The ePremier League gave many football fans some unexpected excitement over the weekend, as underdogs Norwich City were crowned as champions for 2021/22.
Not only do the team and players get acclaim for winning, but the two pros got an equal split of the £30,000 prize money.
We take a look at all the action which culminated on the last day of the Grand Finals.
Change It Up
This year, the ePremier League saw a change in format for how the finals would be played, with contestants working together for their respective clubs, one on PS5, the other on Xbox, with an aggregate score seeing a team to victory.
With 40 players going head-to-head to become champions, teams had to fight through the group stages of the competition, before battling it out during the knockout rounds, until finally reaching the final.
With a separate team member on each console, the tournament threw up some great matchups, whilst also putting an emphasis on it being a team event.
Due to disruptions from COVID, this is the first in-person ePremier League event since the initial event in 2019, which saw Tekkz take the trophy for Liverpool.
Money Talks
The ePremier League also had an increase in prize money, with £100,000 made available to contestants.
This is split into:
- 1st place - £30,000
- 2nd place - £15,000
- 3rd/4th place - £7,500
- 5th-8th place - £5,000
- 9th-16th place - £2,500
Cold hard cash isn't the only incentive for playing, with three seats up for grabs for the EA SPORTS FIFA 22 Global Series European Playoffs.
The Canaries Fly High
Norwich City, represented by Damien "Damie" Augustyniak and Jack "GoalPoacher_" Wignall, managed to go unbeaten in their run to ePremier League glory.
That was quite a feat, given they were drawn in Group D, which was dubbed the ‘Group of Death’.
However, after topping the group, momentum was with The Canaries, which saw them carry their Saturday form into Sunday, with a 5-2 aggregate victory against Chelsea in the quarter-finals followed up with a 2-1 victory over Leeds United to progress to the Grand Final.
The semi-final win over Leeds was tense, with Damie managing a 0-0 draw against last year’s runner-up Olle “Ollelito” Arbin, before Goalpoacher_ got the 2-1 victory against Mitchell Hayward.
Damie and GoalPoacher_ met Sam "SamBrwster" Brewster and Peace "czohino" Chirwa in the final, with the latter duo representing new boys Brentford.
It was plain sailing for Norwich, as Damie gave a convincing performance on Xbox to take the team into the second leg with a 3-1 lead.
GoalPoacher_ then brought it home with a 2-0 victory on PS5, giving Norwich a 5-1 aggregate scoreline to pick up the trophy on.
Winning Words
Emotions were running high after claiming the title, with Damie saying:
“Words can’t describe how I’m feeling right now. The standard of player this year went up a level, so it feels a bit surreal to call myself an ePremier League Champion. I’m so proud to lift the trophy, for the first ever time, and I’m pleased that the hard work has paid off.”
His teammate, Goalpoacher_, said:
“This is my first ePremier League title and lifting the trophy is a moment that I’ll never forget. It has been a tough tournament, but I feel that Damien and I worked well as a team and, together, managed to progress past any opponent who stood in our way. I was always confident that we’d have a chance, but to go and win the tournament is a dream come true.”
The pair should be very proud of their victory, gaining £15,000 each and a seat in the EA SPORTS FIFA 22 Global Series European Playoffs.
The Brentford players got £7,500 each, with SamBrwster claiming the last seat for the Global Series European Playoffs.