For 16 years now, ever since the cities of Equestria rebelled against Celestia, Canterlot has held the Hunger Games, where ponies between the ages of 6 and 17 are put into an arena to fight to the death. Every year, they pick a different city in Equestria to choose tributes from, and for the 17th annual Hunger Games, that city is Ponyville.
It doesn't matter if the Career Unicorns have a tactical advantage; every pony has to play the game, and here, you can't bend the rules like a board game...