St. Benedict Football League
I’m wanting to build a city and put teams in it. I feel like it would be great for immersion, but I can never get my head around either thing.
I made the most recent teams in my St. Benedict save generic enough that I could do whatever I wanted and small enough that it didn’t require me to build a massive footprint to get going.
The City League is the top division in St. Benedict. Teams play a 22-game regular season and the top points team is crowned champion. Since the 2019 season, the league has been dominated by two teams - If You Say So (known as Say So) and South Star Pinball (known as Arcade). A few other clubs, Pawk Pawk (a fried chicken joint) and Fire Brigade have won a few titles over the past two decades, but it’s mostly a two-team league.
The team that’s won the most titles (16) - Grocerymart - are actually relegated to the 2nd division as of 2039-40 and don’t appear to be headed back up right now. I might take them over, as that storyline could be fascinating if I can right that ship and challenge the dominant clubs while also improving the quality of the league.
Here are the teams in the City League as of 2039-40
Arcade Yummy (Yummy Churn Ice Cream Co.) Fire Brigade Say So Pawk Pawk Atlas Pizza Siempre (Bar Casa Siempre) Security Forces Mechanics (Auto Mechanics Union) Pharmacy (Queen City Pharmacy) Brewmasters (Taupe Mountain Coffee Co.) Ashley Bank
The second division is called the Community League, their champion gets promoted, while the worst team in the City League gets relegated. The Community League plays an 18-game schedule.
Blue Tambourine (Soft Drink Co.) New South Harlem Giants Plain Hills A.C. OTR Sandy Point Grocerymart Parish Dolphin Bay Challengers Hat & Shoes Resort Hotel
Match day squads in the City League are restricted to 5 foreign players, but residency rules end up being pretty easy for players to become citizens if they’re uncapped. There are no matchday rules in the Community League, where all of the teams are currently semi-pro. In the City League, Pharmacy, Brewmasters, Security Forces, and Mechanics are still semi-pro as well. Nonetheless, Benedician players are making their mark on the world stage, as the country’s national team has emerged successful. The team finished 3rd at the 2030 World Cup, has won 2 CONCACAF Gold Cups and are a mainstay of Caribbean football.
The difference between St. Benedict and my Neloxia save that I always play with is the level of talent in the local leagues. Neloxia has a ton of cash flowing through it, so it doesn’t take long for the leagues to become major players & for the talent that stays home to be among the world’s best.
Meanwhile, St. Benedict is a competitive football nation, but their best players are now having to leave home and play abroad to cash in on big paydays and shine on the global stage. I’ve long wondered what it would be like to play in a place that was a quality league, but not a power league and see if it’s possible to get invested like I would playing in a bigger country.
