It sounds like the plot for one of those "quirky" British films that the Americans love so much – the young kitchen salesman who chases his dream of becoming a table football champ all the way to the Foosball World Cup finals – all building up to the heart-warming final scene where, against all the odds, he snatches victory from the jaws of defeat in a nail-biting match against the Germans.

It may not have quite made it to Hollywood yet, but 22-year-old Joe Hamilton is excited by the fact that the landmark game is to be broadcast on Eurosport 2 on March 5.

"You don't often get table football – or 'foosball', as it's known in the trade – broadcast on television, so it's pretty cool that they're going to broadcast the match," he says as he settles down in front of a pint at The Bush, the Totterdown pub that has been the world champion's training ground for the past two years.

The Bishopston lad, together with his foosball partner Rob Atha from Manchester, won the World Championship Doubles title at the International Table Soccer Federation World Cup.

The tournament, which was held in Nantes, France, last month, featured 500 of the world's top table footballers from 36 countries.

"We didn't go there expecting to win," says Joe. "The Americans are incredibly dominant in the sport. But when the Germans knocked out the Americans in the semi-finals, I suddenly started to think that we might stand a chance.

"Then when it came to the actual final, I managed to save two penalties which would have won the game for the Germans.

"There was an incredible atmosphere at the venue. There were 400 people in the audience – which is an awful lot of people to watch a game of table football.

"The table was filmed and projected on to a big screen so they could follow the game, and there was also a commentator.

"I was nervous as hell, but when we started playing, we just focused on the match.

"And when the final goal went in and we realised we'd won the world championship, Rob and I just screamed at each other – totally forgetting for the moment that there was an entire crowd of people watching.

"The rest of the Great Britain team who had taken part in the multi-player team matches and the singles matches were all so excited they leaped over the barriers and we had our own pitch invasion. That's doesn't happen very often in table football."

Joe has come a long way rapidly in the world of international table football. He only played his first match in 2006.

"I was at college in Cotham and I discovered that there was a foosball table in one of the student common rooms. I'd previously been a regional table tennis champion so I was used to table-scale sports.

"I just found myself getting really into table football, so I decided to look on the internet to see if there were any local foosball clubs that I could join.

"That's when I found this place," he says, looking around at the bar. "I didn't realise at first that many of the regulars at The Bush are some of the world's top foosball players.

"So for the first few weeks I couldn't win a single match.

"But I just put a lot of time and effort into practising. I went over that critical point that you see in foosball enthusiasts when you go from just enjoying a game down the pub to actually being a bit obsessed by it."

When Joe left college and got his job as a kitchen planner and salesman at Ikea, he was delighted to discover a foosball table in the staff canteen on his first day.

"It's been great," he laughs. "I've even set up tournaments among my colleagues in work, and I've been able to give lots of them advice and tuition into the techniques of the game.

"It's a world away from the handle-spinning antics you see in pub matches. When you get to this level, it's an incredibly skilled and complex sport.

"But the key is to be able to keep cool under pressure. That's what all the world's best foosball players have in common – the ability to keep a clear and calm head, even when the game looks fast and frantic to an onlooker."

Back home in Bristol, Joe's success in France has made him something of a celebrity on the local foosball scene.

"It's been great," he says. "I've become the person that players ask for advice, and I'm happy to help because just a couple of years ago, I was a beginner myself."

The victory in Nantes has also made a difference to Joe's world ranking.

"It means that I've gone up from semi-pro to pro status on the American scene, which is already making a difference.

"I'm off to Las Vegas for a tournament next month – and because it's the States, it comes complete with prize money.

"You would never make an absolute fortune from the pro tournaments, but some have prizes of up to $10,000 – which would be nice."

It wouldn't be the first time Joe has made a quick buck out of his foosball talent. "I have to admit, I have hustled a few people in pubs. You can always say 'I bet I can beat you at table football'," he laughs.

"It's always good for an easy fiver."

For more information on getting involved with foosball visit www.britfoos.com. The Great Britain team is looking for sponsorship for next year's event. Any companies interested should visit www.foos4fun.co.uk for more details. The world championship finals is broadcast on Eurosport 2 on March 5, at 7pm.