The third annual N.C. State Campus World Cup approaches, and residence halls already are sending recruitment emails, trying to lure talent. 

Wolf Village, last year’s champions, will defend its title as at least 12 teams from across campus come together to compete for the Residence Hall Cup Trophy. 

Three students – Rishav Dey, a junior studying electrical engineering; Toan To, a residence director at Lee Hall; and David Cancio, a senior in Spanish – created the Campus World Cup in 2011. Their idea: Get organizations to pay a fee to play in a campus-wide soccer tournament and donate the money to charity.

“Rishav, Toan and myself created this event with the original vision to create a program that brought about a new tradition to NCSU that got the entire campus involved,” Cancio said. “We also created this event to not only bring about a new tradition but to benefit humanitarian causes and local charities.”

The tournament has grown beyond his expectations, Cancio said. 

“It has definitely grown in numbers, and it has called students to think outside the box and strive for humanitarian causes,” he said. “It has made students want to compete and be sponsored by the local charities and organizations, and that alone has helped the nearby area get more involved with this university.”

The World Cup has become popular across campus. Twelve residence-hall teams competed last year, and organizers expect more this year.

Adam Nathan, a senior in biomedical engineering, now lives in Wolf Village and expects to play for them this year.

“It allows students to interact with other students,” Nathan said. “It brings the whole campus together. It feels like a homecoming almost, except instead of juniors against seniors, it’s your residence hall. It allows you to meet new friends with similar interests.”

The event embodies a sense of community within the campus, Nathan and Cancio said. 

“It builds community, gets students out and about, and it allows students to network and meet more of their fellow students around campus,” Cancio said.

“All students living on campus should participate,” Nathan said. “It’s really fun. It’s not much of a time commitment. It’s a good stress reliever, and it allows us to get into the competitive spirit in a healthy way.”

To participate in the event, or if you have any questions regarding the event, email your residence hall coordinator.