Site icon Africa Global Village

Eight remain as race for global glory intensifies

Miguel De Assis Bilhar of AS Roma team celebrates

And then there were eight. Day Two at the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020™ ended with the culmination of the group stage and Round of 16 as the race to be crowned the best club team on EA SPORTS FIFA 20 went up another gear in Milan.

A prize of $40,000 and 2,000 Global Series points await the team who can successfully navigate past heavyweights of the competitive FIFA scene and finish top of Sunday’s podium. Ahead of what promises to be a tantalising finale on Sunday, look back at how the quarter-finals were set in stone.

Watch Day Three live: FIFA.gg | FIFA.com | Facebook | Twitter | Twitch | YouTube

Day Two at the FIFA eClub World Cup
Diogo Mendes of Sporting CP Esports celebrates 
Haroun Yassin and Ramy Abdelaal of Nasr eSports team celebrate during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020 – Knockout Stage – Day 2
Miguel De Assis Bilhar of AS Roma team celebrates
Spencer Colby Ealing and Thomas Daniel Stokes of NEO team celebrate during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020 – Knockout Stage – Day 2
Christian Spiteri and Alshehri Abdulaziz of Redemption eSports celebrate during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Donovan Hunt and Thomas Leese of Fnatic team react during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Sho Nakashima and Shota Sato of Blue United eFC team celebrate
A general view during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Thomas Leese of Fnatic team competes during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Gabriel Cabrera of Gillette Infinity Esports team competes during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Alexander Shaw and Harry-John Hesketh of Hashtag United team are interviewed during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Haroun Yassin of Nasr eSports team is interviewed by Spencer Owen and Julia Hardy during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
A general view during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020
Mark Terrence Hatcher and Daniel William Charles Gaskin commentate 
A general view during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020 – Day 2
Richard James Buckley and Brandon Sonny Smith commentate during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020 – Day 2
Tassal Rushan and Amine Boughanmi of FaZe Clan team celebrate with their coach during the FIFA eClub World Cup 2020 – Knockout Stage – Day 2
 (L) Daniele Paolucci of Mkers team celebrates

Nail-biting finish to groups

While the likes of Hashtag United, FC Basel 1893 eSports, Fnatic and Complexity Gaming comfortably booked their places in the knockout stages by finishing top of their groups, a number of Round of 16 tickets were decided on the back of nail-biting 2v2 games.

The climax in Group A could not have been more tense with two of the group’s four berths being decided by the final 2v2 encounter. Of the four clubs who battled for those last two places, it was FaZe Clan and Gillette Infinity Esports who emerged happier.

It was an equally pulsating end in Group D, with little to separate three teams chasing two knockout berths going into the final 2v2 encounters. A late, late Sporting CP Esports winner saw the Portuguese side dramatically snatch the final knockouts ticket on goal difference, meaning Manchester City eSports made a surprising group-stage exit.

Adding to Saturday’s shocks was Italy’s Team QLASH, one of the pre-tournament favourites, falling at the first hurdle. It left AS Roma and Mkers as the remaining host nation representatives in the knockout stage.

FIFA eClub World Cup group stage

Ruthless Round of 16

The knockouts kicked off with an exciting, new-look format at the eClub World Cup. Match-ups began as a 1v1 with the top seeds competing on their preferred console, followed by a second game played as a 2v2 affair. With three points being awarded for each win, combined with no goal difference from the Round of 16 onwards, an additional 1v1 would decide the tie if there was nothing to separate teams after two games.

NEO and Fnatic carried their strong group stage showing into the knockouts by sealing their quarter-final places. Fnatic’s ‘Tom’ demonstrated why he has been one of the players of the tournament, recording an emphatic 4-0 win in his 1v1 game. NEO, boasting British veterans ‘Gorilla’ and ‘Stokes’, sent out a message of intent to opponents with their impressive synergy in the 2v2.

Hashtag United, despite going into the Round of 16 as Group A leaders, fell at the hands of NASR eSports in their 2v2 meeting, while Complexity Gaming, Borussia-E-Sports, Ellevens and Sporting Lisbon – the Portuguese side only confirming their place at the tournament on Thursday – advanced to the final eight.

With AS Roma and FaZe Clan locked in a stalemate after two games, ‘SpiderKong’ and ‘Mino’ shouldered the burden of responsibility in the deciding 1v1 game. The Italian side secured passage to the quarter-final with a striking injury-time winner.

Quarter-final line-up confirmed

From 24 to eight, the race for the eClub World Cup is hotting up in Milan with the quarter-finalists confirmed. It sets the scene for a mouth-watering final day of FIFA eSports with formidable and in-form heavyweights battling for global glory.

FIFA eClub World Cup - Quarter-finals

What they said

NEO’s ‘Stokes’

“A lot of people said Gorilla and I wouldn’t work on 2v2 and that it would be a disaster. But we’ve had games here where we’ve been close to flawless and that’s a really good sign going forward.”

Fnatic’s ‘Tom’

“It was a risk [being Fnatic’s first 1v1 pick] because Tekkz is the best player in the world. We thought we’d have Tekkz as our third-leg player, in case it went to a decider. Luckily, we did the job in two games: two clean sheets, lots of goals scored, it was a perfect last 16 game.”

AS Roma’s ‘Roma_Damie’

“’SpiderKong’ is insane at this tournament. He’s winning every game and comes through when it matters. I lost my voice when he scored the winner!”

Follow Day Three

It all comes down to this! Sunday will see the culmination of the eClub World Cup where the No1 club team on competitive EA SPORTS FIFA will be crowned. As usual, we’ll be bringing you a live stream of the entire day, while our Instagram Stories on @FIFAWorldCup will be giving you an access-all-areas feel in Milan.

FacebookTwitterEmailWhatsAppBloggerShare
Exit mobile version