Mark Zakhary - aka Mark11 - has taken the esports world by storm since making his elite-level debut in the summer of 2022. The Australian teenager came from nowhere to finish second in the FIFA 22 Global Series Team of the Season Cup last May, dominating the Oceania Global Series Qualifiers thereafter.

However, it was in 2023 that the 19-year-old really made his mark, finishing runner-up in the 2023 eWorld Cup. His defeat in the final was a cruel one to take, as Mark11 lost on penalties to ManuBachoore, a result that was accompanied by controversy as his controller inputs could be seen on the big screen – although Bachoore is said to have not seen it. Mark11 admitted: "Millions of people can see where I'm shooting, I honestly didn't know what I was doing at that time."

It’s a rarity for the FUTWIZ player to not be in control, as he was the E-League winner in 2021 and 2023 – drawing the first leg before earning a massive 5-0 win in the second leg of the latter - in addition to being champion in FGS 1, 2, and 3 last season, and achieving the aforementioned runner-up placing in TOTS Cup in 2022. All of that before he has even turned 20.

Having just joined FUTWIZ for the 2023-24 campaign, last season's number one-ranked Oceania player in the Global Series has everything at his disposal to go even better next time around and win his first world title. His new team, based in the UK, most recently reached the final of the 2023 eClub World Cup, ultimately losing 3-2 to German outfit RBLZ. They'll be hoping the outcome will be a whole lot different next year with Mark11 now on board.

While the Aussie got off to a slow start in the FC Pro Open and ultimately finished bottom of Group A, there was a reminder that he can compete with the very best when he beat Umut in the final match of the group stage.