The premiere of the IIHF eWorld Championship in NHL 22 is about to enter its first tournament phase: 22 countries are looking for their national teams for the global comparison.
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) is calling followers of virtual ice hockey to global competition. And NHL 22 will once again be the venue for a competitive highlight in the autumn of the season. The IIHF eWorld Championship 2022 is both the start and continuation of the world federation’s commitment to eSports.
In 2020, the IIHF Esports Fan Championship opened this chapter and the title went to the Finnish team. The tournament had been created at the time as a replacement for the cancelled competitions on real ice during the Corona pandemic. Two years later, the successor tournament should mark the bully to regularity.
German Qualifier on 19 June
The IIHF eWorld Championship 2022 will already open on Thursday with the first two national qualifiers. Norway and Switzerland will go in search of the NHL 22 doubles that will represent them on digital ice. 20 other countries will follow afterwards until 29 June, 22 duos will be determined in total.
The German Qualifier will take place on 19 June, Austria will follow on 22 June. All players with a PlayStation 4 or Xbox One version of NHL 22 and the appropriate nationality can register for the respective qualifier – as long as they are at least 16 years old.
Once all the national squads have been determined, the group stage will first be played between the countries on 2 and 3 July. The quarter-finals on 9 and 10 July will then determine the finalists and the winner – the IIHF eWorld Champion 2022 – on 16 and 17 July.
“Different offer for the future “
The “launch of a new eSports programme with different offerings for the future” was announced by IIHF President Luc Tardif during the kick-off of the IIHF eWorld Championship. Fittingly, the world federation has also been featured with initial content in NHL 22 since December, including several women’s national teams and an IIHF stadium.
In addition to the lion’s share of the prize money totalling 10,000 euros, the winning duo will also receive a specially designed IIHF trophy. The action can be followed from the group phase onwards on Twitch, accompanied by content creators Cameron ‘NoSleeves’ Halbert and Alexander ‘BloodyLP’ Blattmann, among others.
