The European FIFA 22 crown will be awarded at the eChampions League final in Stockholm on Friday. Half of the field of participants consists of German professionals.
1025 eligible players had started their journey towards the grand eChampions League Final in December. Only eight of them will actually make their way to Stockholm for a second time, where the winner of the virtual top division in FIFA 22 will be crowned on Friday in the Space Arena.
Once again, four of the eight finalists are German professionals: Umut ‘Umut’ Gültekin of RB Leipzig, Ali ‘PredatorFIFA’ Oskoui Rad of SV Werder Bremen, Deniel ‘Denii_10’ Mutic of 1. FC Heidenheim and the big surprise Noah-Laurin ‘Snakez’ Bartsch of VfL Bochum are going for the eChampions League title.
‘Snakez’ from elimination to grand final
The story of ‘Snakez’ is a special one: The young player from Bochum had only made it to the knockout stage in the first place by virtue of the exclusion of Russian players from the FIFA 22 Global Series (FGS) via a backlog procedure. Now he is in the final, where he is once again considered a big underdog.
The 19-year-old suffered a 4-1 defeat to Argentina’s Nicolas ‘Nicolas99FC’ Villalba in the final round before four wins in the lower bracket secured his place in the final. A triumph would see ‘Snakez’ succeed Oliver ‘OliverPN’ Provstgaard Nielsen.
Field of contenders with handsome collection of titles
The hitherto largely unknown Dane had unexpectedly secured the eChampions League title in FIFA 21 last year, and Bartsch’s win would be a sensation of similar proportions. The final hurdle is high, however, because not only the competition among the countrymen is gigantic.
With the aforementioned ‘Nicolas99FC’, Donovan ‘Tekkz’ Hunt, Matias ‘matiasbonanno99’ Bonanno and Roee ‘Feldman’ Feldman, the second half of the field of participants is top-class. German champions, FIFAe Club World Cup winners, FGS Masters Cup winners and TOTS Cup winners unite the final.
‘Tekkz’: “Must be in absolute top form “
The conclusion of the eChampions League is set to be the first major highlight of the FIFA 22 season. At the same time, it serves as an appetiser for the Champions League final on the real pitch between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid a day later.
“It’s one of the most important tournaments in the FIFA Global Series calendar, so I can’t wait for kick-off. We’ve come a long way, the first qualifier was back in December. If I want to win the title, I have to be at my best,” said ‘Tekkz’ ahead of the tournament.
280,000 US dollars will be paid out
In addition to the glory of the eChampions League title, the eight finalists will also compete for a total of 280,000 US dollars in prize money – with the winner taking home 75,000 US dollars alone. In addition, the top three players will be rewarded with a place in the play-offs for the FIFAe World Cup 2022.
During the supporting programme, a series of show matches will provide entertainment. Featuring former world-class footballers: Ashley Cole, Kaka, Henrik Larsson and Fernando Morientes will dare to take on the controllers. The final of this mini-tournament will be broadcast directly before the kick-off of the eChampions League Grand Final.
Speaking of broadcasting: The first games of the double-elimination bracket will start at 1.15pm on Friday, and the final round can be watched live on the EA SPORTS FIFA Twitch channel and on UEFA’s YouTube channel. Bonuses will be made available to viewers with linked EA and Twitch accounts.
