Ipswich Town are in pre-season action today as they take part in the Interwetten Cup in Meppen.

Four teams, four 45-minute games, one winner.

That's the Interwetten Cup in a nutshell.

Hosts SV Meppen run a tournament (in this case sponsored by a betting company) every summer, with the Blues, Fortuna Dusseldorf and FC Utrecht joining them for this year's version.

Ipswich take on old friends Fortuna in the first game of the day (1pm UK time), with Meppen and Utrecht playing in the second semi-final an hour later.

Then there's a third-place play-off between the two losing semi-finalists (3pm) before the grand final, kicking off at (4pm).

If the scores are level at the end of any of the 45-minute games then they will be decided by a penalty shoot-out.

Pre-season tournaments are common-place in Germany, with many taking this same 'blitz' format.

Ipswich boss Paul Lambert had organised for Stoke to be involved in last season's event, with the Potters still competing in a three-team tournament alongside Meppen and Hamburg after his departure in the wake of relegation.

"I played in it when I first signed for Dortmund, so for me it's not new," Lambert said of the format.

"For you guys it's new but for me it's not.

"For the team it's maybe new, 45 and 45 in my book I think is 90, so it's a game."