England’s eLions kick off their FIFAe Nations Play-In campaign in style
eLions beat Hungary, Czech Republic, Netherlands and Malta during Play-In 1 to top their group
England’s official esports team enjoyed an almost faultless start to their FIFAe Nations Series 2023 as the eLions topped their division in Play-In 1.
The eLions won seven of their eight matches over the course of Thursday and Friday to top Europe’s Conference 2 Division 1.
It meant England's official esports team secured the maximum 300 consistency points available after Play-In 1, with two more to come in late-January and early March.
The match formats are 2v2 and teams are able to select different players from their four-man squad for each match.
In Thursday's four matches, it was XL Tom and MHaywxrd who secured wins over Hungary (2-1), Czech Republic (5-2) and Malta (5-1) as well as a 1-1 draw with one of the world's best teams, the Netherlands.
Then on Friday, Tekkz and new eLion Stingray enjoyed a clean sweep with victories against all four sides in the second round of matches.
As well as earning consistency ranking points, the results in Play-Ins determine which two teams will be relegated to Division 2, which on this occasion were Czech Republic and Hungary.
Tekkz & Rice v Tom & Mount
England stars Declan Rice & Mason Mount face off in a game of 2v2 on Fifa 22 with Tekkz and XL Tom but who will come out on top?
The world is divided into five regions and in Europe there are four conferences, each with two divisions where teams can be promoted and relegated.
After the three Play-Ins, the top two will progress to the FIFAe Nations Playoffs, with the final slots secured via the FIFAe Nations Online Qualifiers in April, when teams who are competing in the competition for the first time will face those who initially missed out.
The Playoffs will then determine the 24 nations who will feature at the FIFAe Nations Cup 2023 next summer.
You can follow all of the eLions action on our new Twitter account @EnglandGaming and learn more about the new coach Zac Moore and the five-man squad here.
England's Play-In 2 will take place between January 26-27 and you can watch all of the Play-Ins live or after the event via England’s Twitch channel (twitch.tv/England), which can be accessed by clicking here.
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England’s Play-In 1 results in full
Thursday 15 December
England 2-1 Hungary (4pm)
Czech Republic 2-5 England (4.30pm)
Netherlands 1-1 England (5pm)
England 5-1 Malta (6.10pm)
Friday 16 December
Hungary 0-2 England (4pm)
England 2-0 Czech Republic (4.30pm)
England 1-0 Netherlands (5pm)
Malta 3-4 England (6.10pm)
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