Quidditch World Cup to Take Place in NYC HPA to Make Exciting Campaign Announcement

Boston, MA – On November 12 and 13, 2011 the International Quidditch Association (IQA) will host the 2011 Quidditch World Cup (QWC) at which 95 college quidditch teams will descend on New York City to compete in a live action-packed sporting event, best described as “a cross between the Super Bowl and a medieval festival.” The two days will feature 450 games with live music, entertainers, food and drink vendors, and many other exciting events.   “The Quidditch World Cup is one of the best events of the year in the Harry Potter fan community and the IQA has prepared one of the most impressive events possible,” said HPA Executive Director Andrew Slack. “We are so excited as an organization to be partnering with the IQA.” The Harry Potter Alliance (HPA) will host a booth at the QWC where we will have information about the HPA, merchandise for sale, and information about an exciting announcement relating to our next campaign.   The IQA, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and governing the real-life sport of quidditch. The IQA utilizes the game to inspire youth and young adults to lead more physically active, socially engaged lives.   “Muggle”, or non-magical, quidditch is a real and popular game, adapted by college students in 2005 from JK Rowling’s Harry Potter novels and is now played at over 500 schools worldwide. With regular tournaments held all over the US and Canada on a weekly basis, and new events being organized in locations as far away as Australia, quidditch is one of the fastest growing sports in the world.   In the largest display of real-life quidditch ever, over 2,000 college athletes will seek to best each other on eleven fields of continuous play. One-hundred teams representing 27 US states and 5 nations will compete, arriving from schools as close as NYU, and as far away as the University of Vassa in Finland.   Between and during the games, spectators will experience a diverse array of entertainers and performances, including live music from over a dozen bands culminating in a headline concert Saturday night. There will be food and drink from local vendors, and matches will be announced by trained improvisational comedians. Live animals, including owls, may make an appearance.   The event is family-friendly and open to the public. Tickets start at $4.99 and are available online or at the event. For more information and to order tickets, please visit http://www.internationalquidditch.org/worldcup/.   ###

The HP Alliance (www.thehpalliance.org) is a 501c3 nonprofit that engages Harry Potter fans in social activism. With over 70 active chapters and 40 volunteer staff, the HPA has donated five cargo planes to Haiti, 55,000 books, protection for thousands in Darfur, and made huge strides in anti-genocide, LGBT, and media reform advocacy, and more. Covered in hundred of major publications and praised by JK Rowling, Harry Potter celebrities, Paul Farmer, and a slew of NGO’s the HPA recently came in first place in the Chase Bank Community Giving Contest on Facebook winning $250,000.