Play in the Xbox World Cup

Electronic Arts is teaming up with FIFA and Xbox once again to bring you the second FIFA Interactive World Cup.

To enter, you can register on site at one of the regional tournaments or win a local qualifying tournament. The UK regional tournament event will take place at Olympia 2, London, on October 15.

Eight pairs of tickets to a 2006 FIFA World Cup match in Germany will be handed over to the winners of the regional tournaments, who will then get to compete in the worldwide finals, taking place in London on December 18. Each finalist will receive an Xbox 360 and a copy of FIFA 06.

Plus there's a new twist to this year's event - two lucky Xbox Live members will also be chosen to qualify for the grand final. To enter the online competition, visit the official tournament website.

And even if you don't qualify, you might like to attend the finals for a sneak peek of FIFA on Xbox 360 - since that's the game the finalists will be playing to determine who's the champion.

Said champion will be named FIFA Interactive World Player 2005 and will receive their trophy at the FIFA World Player Gala, to be held in Zurich on December 19 and attended by all manner of millionaire international footballers.

"We are all very excited about this year's FIFA Interactive World Cup," said Xbox VP Peter Moore.

"By expanding the Xbox Live component of the competition we have really opened up the entry routes into this year's tournament allowing even more people to participate and eventually win it. It also means that only the best, most competitive gamers will make it through to the grand final."