Subject: Sick & Tired of advertising

I'm getting sick and tired trying to get people to join sokker. Ever since I've registered, I'm been trying as much as possible to recruit new users and build up the Albanian league. I've referred my friends etc and a couple have joined. Why only a couple? Cause it's impossible for their applications to get approved.

The majority of the invited don't speak English. They're Albanians abroad living abroad (speaking mostly Italian). So many cases, not only it's been hard trying to get them into a new game (as they stay loyal to HT and TM), but I've had to explain fully how to apply. I've even translated registration messages asking the Sokker staff to approve their application because they're Albanians living abroad.

However, Sokker administration chooses to approve a member every season. This is getting sickening as applications keep getting rejected. Worthy applications and not fake ones.


Look what happened to a friend of mine. I asked him to register and come help us grow the Albanian community. He registered and I told him to also send an email to admin@sokker.org saying:


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Hello,
My name is .... and I am an Albanian living abroad. I'd very much like to play in the Albanian league with the intention of strengthening the Albanian community of Sokker.org. I have been referred from a friend.
I have already applied, so I would be pleased if you accepted my application.

Thank you!
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These people don't know English. I've had to help them write a message in English. And what is the Sokker staff response?


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Sorry, but currently we are accepting teams in these cases only with some proof, like an identity, mainly in small countries. Regards, Sokker Admin.
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The sokker staff is making small countries suffer and prevent them from enlarging their communities. It's impossible to register a team nowadays. It's hard enough to get serious people to join. If they have to go through this much trouble just to register, they give up. What, do they have to show proof of citizenship? What's this thing about proof?

So please, I ask the sokker administration to look at this more carefully and be more lenient with small countries. Help them grow...

On the other hand, I can offer my help in spotting fake teams and reporting them to the Staff.

PS: This hasn't been only my problem, but to the few active members who've been trying to recruit. It's just impossible to grow our community. We're stuck at 16 members for a few seasons.
(edited)

understandable though, that they aks for simple proof, i could just as well apply as an albanian living abroad...

just imagine how many would do so just to become champion of a small country ;)

just prove he's really Albanian and your problem is solved ;)

Prove how?

Noone can become champion because the top league users are many many seasons ahead. Look at the top 5 teams and u'll understand that a small team won't become the champion. It's just about filling up the lower leagues.

I can understand with the sokker staff being tight around elections, but not during the whole season. This way, it's like fishing with dynamite. They try to single out the cheaters when indeed they're ruining our community and making it impossible to grow. It's not a great tactic to get this get game moving forward for these countries.

I'm pretty sure i'd be the national champion of kenyia within 3 seasons, but it's indeed not the case in albania :)

so your suggestion is to just accept anyone from whatever country they say to belong to?

Look, it's not only in Sokker's but also our best interest not to let cheaters register. Since we have a small community we can tell who's one and whos not. Plus, you can also see from elections. In Albania, we've all had mutual understanding in coach elections. We all vote for the best candidate. It's a rule of thumb for us not to let foreign managers. Yet every election, the foreign candidatures get 1-2 vote.. u can tell those voting teams are fake.

So, it's in our best interest too not to have cheaters.

The admins have to come to a better understanding about deciding on who to approve. Right now they're just making it impossible for us to grow.

Some other members and I have offered constant support for new members etc, and it's been effective. Most members who get the support stick with us, but that's the second step. First step is approving them and giving them a chance.

I tell you this because most Albanians putting time to play towards sokker live abroad. The ones that live in Albania only have time for mainly Hattrick. Somehow that game is popular in our community. The members here wanna change it. We'd like our community to grow.

If you really want your community to grow, i guess you have to search potential players within Albania :)

I really understand your frustration, but is it that hard for a Albanian living abroad to prove his nationality?

Prove how? What does sokker request? That's what I don't understand.

I thing Gjergji has a point here. If the person asking to register is a cheater, you will catch him, i know admins have the tools to do that.
I know that many Albanians are living abroad. And If the person is really living abroad, and just wants to play from there, you should make maybe an option on registering.

"I am currently abroad"

When this is selected, you should have some phrases for him to translate in to his native language, or give some history questions not aviable on wikipedia but popular in his country, if he dose them corectly, than he could be aproved.

Think this way, when someone is not allowed to join a game, you're not only not allowing him to join, but you don't allow an entire chain.

And there are always solutions for this like i've just said.
(edited)

Lol, in my opinion they should just let them join their country.

So can i please reiterate what you're saying...

At the moment there is the rule that you can only apply for a team in the country you reside in(unless your country doesn't exist), otherwise we'd have a lot of polish teams registering in, say, England.

You're wanting to make exceptions to that rule?
(edited)

Yeah you're right, this rule is meaningful. Maybe - though I know it's not always possible - admins could cooperate with active players from small nations on checking of new applications (like whether applicants know country's native language or some not easily to be found facts about country).

Do you know that all active users in Albania do not reside in Albania?

Back home they don't get on the internet to play Sokker. Trust me on that. Internet is not that much a part of their everyday life.

Plus according to what the sokker management wrote to the registered user, he had to provide proof he was Albanian... so where you reside doesn't matter. It hasn't mattered for many seasons. Otherwise Albania just wouldn't exist.

Rules >> Registration:
If you are from a country other that the one you're currently living, and want to create a team within this other country, you must send an e-mail to admins@sokker.org.

So sokker gives you the opportunity to register a team in another country as long as you send an email. I don't understand what kind of proof they request.

Like I mentioned above, it's like fishing with dynamite... you kill the little fish along with the big one. In this case many registered get sacrificed (eventhough they are Albanian) just because 1-2 cheaters per season could register. They do so only during elections anyways. Easy to be picked off.

Do you know that all active users in Albania do not reside in Albania?

This is interesting =]

I don't understand what kind of proof they request.

Anything which proves that the person is Albanian. A copy of the identity card or a driver license for example.

A proof of citizenship is required in cases like yours.
I know, its pretty wierd if you have to send a scan of your passport to a gaming website, but this is how it works.
Make a scan of your passport, send it to admins@sokker.org and then you are in.
This is needed, else all small nations are full of managers who should not belong there!
For other games you have to prove your age by credit card etc, so that's not different to here.