Every so often, a unique idea comes along in poker that redefines the game we all love. This Autumn, Match Poker hope that their newly launched World Cup might be the latest innovation to take the poker world by storm.
What is Match Poker?
Match Poker Online are hoping to bring the thrill of international competition to the online poker tables right around the time that the soccer World Cup in Qatar will be capturing the imagination of billions of worldwide sports fans. But what is Match Poker and how do you play it?
Essentially, Match Poker removes the luck element that is present in all forms of poker. But how? Well, it’s quite simple. In Match Poker, you’ll play the same predetermined cards as the player in the corresponding seat at another table. Seat 2 on your table will be in the same position and have the same cards as the same chair at another table, and so on. Over the course of the game, therefore, you are performing against players at your table but ultimately comparing yourself with each corresponding player who had the same cards as you.
Back in 2011, poker was officially classified as a ‘mindsport’, just like Chess, Backgammon and Bridge. The International Federation of Match Poker has successfully transformed poker into a sport and one of the benefits of that ‘sportification’ of poker is that events such as this World Cup come along to help players of all levels prove their prowess at the felt.
Represent Your Country
One of the most exciting elements of Match Poker’s World Cup is that players get to represent their countries. National-level competitions have been taking place in IFMP events for years all over the world, but playing on the Match Poker app makes it even easier to throw your hat into the ring.
Downloading the app is simple, but you must complete some of the pre-qualifying criteria.
You’ll need to do one of the following by November 27th to be considered eligible to take part.
- Reach an IFMP Rating of 1,200 or above
- Reach the top 15% of the Ivory, Sapphire, or Emerald tiers of IFMP Ratings
- Reach the top 15% of eligible players in any Premiership Season
- Win a Weekly Challenge
- Win a Special Event, i.e. the May Cup or Battle Weekend
At the last count, there were just 385 players who had reached any of those marks, so with over a fortnight to go, the race really is on to become a World Cup winner on the Match Poker app, with any eligible players to be notified via email before the World Cup begins.
Colman on the Competition
“From the start, we’ve wanted to be much more than an app.”
With the World Cup looming on the pitch out in Qatar and on the app, Match Poker’s head of customer relations Jake Colman has spoken on looking forward to the big kick-off.
“From the start, we’ve wanted to be much more than an app, we’ve wanted to be a sport – albeit one that is played via an app,” he said. “Being a sport necessarily involves holding Championship events, World Cups, and other big events to determine the best players in the sport of poker.”
The passion for the project has been built on by the creators, Match Poker, but it is clear that they are providing a service for fans who love to play the game the right way.
“What’s been wonderful to see has been the enthusiasm from our players,” Colman continues. “Each of our matches goes for 30-45 minutes, and heaps of players play 20 or so matches each week, which is a wonderful commitment of time and effort. There are some players who have played more than 100 matches a month! Adding even more players at all skill levels gets us closer to our goal of running matches almost instantaneously. Happily, we’re getting closer.”
Colman’s passion for poker being a sport is self-evident and it’s clear that players share that vision.
“Even though it’s played in an app, Match Poker is a sport. We’re working hard to see it become as widespread as basketball, tennis, or chess, with communities in every part of the world, at every level – from suburban leagues to national titles. The World Cup is the most important step forward we’ve ever taken in getting there. We’re going to start analyzing everything from how often you make it to showdown, win at showdown, three-bet or fold to a three-bet, continuation bet, or move all in. Each statistic tells the player where they are, and where they should be.”
How Will Match Poker’s World Cup Play Out?
In Match Poker’s World Cup, there’s no VAR, lucky bounce or bad decision from an overpaid manager who’ll likely get the sack when Germany knocks them out in the quarterfinals (we’re looking at you, Didier Deschamps). The game proceeds as follows:
Each competition features Playoffs and Finals exclusive to players of the same Rating Tier. Tournament play features Match Poker Online’s new Triple Battle format, which sees players compete in one battle royale each hour for three consecutive hours. The top 36 players then advance to the Finals. For most players, the Playoffs are set for Dec. 3-4 with the Finals playing out on Dec. 10-11. U.S. players can compete on Dec. 2-3 with the Finals on Dec. 9-10.
The winner of the Ruby division, the top competition, is crowned the overall World Cup champion, with payouts across all tiers looking highly lucrative to those able to prove they are the ‘best in class’. Emerald players will receive $100, $50 or $25 if they finish first, second or third. For sapphire players, those corresponding payouts are $200, $100 and $50. In Ivory, it’s $450,$175 and $75, with Ruby players shooting for a top prize of $625, with runner-up ($250) and third-place ($125) just as valuable.
Match Poker has great graphics, top-tier UI (User Interface) and even a fantasy sports-style player comparison function where you can pitch your poker talent against your friends.
