FIFA gamers from across the country will have the chance to represent England in the 2021 FIFAe Nations Cup when the ‘ELIONS: THE ELIMINATOR’ tournament takes place in January.
Currently the eLions squad consists of two players, Hashtag Tom and Fnatic Tekkz, who were the top-ranked English players on FIFA 20. But the tournament will see the eLions representatives increased to four for this season.
Tom and Tekkz will be two of the eight players already confirmed for the 16-player ELIONS: THE ELIMINATOR event on 12 and 12 February, broadcast live on the England Twitch channel.
They will be joined by the six players who qualified for the ‘Beat the eLions’ tournament that was due to take place earlier this year but was cancelled due to COVID19.
They are Gorilla, Harry Hesketh, Lyricz, Fully, Ethan Higgins and Manchester City gamer Ryan Pessoa. Eight further spots will be available through an online qualifier which will take place across 13 and 14 January with the top four players on each console (XBox and PS4) making it through to the live broadcast tournament. This will be a straight knockout format, meaning that players need to win all their games to earn a place in the squad.
The top four players, two on each console, will then be announced as the new eLions squad and will have a chance of representing England at the 2021 FIFAe Nations Cup which is scheduled for later in 2021.
And English FIFA streamer ShaunaGames is encouraging more females to get involved in this year’s qualifiers.
“There's been a lot of focus on increasing female participation across sports in general over the past few years and I myself as a FIFA streamer would love to see more female gamers involved in esports at the top level, so I'm hoping to see more sign ups from girls this year.”
Current eLion, Tom Leese (Hashtag Tom) added: “I've really enjoyed my time so far as an eLion and it’s such an hour to represent England.
"It was disappointing that this year’s eNations event was cancelled due to COVID, I felt that myself and Tekkz had a great chance of bringing home the trophy because we were both in great form"I'd love to retain my place and play for England in the 2021 FIFAe Nations and I'm looking forward to battling it out with the other competitors in January.
Donovan Hunt (Fnatic Tekkz) said: “It’s been a great experience partnering up with Tom for England but it’s good to hear that the squad is expanding too. Hopefully, I can continue to be a part of it.”
FIFA players from across the country, aged 16 and over can register their interest to take part and play for their place in the tournament*, with a chance to challenge the current eLions for their positions in the squad, Hashtag Tom (PS4) and Fnatic Tekkz (Xbox).
For a more detailed breakdown of the qualifiers, tournament and confirmed players you can watch the ELIONS: THE ELIMINATOR Talk Show on the England Twitch channel in association with LG.
FIFA commentators and England gaming ambassadors Brandon Smith and Richard Buckley chatted with Tom, Tekkz, Gorilla, Fully and Ethan as well as giving away LG Ultra Gear gaming monitors before Tom and Tekkz went head-to-head in an eLions Challenge.
