The Sky cameras were rolling as the best FIFA players in the world gathered for the FIFA eClub World Cup which featured a fascinating and refreshing 2v2 format. Every participating football club and esport organisation sent two representatives, one on each console. Each match was a best of three which featured 1v1 matches on each console and a 2v2 on a chosen console used as a tiebreaker.
It was a format that proved popular with both players and spectators, making for a fantastic tournament. To make sure you’re up to date, Goal has listed the five biggest takeaways from the weekend of action.
KiNG eSports live up to their name
Before the tournament started, there was only one duo that everyone considered the favourites. The esport club KiNG managed to create the ultimate pairing, teaming the best Xbox player in the world, Donovan ‘Tekkz’ Hunt, with the best PlayStation player in the world, Nicolas ‘Nicolas99fc’ Villalba.
The duo secured their places on top of the Global Series Rankings by earning another 1,500 points each, as well as a share of $40,000 in prize money. There was no doubt they deserved it as both players won their individuals matches in the final against Dijon.
Nicolas99fc showed why he is nicknamed the ‘iceman’ with two slick goals against Aurelien ‘Moolzn’ Cheron – both coming from fake shots before calmly slotting into the bottom corner.
With that result, a draw would have been enough for KiNG to secure the title but that’s never been Tekkz’s style. The young Englishman oozed class, showboating on the pitch with beautiful passing and exciting skills. Tekkz put five past Nathan ‘Herozia’ Gil with the pick of the bunch being a long move of first-time passes which resulted in a cheeky lobbed pass which was finished off with an exquisite volley.
Team Vitality’s B team is better than their starters
Going into the tournament, Team Vitality was kind enough to offer the services of two of their players to Ligue 1 club Dijon FCO. It was a move that came back to haunt them as Vitality’s chosen team lost to Moolzn and Herozia in Group C, knocking them out of the tournament while Dijon went all the way through to the final.
Of course, this was actually a big win for Vitality as two of their younger players got some stage experience and even some TV time which is great for their exposure. However, most importantly, the duo will have shot up in the Global Series Rankings with 850 points each which could be crucial when trying to qualify for the FIFA eWorld Cup later this year.
Tekkz finally broke his semi-final streak.
While Tekkz has continually impressed and performed well in tournaments, the F2 man won’t have been pleased with his recent results. In his last three tournaments before the eClub World Cup, Tekkz has bowed out in the semi-finals. However, the curse has finally been lifted and for the first time in 2019, the Englishman has lifted a trophy.
Even after just winning the final, Tekkz couldn’t help but mention that he had won his individual game in the semi-final, telling Goal: “Yeah it felt good, in the last few tournaments I’ve lost in the semi-finals. Two of them, I got really unlucky but another one I did deserve. If we lost fair and square then there’s nothing you can do but we managed to play well in the 2v2 and I won my personal 1v1s so I’m very happy.”
It’s a result that will put the rest of the FIFA world on alert as the No.1 ranked player is finding championship form once again.
Loan move controversies
While the tournament proved to be a popular event, the eClub World Cup still had its controversies. The tournament pit the rosters of football and esport clubs against each other to decide the ultimate organisation but some felt that meaning was lost when clubs were allowed to field players from other teams.
In fact, around 41% of the players competing at the finals were not representing their original clubs including all four grand finalists. Some took to Twitter to air their grievances including Fnatic Roma’s team director Colin ‘CoJo’ Johnson who said:
“Blatant insult to all the real teams who have been grinding for years to help build this scene up to what it is like Ajax, Schalke, Wolfsburg, Hashtag. These are the two best players in the world no doubt, but I didn’t think that was what this competition was about. Demotivating.”
Is FaZe Tass returning to old form?
After Spencer ‘Gorilla’ Ealing left the organisation, Tassal ‘Tass’ Rushan has been FaZe Clan’s one-man army in FIFA. The former Hashtag United player has been inconsistent in recent times but appeared to capture his old form with free agent Lev ‘xLev’ Vinken by his side.
FaZe went on an incredible run which included a huge victory over Ajax during the quarter-finals in what may have been the most dramatic game of FIFA ever. The series went down to a 2v2 decider and it looked like FaZe would win 2-1 until Ajax popped up with a last minute equaliser.
The game then went into extra time which saw both teams score again, keeping things level. However, disaster struck for FaZe as they gave away a penalty in the dying moments of additional time. Yet, FaZe were able to save the penalty and would go on to win the penalty shootout.
Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be for Tass as he and xLev crashed out of the semis against Dijon but the duo should be proud of their performances. Tass looked particularly strong over the weekend and will be a name to keep an eye on for the remainder of the season.
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