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eChampions League Knockout Stage preview: What to look out for

The eChampions League Knockout Stage gets under way at London's Here East Theatre on 22 April.

eChampions League 2023: Who will emerge victorious?

The best 32 players from the group stage are facing off to earn a place at the eChampions League final in Istanbul on June 7.

While the Swiss format employed in the Group Stage cut the field from 64 to 32, the double elimination format used in the Knockout Stage ensures that once a player loses two two-legged matches, they go home.

The basics

All 32 competitors have been seeded in the first round, with the winners progressing to the upper bracket. The remaining players will be drawn against one another in the lower bracket, which will cut the field from 32 to 24 by the end of Day 1.

The 32 knockout-stage competitors have their sights set on lifting the trophy in Istanbul this summer
The 32 knockout-stage competitors have their sights set on lifting the trophy in Istanbul this summerUEFA

Winners in the upper bracket will advance to the upper bracket finals, with players who emerge undefeated after three matches at the end of Day 1 advancing to the Finals in Istanbul.

The equation is simple on Day 2: defeat means elimination. Three rounds of matches will determine which four players will join Saturday's victors in Istanbul.

The brackets will play out until only eight players remain, with the two-day event being streamed live on 22 and 23 April from 16:00 CET on UEFA YouTube.com/UEFA, EASPORTS FIFA Twitch.TV & UEFA Champions League TikTok, as well as broadcast by several UCL media partners.

eChampions League 2022 Finals round-up

Key players to watch out for

Anders Vejrgang is a special EA SPORTS FIFA player. Two years after turning heads with his world record 535-match unbeaten streak in FUT Champions Weekend League, the Dane is making his mark on the professional scene, having already won the Virtual Bundesliga Club Championship for Leipzig alongside team-mate Umut Gültekin and helped Denmark reach the quarter-finals of the FIFAe Nations Cup in 2022.

The 17-year-old enhanced his reputation with a dazzling display in the eChampions League Group Stage, his first major solo event. Vejrgang registered seven wins, three draws, and 32 goals across his five two-legged matches to top Group B and claim a prime seeding heading into the Knockout Stage. He also scored six or more goals in four of his five matches.

eChampions League 2023 Group stage review

Only Jacob "NiKSNEB" Benskin outscored the Dane, the Team FUTWIZ player finding the back of the net 35 times – including a 10-3 aggregate win to eliminate last season's finalist Matias Bonnano in the final round of matches.

Vejrgang will open his campaign against Team Gullit's Dani Visser, an experienced player on the EA SPORTS FIFA scene.

Despite some high-profile exits in the Group Stage, the field remains stacked with top EA SPORTS FIFA talent, including last year's winner Nicolas "nicolas99fc" Villalba and Leipzig team-mate Umut, the reigning FIFAe World Cup champion.

Guild Esports' Villalba, who lost to Umut in the FIFAe World Cup final on penalties, will open against Italy's "DaniPitbull" of DSYRE, one of the three players to hold Vejrgang to a draw in the first leg of their Group Stage clash.

For Umut, the direct path to Istanbul looks tricky, with Fouad "iamrafasou" Fares of ESTAC Esports in the first round and either Donovan "Tekkz" Hunt, the eChampions League Invitational champion, or Oliver "Oliboli" Uttgren, a former eChampions League semi-finalist, awaiting the winner in the second round.

Team Gullit's EmreYilmaz – last year's FIFAe World Cup semi-finalist who, like Vejrgang, went unbeaten through five matches to top Group A in the Group Stage – will resume his campaign against Dylan "DullenMIKE" Neuhausen of FOKUS at the top of the Knockout Stage draw.

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