England eLions remain in a strong qualification position after Play In 2

England’s eLions remain in a strong position after FIFAe Nations Play-In Week 2 as they look to book their place at this summer’s FIFAe Nations Cup.

On Thursday and Friday, England’s official esports team, the eLions, competed in Week 2 of the three FIFAe Nations Play-Ins, with XL Tom (Tom Leese), Tekkz (Donovan Hunt) and EthxnH (Ethan Higgins) selected.

The Play-Ins see England compete against four other nations over the two days in Europe’s Conference 2 Divison 1, with the bottom two relegated to Division 2.

Each week (Play-In), the points reset to zero in each division and nations are awarded consistency points based on their finishing position after day two of a Play-In.

Once Week 3 of the Play-Ins is completed, the consistency points gained over all three weeks are totalled, with the top two nations from Division 1 of each conference progressing to the FIFAe Nations Playoffs. 

The Playoffs will be held online in May, with nations who finished third and lower in Division 1 of their conference taking part in an online qualifier in April to give them the chance to reach the Playoffs via a secondary route. 

The ultimate goal is to be one of the 24 nations who reach the FIFAe Nations Cup 2023 this summer.

During Week 1 of the Play-Ins in December, England started strong, with seven wins, one draw and zero losses accrued against Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta, and the Netherlands. 

This saw England top the group for Week 1 on 22 points, seven clear of the Netherlands in second place, meaning Zac Moore’s side earned 300 consistency points towards their total for Playoffs qualification after Week 3 in March. 

During Week 2, eLions’ Tekkz and EthxnH finished day one with a mix of results. 

After starting with a convincing 6-2 victory over Cyprus, England were pinned back in game two and lost 3-2 to a 90th-minute Malta goal. 

England’s mixed start took another turn when they were hampered by an early red card in game three against the Netherlands. However, Tekkz and EthxnH were able to channel their experience and see the game out as a 1-1 draw. 

Day one then finished strong with a 4-1 win against the Republic of Ireland, meaning England were sitting third in the group heading into Friday’s action.

Day 2 of FIFAe Nations Play-In Week 2 saw eLions’ XL Tom and EthxnH take it to the competition! 

A 2-0 win against Cyprus was quickly followed by a 3-0 victory against Malta. 

Game three posed a tricky match-up and delivered England’s second loss of the week, a 2-0 defeat against in-form Netherlands, who were to finish top of the group. 

XL Tom and EthxnH finished the week strong though with a 5-0 victory against the Republic of Ireland and ended the day with three wins and one loss. 

It meant Week 2 concluded with England sitting in second place in Division 1 of their conference, six points behind first-place Netherlands. 

With a second-place finish in Week 2 of FIFAe Nations Play-Ins, England gained 240 more consistency points. 

With a collective 540 consistency points, England sit joint first in Conference 2 Division 1, equal on points with the Netherlands. 

The final week of FIFAe Nations Play-Ins is scheduled Thursday 2 and Friday 3 March, where England will look to cement their place in the FIFAe Nations Play Offs occurring in April. 

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.

You can also 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.