UEFA has partnered with video game publisher EA Sports to launch the eChampions League, which will be played on FIFA 19 and taking place for the first time in 2019.
First eSports Champions League Final To Be Played The Day Ahead of UEFA Champions League Final
The tournament will be exclusive to PlayStation 4 players and will feature a prize pool of $280K. With $100K given out to the winner, this is likely to be the second highest total prize pool of any FIFA competition next year, next to the eWorld Cup. The eChampions League competition is also an official qualifier event for the EA Sports FIFA 19 Global Series.
In order to qualify for the eSports Champions League, gamers will have to compete in a series of online knockout events, with the top 64 players going forward to a live qualifying event. The eChampions League Final will take place in Madrid on 31st May, the day before the real Champions League final in the Wanda Metropolitano stadium.
A series of online qualifiers and a knockout tournament will decide the eight finalists, who will then travel to Madrid to compete on May 31, a day before the Champions League final takes place in the same city. In a twist to the usual FIFA tournament rules, the finalists will have to create Ultimate Team squads, using a certain number of real-life soccer players who played in the Champions League Group Stages this year.
The eChampions League tournament is an addition of EA Sports UEFA partnership. Previously, Konami held the exclusive rights to the Champions League and Europa League for the Pro Evolution Soccer franchise, and also ran its own esports competition in partnership with UEFA.
The eChampions League follows on the ePremier League, eMLS, and eSuperliga tournaments, which are all eSports competition licensed by a official soccer administrative body.
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