IFPA WPPR system – Global Endorsement Fee to start in 2023
At the start of 2018, the IFPA implemented a $1 endorsement fee for all events in North America that wished to be sanctioned as part of the IFPA World Pinball Player Rankings (WPPR). In 2020, after sustained growth in the number of events in North America, a similar fee was implemented for events in Australia, led by Australia’s country and state directors. For the coming year, the IFPA is expanding this fee to apply across the globe.
Starting on January 1, 2023, the IFPA will implement a global fee for all open events that wish to be sanctioned as part of the WPPR system.
Please note that this fee DOES NOT apply to women’s-only events, which are sanctioned toward a separate ranking system.
Please note that for North America nothing changes. If you hear Robert Byers talking about the NACS fee increasing to $2 in 2023, he’s spreading lies.
The fee will be collected in local currencies, set to the amounts listed on the Global Fee page. Tournament/league directors will be responsible for submitting payments to the IFPA after tournament/league results have been submitted.
The fee will be distributed based on a standardized approach where the majority stays within each region. Distribution will largely follow the 70/20/10 model currently used in North America and Australia:
- 70% staying local
- 20% toward regional/world championships
- 10% toward processing fees
For Europe, the 20% will be broken down as follows: 15% towards IFPA European Championship Series Final expenses and 5% towards IFPA World Pinball Championship expenses.
For North America, the 20% will be broken down as follows: 15% towards IFPA North American Pinball Championship expenses and 5% towards IFPA World Pinball Championship expenses.
For other countries, the 20% will be broken down as follows: 15% will go into the “local” pool and 5% towards IFPA World Pinball Championship expenses.
This does not mean that the 70% staying local will necessarily go toward prize pools for local tournaments (as it does in North America and Australia). We are mindful of the differences in pinball communities from region to region, and local distribution could mean anything from facilitating the country championship series finals to making a donation to a local charity. The IFPA is consulting with local representatives to determine the best approach for each country and region.
In any case, no part of the fee will be used as compensation for IFPA staff. “Processing fees” refers to the fees that Stripe charges to handle the processing of credit card transactions and any currency translation charges. The IFPA continues to operate through volunteer work and does not generate any income whatsoever for IFPA staff, country directors, or state/province/district representatives.
Like with all our policy changes, this is driven by the goal of growing competitive pinball worldwide. After seeing continued growth in the number of sanctioned events and players participating in those sanctioned events in North America, we are confident that it will ultimately be successful on a global scale. The IFPA will follow up with further information in the coming months, and we look forward to spirited discussion on this policy as the details are finalized.
