ePremier League Finals begin this weekend with new Group Stages

The Premier League and Electronic Arts Inc. this weekend are launching a new event in the ePremier League calendar, the ePL Finals: Group Stages.

This exciting addition to the ePL competition gives four clubs the opportunity to progress straight to the quarter-final stage and compete for the title on Sunday 24 March. 

This is the first time the ePL Finals have been split across two separate weekends. The Group Stages will see 40 finalists competing, two players per club, with some of the world’s best EA SPORTS FC players taking part along with up-and-coming players who progressed through the Playoff stage.

All 20 clubs will be split into four groups, with each group winner advancing to the finals on Sunday 24 March. The remaining 16 clubs will have another chance to qualify through knockout fixtures on Saturday 23 March.

After registering to represent their favourite club, players competed in a series of online qualification tournaments, with only the best advancing to the Club Playoffs.

Subsequently, each of the 20 Premier League clubs narrowed down the competitors to two players, who will represent them across the two Finals weekends on 20-21 January and 23-24 March.

The format of this year’s Finals will see clubs working collaboratively, with one player competing per console in 1v1 matches against pairings from other clubs.

The prize pool is set at £100,000, with seats available for the winning club in the FC Pro World Championships.  

'Giving it everything we've got'

Leading players taking part include former ePL Champions Donovan "Tekkz" Hunt, representing Manchester City for the first time, and Tom Leese, playing on behalf of Tottenham Hotspur.

Former ePL winners Jack "GoalPoacher" Wignall (Nottingham Forest) and Shaun "Shellzz" Springette (Crystal Palace) are also competing, along with 2022/23 Spanish champion Matias Bonanno (Man City), making his debut in ePL.

"Tekkz" said: "I'm buzzing to get into the main action of the ePremier League this weekend and I’m really looking forward to representing Manchester City alongside Bonanno.

"This tournament has become one of the biggest events in the FC Pro calendar, so getting a shot to go straight to Championship Sunday is huge for us. 

“There are some great players taking part, so I know it's not going to be easy, but we're ready to take our chance. We’ll be giving it everything we’ve got.”

How to follow the action

Fans across the world can watch across Premier League's YouTube channel from around 16:00 GMT Saturday. The action will also be streamed across the EA SPORTS FC Twitch channel.

Premier League Chief Commercial Officer Will Brass said: “The ePremier League has continued to grow year-on-year since the tournament began six years ago and we are excited to add a new format to this season’s Finals.

“The Group Stages bring our 40 finalists together in a competitive format earlier than in previous years and I am sure there will be plenty of drama as they look to secure a place at the quarter-final stage.

"This also gives supporters worldwide even more opportunities to watch world-class EA SPORTS FC 24 action. Good luck to all of the players!” 

Sam Turkbas, FC Pro Commissioner at EA SPORTS, added: "We are delighted to introduce the Group Stages to the ePremier League calendar this year. It has been a transformational year for our esports scene with the launch of FC Pro, so naturally we’re always looking at ways we can enhance one of our biggest competitions and make it entertaining for Premier League, football and FC Pro fans.

“The Group Stages weekend makes the competition up the stakes and excitement, with a fast-track ticket to Championship Sunday of the Grand Finals! We can’t wait to watch the action unfold!"

For more information visit e.premierleague.com.