Countdown in Birmingham

Countdown in Birmingham is a Countdown tournament held in the city of Birmingham in the West Midlands. Between 2016 and 2018, it was the location for the FOCAL finals, presented by Jeff Clayton and Ben Wilson. Since 2022, it has been anchored by Matthew S Rutherford.

Events

2016

The inaugural Birmingham tournament took place on 3 December 2016 as the location for the first FOCAL finals and Birmingham Open. The concurrent tournaments were held at the Strathallan Hotel.

• Finals: the 2016 finals naturally consisted of 8 attendees. They were won by Jack Worsley. Main article...

• Open: the 2016 open consisted of 26 attendees. They were won by Stephen Read. Main article...

2017

The second tournament took place on 2 December 2016 as the location of the 2017 FOCAL finals and Birmingham Open. The concurrent tournaments returned to the Strathallan Hotel.

• Finals: the 2017 finals naturally consisted of 8 attendees. They were won by Rob Foster. Main article...

• Open: the 2017 open consisted of 27 attendees. It was won by Jack Worsley. Main article...

2018

The third tournament took place on 24 November 2018 as the location of the 2018 FOCAL finals and Birmingham Open. The concurrent tournaments were held at the Plough & Harrow.

• Finals: the 2018 finals naturally consisted of 8 attendees. They were won by Jonathan Wynn. Main article...

• Open: the 2018 open consisted of 27 attendees. It was won by Rob Foster. Main article...

2022

After a three-year absence, Birmingham returned for its fourth tournament on 13 August 2022 as the sixteenth round of the 2020–22 FOCAL season, now presented by debut host Matthew S Rutherford. It was held at the Chester Road Baptist Church, and consisted of 18 attendees. It was won by Bradley Horrocks. Main article...

2023

The fifth stint of Birmingham tournaments represented the second double-header of the 2023 season, consisting of a two-round Goatdown tournament on the Friday evening that preceded the main event. Both were held at the Wellington Inn.

• Goatdown event: he Goatdown event took place on 4 August 2023 as the eleventh round of the 2023 FOCAL season, and consisted of 17 attendees. It was won by debutant Zohaib Rehan. Main article...

• Main event: the main event took place on 5 August 2023 as the twelfth round of the 2023 FOCAL season, and consisted of 34 attendees. It was won by Jack Hurst. Main article...

2024

Birmingham's sixth stint took place on the first weekend of August 2024. In the same fashion as 2023, it was a double-header, whereby the main event was preceded by a Goatdown tournament on the Friday night.

• Goatdown event: the Goatdown event took place on 2 August 2023 as the eleventh round of the 2024 FOCAL season, and consisted of 24 attendees. It was won by Zohaib Rehan. Main article...

• Main event: the main event took place on 3 August 2024 as the twelfth round of the 2024 FOCAL season, and consisted of 33 attendees. It was won by Jack Hurst. Main article...

2025

There are plans for Birmingham to occupy a slot on the 2025 calendar, though no plans have been formalised yet.

Organisers

• 2016–2018: Jeff Clayton
• 2016–2018: Ben Wilson
• 2022–present: Matthew S Rutherford