play. One of the few players who actually runs without a ball at his feet. His movement is superb. Such a shame he did not play in the semi final due to a referee mistake. Not like he could have prevented the ball from hitting his hand against Argentina.
What was the most difficult part of the Liquibet season for you?
I haven't really felt uncomfortable at all during the Liquibet. I predicted that Uruguay would do well, as I predicted that France and Italy would do poor. Expected more from Ivory Coast and Nigeria though.
Will the Dutch ever win the World Cup? If so, want to give a prediction for when that will happen?
Honestly, I am very disappointed in my country and I suppose I feel similar to a lot of Brazilians. I want to be able to tell my children the epic story of Hollands' total football, and how it eventually won us the world cup deservingly. We should win the cup with good play, or we shouldn't win it at all. Especially not with fouling and diving. So I’m happy we deservingly lost to a good Spain. I don’t think we will take the cup any time soon. Germany’s time is coming. We might actually have a good shot next time, as our (supposedly) key players (Robben, Sneijder, Van der Vaart, Van Persie) won’t be too old. I doubt it though. If we keep playing like this, I hope we never win the cup.
Can you give the readers some insight into your history as a TL staff member? I'm sure most of the newer guys have no clue who you are!
Sure, it will be similar to this blog, but I’ll try to keep it shorter.
It all started even before this site was launched, as I posted on the old forums. I wrote news for a different site when Nazgul asked me to write news for Teamliquid (note: this was not pro-gaming news, originally TL meant to cover the foreign scene (too?)). I declined as I wanted to stay loyal.
I’m user number 6 on this site and I quickly posted quite a bit, especially in the general forum. Slowly the users messing up my threads started to get to me and after a talk with Nazgul I hatched from user into moderator, specifically for the general forum. Most users won’t really know me, as eventually I ended up going inactive in BW (after winning a vacuum cleaner at the WCG!) and eventually TL too. SC2 however has revived me, and now I’m back to moderating and playing. I might help to host some crazy TL-events in the near future, but it all depends how busy I’ll be with my Psychology master
What are your thoughts on SC2? Going to play it at all?
Actually, I’m very optimistic. I’ve played a lot of SC2 already and I’m enjoying myself, as are my friends. I’m liking it as a spectator sport too. So yes, I’ll definitely be playing. I just hope the maps start becoming better (and bigger!) soon so more creativity is possible. And a few more units which used skilfully can make the difference wouldn’t hurt. That’s all I can complain about though, I just really like it.
Well thanks for your time Bey! Congrats once again. Any last words?
I’ll use this moment to compliment all the staff members who made TL from what it was to what it is now. In the time I’ve (mostly) been away, TL has really grown into a professional, amazing website which I’m proud to be a (little) part of it. The same goes for IRC, which is the baby I share with Carnac. This site has really meant a lot to me, and still does, and it is amazing to see how well TL is doing.
And with that, ladies and gentlemen, we are going to be closing down the world cup forum. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!
We'll see you again in Brazil, 2014!
but not like i would've done well anyways lol
