Predictions are online now

We have received 145 predictions this year. A new record for the Bolão!

Everybody's predictions are now online. You can download the file here to verify whether yours is included.

Also take some time to take a look at the predictions by our beloved Cabeça de Macaco. According to him, the opening match will finish Russia 2 - Saudi Arabia 0; not too outrageous by the standards of our random-betting mascot.

Bolão da Copa 2018 launched!

Continuing the tradition initiated in 2006, the dearest World Cup prediction game is back!

What is it about?
It's about predicting the outcome of each of the upcoming World Cup matches. You get points for predicting the right winner, the exact score, etc. Each participant pays a fee to submit a prediction, and at the end of the tournament the pot is split between the best 3 predictions (60% to the best, 30% to second best, 10% to the third).

Every day we produce and share the standings so you can track your progress...

The standings and other materials such as occasional fun readings from undercover envoys, are published in our blog at http://bolaomacaco.blogspot.com.

How to participate?

If you wish to take part, download this Excel file. Then follow the instructions included in the file to submit your predictions. (after you open the file, Excel may ask you to "enable edit", look for a yellow message on top of the Excel window)

Be sure to fill in all information, save the file, and send it to bolaomacaco@gmail.com before the deadline on June 14 2018 at 7am Moscow time (midnight of June 13 in New York).

The cost per participation is USD 12 or EUR 10 or BRL 45.
You can pay in person to one of the 3 Bolao Delegates (Facundo in Turkey, Rolf in Spain/Germany, Paulinho in Brazil), or email bolaomacaco@gmail.com for bank transfer instructions.

Can I invite others?

Yes of course. Feel free to invite friends and family.

Any questions? Let us know!

Have a happy Bolão!
Your loyal BMC

~ Bolão Master Committee ~

One more time, we're back!!!

It's official... The Bolão da Copa is back this year! Join Cabeça de Macaco in this traditional prediction game and try to finish ahead of him.

We'll be posting the rules for the Bolão da Copa 2018 edition, and the spreadsheet for predictions, over the next few days.

Check this place obsessively for updates

Bolão da Copa 2018

Coming soon...

Final

So, who won?

The last-minute goal by Germany moved things around: Manfred ended up first, John Anderson 2nd, and Seppel 3rd.*

Cabeça de Macaco, occupied with random thoughts

Also, and this is probably the biggest piece of news of the day, it is the second time in a row that Cabeça de Macaco does not finish last in the Bolão. Congratulations to all!

___
* Provisional results. As usual, our Excelmaster Paulo will cross-check all computations.
UPDATE: He has checked. Results are final.

Almost there

We are just one day away from end of the Bolão (and the World Cup). Today, Brazil played another horrible game and Netherlands managed to finish third. Admittedly, this time, the referee was partially to blame.

Robben adds another item to his collection of techniques to obtain penalties: now he is able to get penalty calls also when outside of the penalty area.

More important affairs lie ahead. The question we all are asking is "Who will win this year's Bolão?" We'll find out tomorrow. In the meantime, the updated standings are here.

Second finalist

After one of the most boring games in the World Cup, Argentina defeats Netherlands in the penalty shootout and advances to the final. For the third time in World Cup history, the final game is Argentina vs. Germany (they faced each other in 1986 and 1990, winning one each).

Yep, it doesn't always work as against Costa Rica

The Bolão ranking is more or less the same. Take a look at the updated standings.

First finalist

Germany advances into the final.

Klose scored his 16th goal in a World Cup

In the Bolão, Seppel is 1st, and Serginho 2nd. Manfred, who predicted the win by Germany, is 3rd, and just one point behind Serginho. The complete standings are here.

A matter of four

The semi-finals have arrived. Just four teams remain in the competition: two from Europe and two from South America. Therefore, as it has always been, the World cup final will be played by teams from either Europe or South America.

Who will it be?

This year the Bolão also seems to be a matter of four. According to extensive simulations performed by our Excelmaster, this year's Bolão da Copa champion will be one of the four participants who are currently in the top three:  Seppel, Serginho Matos, Manfred, or Sandy.

Also, like four years ago, Cabeça de Macaco might not finish last.

On to the semi-finals

My cable and internet connections are working again! This means that I could watch today's matches unencumbered and that FIFA's evil plans were thwarted.

In the first game, Argentina won against apathetic Belgium because Belgian players couldn't decide on whether they wanted to score a goal or not. Indecisiveness seems to be their national trait.

The second game was much more engaging. Recall that Netherlands was tricked by Mexico into having to play against mighty Costa Rica. However, Netherlands ended up winning in the penalty shootout after Louis van Gaal substituted the goalkeeper by one who is an expert in stopping penalty shots. For some inexplicable reason, journalists around the world are calling van Gaal a genius for making such an obvious decision.

A revolutionary concept: in the penalty shootout use a goalkeeper who is good at it.

What about the Bolão? Seppel is 1st, Serginho Matos 2nd, and Manfred and Sandy are tied at the 3rd place. Cabeça de Macaco is up one position again. The complete standings are here.

Quarter-finals

Both my cable and internet connection were taken out by lightning, so I couldn't watch the games at home today. No doubt, this is part of an evil ploy by FIFA to keep me from my commitment to truthful reporting. From what I heard, both Germany and Brazil advanced. They'll face each other in the semi-finals.

What? Germany is next?

In the Bolão, Seppel is 1st, Serginho Matos 2nd, and Sandy is now 3rd. Cabeça de Macaco has dropped to the bottom of the table again. The standings are here.

The Round of 16 is over

In the first game, Argentina required supernatural assistance to win against Switzerland. Just when it looked like penalty shots were inevitable, an Angel miraculously scored a goal for Argentina.

Pope Francis declined to comment on whether he was involved.

The Belgium - USA match was also resolved in overtime. It was much more animated though: three goals were scored during the last 30 min. Belgium ended up advancing.

And now, on to the Bolão: Seppel is still 1st. He has increased his lead by 10 additional points. However, Serginho, Julián, Ale, and sandy are not far behind. Meanwhile, Cabeça de Macaco has gained one position. The current standings are here.