The Hooligan Cup

Due to the (albeit small) percentage of fans who come to this years World Cup intent on starting fights with like-minded rival fans, we here at A Reminder have decided to award the first annual Hooligan Cup to honor their stupidity. Points are awarded based on arrests and serious injuries and will be culled from local police reports and updated daily. The point structure is as follows:

General Arrest (Disturbing the peace, unlawful gathering etc.)- 1 point
Arrest for actual fighting: 2 points
Arrest for causing bodily harm to another: 3 points
Arrest for violating the "no goose stepping" law: 3 points (Only applies to non-German or Italian groups)
Deportation/Being held until the end of the WC: 3 points
Arrest for using a weapon to injur another: 4 points
Arrest for violating the "no goose stepping" law: 5 points (Germans and Italians- (more points for doing something extra stupid))
Murder/Manslaughter/Arrest for causing the death of another: 15 points

Groups can also earn points for confirmed injuries as follows:

Cuts requiring stitches: 1 point
Head Trauma: 2 points
Broken bone: 3 points
Eye injuries: 4 points
Death: 15 points

Now some basic ground rules for earning points:

Fights can happen anywhere, but only fights between rival groups count toward the standings, a couple of drunk Germans pounding on some drunk Pols doesn't count here. Double points are awarded in the case of people being arrested while wearing fascist paraphanalia, just for the sheer stupidity.

Injuries caused in the stands of games do not count unless there is actual video proof of hooliganism. (For you people who aren't used to this sort of thing, you know it when you see it; trust me. Also as a general rule, people who are into this sort of thing can't get tickets to matches)

Now, we aren't going for a straight table of standings here- after all, this is the World Cup!

We've had a random draw and the groups shake out as follows: (Points will be awarded to teams for the duration of group play, the top two in each group will move on)

Group A:

Germany
Togo
Costa Rica
Czech Rep

Group B:

Brazil
Angola
U.S.A
Ukraine

Group C:

Australia
Poland
Italy
Iran

Group D:

Mexico
England
Spain
Ecuador

Group E:

Argentina
Paraguay
Sweden
Trinidad and Tobago

Group F:

Portugal
Ivory Coast
Serbia
South Korea

Group G:

Switzerland
The Netherlands
Croatia
Japan

Group H:

France
Tunisia
Saudi Arabia
Ghana

Clearly group C is the "group of death"

Poland is my early favorite after streaming a BBC radio report for inside Poland last week. Scary stuff. In years past, the Brits would be favorites to rack up a large amount of points, but their new travel restrictions (known hooligans have to turn in their passports and check into police stations daily) make them a less-sexy pick. Don't count out the hosts, who have known to tangle from time to time. Same thing with the Croats, the Serbs, the Czechs, or unknown but unstable Iran. With Brazil already grasping the Golden Orb, this may be the most interesting compeition this month!

Who will win ? Check back every day for updated standings!