Photo: PHOTOSPORT / Shane Wenzlick
Update on 24 October 2023: The winning team for Prize B — the "fairytale" team is Italy, who secured two wins and two bonus points in the pool games. The winner of the final will win Prize A.
There's no better way to kick the 2023 Rugby World Cup hype into overdrive than getting your colleagues, classmates or long-suffering family members together for a good old office sweepstake.
RNZ has a unique take on the time-honoured draw-a-name-from-the-hat format for the competition, which begins this weekend in France.
Our version gives all participants two teams to support and two prizes to compete for.
Each participant's two teams will have two different goals; one will have a decent chance of winning the whole shebang, while the other might be the plucky underdog who makes it further than anyone expects. You will therefore battle it out for two prizes, the first for winning the tournament and the second for being the best team from the bottom half of the draw.
We have carefully paired up the highest and lowest ranked teams in the tournament so if you draw a team in the hunt for the trophy you will also get one of the lowest ranked nations. If you draw an outside chance, it will be paired with a team that is most likely to do best from the bottom half of the draw.
How to play
Appoint someone the Administrator (probably you, since you are reading this).
Print out draw sheets and cut along the dotted lines. For up to 10 people, use sheet 1. For up to 20 people use sheets 1 and 2. For more, print a second lot of sheets.
Download the Sweepstake draw sheets (PDF).
Gather your colleagues, friends and fellow football fans to draw one pair each from a hat/bucket/gumboot. (The Administrator should keep a definitive list of who drew which teams).
If there are pairs left after everyone has had a chance to enter then those interested can draw a second pair (if they can handle supporting four teams in the tournament).
You can trade your pairs by mutual consent up until the start of the tournament (Saturday 9 September). You must inform the Administrator if you swap.
Prizes
There should be two prizes:
Prize A will go to the person with the highest finishing team from the top 10 (likely, but not certainly, the World Cup winner).
Prize B will go to the highest finishing team from the bottom 10 teams (also known as the "fairy-tale" team).
What you play for is up to you - bearing in mind that it is illegal to offer alcohol, tobacco, firearms or other prohibited items as prizes (see here for the full list).
Ideally your boss will stump up with a couple of prizes (a day off, a lunch shout or a voucher) but if that proves too much of a stretch you can always play for honour, cake or even chip in a couple of bucks each.
Note: Some people may not want to or be able to participate if cash is at stake as sweepstakes can be interpreted as a form of gambling. This is another great reason for your boss to sponsor the prize instead.
If your boss puts up a prize and people do not pay to enter, this kind of sweepstake is not considered gambling under the Gambling Act, according to the Department of Internal Affairs.
However, if you pay into a sweepstake or purchase a ticket, it is considered gambling. This kind of sweepstake can be run without a licence if all the money is going straight back to prizes (with a maximum prize pool of $500). More information about keeping it legal here.
Extra prizes
If you are feeling like extending the scope of the competition (and prize giving) further, why not add some more creativity-based prizes into the mix:
Best workstation decoration
Best (workplace appropriate) banter
Best supporters team inspired morning tea treat.
Judging
The Administrator's ruling on all matters is final.
In the event of two or more teams finishing with equal placing for either prize (unlikely for Prize A, likely for Prize B) the following tie-break conditions will apply, in this order:
Most wins
Most bonus points
Best points difference
Most points scored across all games
If two or more teams are still equal on all these measures then the prize should be shared.
Disputes
The sweepstake judge's decision is final.
Keep track of the action
But wait, there's more! Print a copy of RNZ's Rugby World Cup 2023 Wallchart to see where to watch and to keep track of the latest results.
Our wallchart features every game in the tournament as well as its location and broadcaster (with free-to-air games highlighted).
Games are split across two pages (one for the group stages, one for the knockout games) so it's legible and looks great even when printed in black and white on A4.
Put it up somewhere prominent and let the watercooler punditry commence.
Download the RNZ Rugby World Cup wallchart (PDF 480k).
Note: The wallchart has been updated to correct the date of the final. If you downloaded before 9am on 7 September please re-download or correct your print out. The final is on 29 October at 8am NZ time.