It was a battle nearly as hard-fought as the World Cup itself.

Sat in the Council House in College Green, 22 teams from schools across Bristol put their heads together for five rounds of tough questions that left many parents at the back of the room scratching their heads.

Competition was fierce and tactics used by the children included whispering behind cupped hands, covering up answer sheets and putting off opponents by deliberately shouting out incorrect answers.

The youngsters, aged between nine and 11, had come from Ashton Vale, New Oak, Air Balloon, School of Christ the King, Knowle Park, Parson Street, St Teresa's, Cheddar Grove, Hillcrest, St Bernard's, Headley Park, Four Acres, St Bernadette, Brentry, Sefton Park, Wansdyke, South Street Compass Point, Connaught, Ashton Gate, St George CE, Luckwell, and Waycroft.

To get to this nerve-wracking stage, more than 750 children had taken part in quizzes at their schools to find the best teams in the city.

In the end the triumphant winners were four boys from Waycroft – James Plummer, 11, of Whitchurch, Lewis Holt, 10, of Stockwood, Mason Bean, 10, of Stockwood, and Ashley Ballard, 11, of Bedminster.

They had scored an impressive 77 points out of a possible 100 to win medals and a replica World Cup trophy.

They said: "It was brilliant, we had a great time but the questions were quite hard. The worst bit was waiting to find out who had won, it was really nail-biting. We'd all like to play for England in 2018, it would be amazing if it was in Bristol."

In fourth place was Ashton Gate, in third place was Brentry and Sefton Park came second.

The quiz was run by the council-funded programme Playing for Success in Bristol, which is based in study centres at Bristol City and Bristol Rovers football clubs.

Big names at the event included footballer Tommy Hutchinson, who played for Scotland in the World Cup in 1974, and former Rovers player Geoff Twentyman, who opened the evening by asking the children: "Who would like to see World Cup football in Bristol in 2018?"

A massive cheer went up in the room.

Bristol 2018's official celebrity ambassador Justin Lee Collins led the quiz with a few jokes and asked all 50 questions.

"Where's Speedwell School tonight then?" he asked. "My old school was Speedwell, which I am sad to see is not here."

He added later: "I'm glad that Air Balloon is here – my mum and my auntie Carol went there."

With his usual controversial humour, he told the children: "No cheating. Cheats never prosper. Actually, sometimes they do, but don't do it.

"Don't look at your parents for help either. I have seen some of your parents – you're looking to the wrong people."

There were five rounds of 10 questions, including "name the country", where the children had to use picture clues to work out the country which competed in a World Cup final.

The first question in the round featured a photo of bras, next to a picture of a man in bed, apparently 'ill', for Brazil. The next was a cartoon of lots of germs, for Germany.

Other rounds tested the children's general World Cup knowledge, maths skills and powers of observation by showing footage of World Cup action.

After each round, the answers were revealed as the children cheered, jumped up and down and waved their Bristol 2018 flags.

Parents and teachers were also trying their best to do the quiz.

Air Balloon headmaster Rob Worsfold, who lives in Hanham, said: "I think it's been fantastic. The children have loved it and it brought a nice healthy competitive atmosphere."

Sat next to him was nine-year-old Jade Kearns, whose 11-year-old brother Jordan was competing in the quiz, and her dad Mark, 49.

Jade, from Redfield, said: "I'm getting most of the answers right and having a good time. I would love to see the World Cup in Bristol one day, it would be great."

Bristol is one of 16 cities applying for one of 12 places in England's campaign to stage the World Cup in 2018 or 2022.

The bid team must submit its bid to Wembley on Monday, November 9, before a final publicity push leading up to the big decision in December.

If successful, Bristol could hold three to four first-round matches and possibly a quarter-final.

Register your support for by texting BRISTOL to 62018.