KPB ranking system

The KPB ranking system is the current system used to rank nations participating in the World Cup and related events. The name KPB comes from the initials of the two nations involved in its creation: it was developed by Kaze Progressa during World Cup 9, with the principal modification made shortly afterward by Bedistan to ensure that Cup hosts did not suffer an unnatural loss of rank due to not participating in the qualifying stages.

For each competition, the total number of points (three per win, one per draw) earned by each team is divided by the maximum possible number of matches. It is then multiplied by some constant, depending on the type of competition and how long ago it occurred. The numbers are finally added together, and the nation with the most KPB points is officially considered the best in the world.

The formula
The KPB ranking system can be stated as a formula, where:
 * K = final KPB coefficient
 * p = total competition points (3 per win, 1 per draw)
 * m = total number of matches in the competition
 * q = World Cup qualifying
 * f = World Cup finals
 * h = Cup of Harmony
 * b = Baptism of Fire

Given that a team can only enter one WCC-sanctioned Baptism of Fire and each of the last three BoFs have been WCC-sanctioned, we can say that K = (fA + fB + fC) + (qA + qB + qC) + (fA + fB + fC) + b, where qA represents the most recent qualifiers, qB the previous qualifiers, and so on.

This can otherwise be expressed as k = f[8(p+3/m) + 4(p+3/m) + 2(p+3/m)] + q[4(p/m) + 2(p/m) + (p/m)] + h[2.5(p/m) + 1.25(p/m) + 0.625(p/m)] + b(p/m). The maximum value of K is currently 72, given if a team sweeps its Baptism of Fire and immediately experiences three perfect cycles.

Competition multipliers
At World Cup qualifying, the Cup of Harmony and Baptism of Fire, a team's KPB is determined by finding p/m, where m does not include playoffs (or non-inclusive knockout rounds, such as the round of twenty-two at Cup of Harmony 81). At the World Cup proper, however, it is determined by finding (p+3)/m, because of the bonus received by each qualifying team. The sum for the relevant competition is multiplied by one of the following constants, as appropriate, before being added together.

World Cup proper

 * Most recent Cup: x8
 * Previous Cup: x4
 * Cup before that: x2

Qualifying

 * Most recent Cup: x4
 * Previous Cup: x2
 * Cup before that: x1

Cup of Harmony

 * Most recent CoH: x2.5
 * Previous CoH: x1.25
 * CoH before that: x0.625

Baptism of Fire

 * Each of the three most recent BoFs: x1

Changes
Results of the Under-21 World Cup once influenced the KPBs, but these competitions were later separated. The original U21WC used the RPR system created by Total n Utter Insanity; its successor, the Di Bradini Cup, does not have a ranking system.

Nations hosting a World Cup do not participate in the qualifying stages. However, there would be a large loss of ranking for the hosts if they received no points for the qualifying round. Therefore, hosts are credited with having played qualifying matches, earning on average a points. In terms of the formula, p = am. The constant a was initially set at 2 (Bedistan's eponymous contribution), though it has increased to 2.333333... (i.e. 7/3).

All nations that successfully qualify for the World Cup were credited with an additional five points, equal to a win and two draws. This was to prevent the phenomenon of nations gaining a higher ranking through participation in the Cup of Harmony than if they had qualified for the World Cup itself. It has succeeded in this purpose; after World Cup 23 and the concurrent Cup of Harmony, the top thirty places in the rankings were filled by nations that had qualified for that World Cup (the other two qualifiers were 33rd and 34th). However, it was argued that this entrenches the top 32, making it difficult for new teams to qualify. As a result, the bonus was reduced to three points at the beginning of World Cup 34 and, for the purposes of that and subsequent cups, the previous earned bonuses were retrospectively reduced to three also.

Before the 90th World Cup cycle, Amendment 1 was passed, which provided that in any given cycle, the three most recent Baptisms of Fire had p/m KPB points on offer with no decay.