The IFPA is pleased to announce that our Player of the Year for 2015 is [player]Steven Bowden[/player] from Franklin Park, NJ. Steve racked up an incredible 1282.34 WPPR points during 2015 moving him from 13th to 2nd in the world during the year.

Steve was the IFPA Player of the Month in May, October and December of 2015 having won 36% of the 55 tournaments he played in during 2015, and finished in the top 4 in 64% of them.

Steve’s highlights during 2015 included 1st place finishes at Pinball Expo’s Flip Out Main Tournament, PPO’s Classics and Pin-Golf Tournaments, Pinfest and the 24 Hour Final Battle at The Sanctum. Steve also won 5 out the 12 Modern Pinball NYC Super League tournaments during 2015, racking up enough WPPR points (538.91) to actually change the course of the WPPR system forever!

Steve will be given his award at the IFPA13 World Pinball Championship, scheduled for April 12-14, 2016 in Pittsburgh. The IFPA wishes to congralute Steve on all of his success throughout 2015.

Registration is now closed for IFPA11, and we couldn't be more excited about the field of participants!

IFPA11 will set a few records, the most amazing being that each of the top 16 ranked players in the world will be in attendance. The previous record was set at IFPA7 when each of the top 5 ranked players participated.

16 countries will be represented, a record for a US-based IFPA World Pinball Championship. This includes Norway which will see it's flag on the World Pinball Champion trophy for the first time. 

Another IFPA record that has been set is the cut line for at-large bids into a US-based IFPA World Pinball Championship. At rank #79, [player]Cesare Datri[/player] from Italy became the last player above the cut line, shattering the previous US-based IFPA record of rank #165 set at IFPA9 in Seattle. The Europe-based IFPA record still stands at rank #66 from IFPA10 after initial registration, although the actual cut line moved to rank #88 after some player cancellations leading up to the tournament.

IFPA9 in Seattle featured a record 7 players that have been crowned World Pinball Champion competing in the same tournament. We're excited that those 7 players are all returning to compete in IFPA11 – Cayle George, Andrei Massenkoff, Keith Elwin, Jorian Engelbrektsson, Daniele Celestino Acciari, Bowen Kerins and Lyman Sheats. In addition, current IFPA World Pinball Champion Jörgen Holm returns to defend his crown, making for a new record of 8 World Pinball Champions under one roof for the first time.

The full field of participants is available HERE.

A reminder that 1 more IFPA11 spot is still available at the Lyons Spring Classic the weekend before IFPA11. Full details for that tournament will be available soon.

With over 17,000 players in the World Pinball Player Rankings, only 12 players in the history of this sport have claimed the title of World Pinball Champion. With IFPA10 and PAPA16 on the schedule for 2013, this year marks the 25th and 26th opportunities that players have a chance to join this prestigious club. Will IFPA10 see the 13th World Pinball Champion crowned? Will previous World Pinball Champions [player]Andrei Massenkoff[/player], [player]Cayle George[/player], [player]Daniele Celestino Acciari[/player], [player]Jorian Engelbrektsson[/player] or [player]Lyman Sheats[/player] keep that count at 12 and add to their own legacy? We will find out in a couple of months, as the illustrious Space Jet trophy is ready and waiting to be hoisted by the next World Pinball Champion.

Registration is now closed for IFPA10, and we couldn't be more excited about the field of participants!

IFPA10 will set a new record for most countries represented in the history of any pinball tournament with 19. Included in the field are the two previous IFPA World Pinball Champions, [player]Daniele Celestino Acciari[/player] (IFPA7 and IFPA9 World Pinball Champion), and [player]Cayle George[/player] (IFPA8 World Pinball Champion). Both Daniele and Cayle will be serving as team captains for the inaugural Epstein Cup battle between Europe and the USA.

Another IFPA record that has been set is the cut line for at-large bids into an IFPA World Championship. At rank #66, [player]Alain Boulieu[/player] from France become the last player above the cut line, destroying the previous record of rank #126 set at IFPA8 in Sweden.

The full field of participants is available HERE.

A reminder that 1 more IFPA10 spot is still available at the IFPA Satellite Tournament in Rodenbach the weekend before IFPA10. Full details for that tournament will be available soon.

Last week we announced who will be representing Team Europe in the inaugural Epstein Cup. With IFPA10 registration now officially closed, we're excited to announce that the roster for Team USA has now also been finalized.

Representing Team USA at the 2013 Epstein Cup will be IFPA8 World Pinball Champion and team captain [player]Cayle George[/player] (ranked 3rd in the world), [player]Zach Sharpe[/player] (ranked 4th in the world), [player]Trent Augenstein[/player] (ranked 6th in the world), [player]Josh Sharpe[/player] (ranked 12th in the world), [player]Joshua Henderson[/player] (ranked 15th in the world), [player]Andrei Massenkoff[/player] (ranked 24th in the world), [player]Lyman Sheats[/player] (ranked 22nd in the world) and [player]Jason Werdrick[/player] (ranked 36th in the world).

The IFPA is pleased to announce that our Player of the Month for December 2012 is [player]Beat Kuhn[/player] from Switzerland. Beat earned 124.34 WPPR points in December, winning both the Main and Classics tournaments at Pins and Pints and Pinballz Metal Tournaments. In addition, Beat also won the Offene Frankenmeisterschaft tournament along with a 2nd place finish at the Pinballroom Tournament open division.

The rest of the top 5 for the month of November included [player]Robert Gagno[/player] from Canada with 93.62 WPPR points, [player]Eden Stamm[/player] from Canada with 81.88 WPPR points, [player]Richard Rhodes[/player] from Australia with 75.00 WPPR points, and [player]John Kremmer[/player] of Canada with 72.66 WPPR points.

Congratulations to Beat and the other top WPPR point earners of the month!

The IFPA is pleased to announce that our Player of the Year for 2012 is [player]Trent Augenstein[/player]. Trent racked up an incredible 760.58 WPPR points during 2012 moving him from 11th to 6th in the world during the year.

Trent was the IFPA Player of the Month in January, April and May of 2012 having won 23% of the tournaments he played in during 2012, and finished in the top 4 in 60% of the tournaments he played in. Trent's highlights during 2012 included a 2nd place finish at Pinburgh 2012, along with victories at this year's Pinball at the Zoo, Pinbowl Tournament and Pinnesota National Championship.

Trent will be given his award at the IFPA10 World Pinball Championship, scheduled for May 31-June 2, 2013 in Germany. The IFPA wishes to congralute Trent on all of his success throughout 2012.

The IFPA is pleased to announce that our Player of the Month for October 2012 is current IFPA World Pinball Champion, [player]Daniele Celestino Acciari[/player] from Italy. Daniele earned 113.57 WPPR points in October, winning the Swiss Open Main Tournament, Stern Launch Party Tournament and Rome Pinball Tournament. In addition, Daniele finished in the top 4 of the Zelgi Main and Side Tournament in Switzerland.

The rest of the top 5 for the month of October included [player]Zach Sharpe[/player] of the US with 109.11 WPPR points, [player]Albert Nomden[/player] of the Netherlands with 86.01 WPPR points, [player]Bowen Kerins[/player] of the US with 77.43 WPPR points, and [player]Jérémy Reynaud[/player] of France with 73.17 WPPR points.

Congratulations to Daniele and the other top WPPR point earners of the month!

KSTP5, the ABC affiliate in Minneapolis recently stopped by the Pinnesota! National Pinball Championships. Pinnesota! is one of the nearly 350 annual IFPA endorsed tournaments where players can earn World Pinball Player Rankings points, and qualify for the IFPA World Pinball Championship. Featured in the piece is tournament director [player]Fred Richardson[/player] (ranked 234th in the world) and [player]Lyman Sheats[/player] (ranked 14th in the world). Click HERE to watch the video.

The IFPA is pleased to announce that our Player of the Month for June 2012 is current IFPA World Pinball Champion, [player]Daniele Celestino Acciari[/player] from Italy. Daniele earned an incredible 251.33 WPPR points in June, winning not only the IFPA9 World Pinball Championship, but also the NW Pinball Championships Open Division. He also finished in 4th place in the Classics Division at the NW Pinball Championships, and earned a 2nd place finish at the Pre-IFPA tournament at Full Tilt.

The rest of the top 5 for the month of June included [player]Bowen Kerins[/player] of the US with 226.35 WPPR points, [player]Cayle George[/player] of the US with 187.41 WPPR points, Jorgen Holm of Sweden with 161.55 WPPR points, and Lyman Sheats of the US with 154.34 WPPR points.

Congratulations to Daniele and the other top WPPR point earners of the month!