Welcome to the EA SPORTS™ FIFA 19 Global Series! As we previewed earlier this week in our announcement detailing our switch to competition leaderboards based on EA SPORTS FIFA 19 Global Series Points, we are going to have more events and different types of events in the FIFA 19 Global Series than in the past. Today, we’d like to walk you through the different types of events that we’ll have this season and highlight key dates to keep in mind over the next few months as we kick-off Online Qualification for FUT Champions Cups and Licensed Qualifying Events.
Event Categories
This year, we have:
FUT Champions Cups
Those who competed in the FIFA 18 Global Series will be familiar with our largest regular season tournaments, the FUT Champions Cups. They’re back this year and there are three times as many! Yes, we will have a FUT Champions Cup every month from November to April for a total of six events. With the largest share of EA SPORTS FIFA 19 Global Series Points up for grabs, you’ll want to make sure you get FUT Champions Verified and qualify for these events. Each of these events will have a minimum of 32 players per platform.
FIFA Majors
Returning to the FIFA 19 Global Series is the FIFA eClub World Cup, this tournament gathers the top football club and endemic FIFA teams. New in 2019 will be the FIFA eNations Cup. More details about these events will be revealed as we get closer to the tournaments.
Licensed Qualifying Events
In addition to FUT Champions Cups, the FIFA 19 Global Series will offer seven Licensed Qualifying Events that will be of a smaller scale but offering even more chances to play. Similar to FUT Champions Cups, each of these tournaments will have online qualifiers so that eligible players from around the world can earn their spot to compete. Licensed Qualifying Events (LQEs) will range from 16 to 32 players per platform per tournament and will have the same global Qualification system as our FUT Champions Cups.
Official League Partners
As in previous years, we’ve partnered up with football leagues from around the world to offer a very unique blend of real world football on the virtual pitch. Official League Partners will include but are not limited to the Bundesliga, Eredivisie, La Liga, Ligue 1, Major League Soccer, and the Premier League. Players competing in these events will receive points as part of the FIFA 19 Global Series.
Virtuelle Bundesliga, eDivisie, Virtual La Liga esports, eLigue 1, eMLS, ePL Official League Qualifiers
Other Official League Qualifiers
We are excited to announce additional leagues soon and look forward to bringing you more details on each league’s structure as we go through the season! Leagues may have country or territory restrictions which will be announced by each league individually. Competitors will not need to be FUT Champions Verified in-order to play in leagues, but those who are not both Registered and FUT Champions Verified will be ineligible to earn points.
PlayStation 4 Country Tournaments
Sony will run tournaments in countries around the world as part of the FIFA 19 Global Series. These events may have country or region restrictions and will be limited to the PlayStation 4. More details will be revealed by Sony at a later time.
FUT Champions Weekend League
Though FUT Champions will not offer direct qualification to tournaments any longer, it’s still an important part of the competitive calendar! Once you’re both Registered and FUT Champions Verified, you will be able to earn points from every subsequent Weekend League from being FUT Champions Verified between November to April.
Playoffs
The FIFA 19 Global Series Playoffs will be open to the top 60 players on the PlayStation 4 and top 60 players on the Xbox One leaderboards. They will be joined by the top 8 eligible FIFA Online 4 players. This will be the players’ last chance to earn EA SPORTS FIFA 19 Global Series Points that could grant them qualification to the FIFA eWorld Cup 2019. This means that unlike last year, the top 16 players placed in the Playoffs will not have an automatic slot in the eWorld Cup. Your performance throughout the competitive season will play an important part in allowing someone with a strong season to reach the FIFA eWorld Cup with a Top 32 or even Top 64 finish in the leaderboard!
Leaderboard
The FIFA Global Series leaderboard will be available on the FIFA.GG website starting on November 9th, 2018.
Schedule
As you can tell, it’s going to be a fun season with many opportunities to play in head-to-head competition every month! These are the dates you’ll want to remember for the remainder of the 2018 calendar year:
Online Qualifiers
Qualifiers in October 2018
Qualifiers in November 2018
Qualifiers in December 2018
Online Qualifiers
All online qualifiers for live events happening from November to May will take place on Battlefy. Remember, to compete in these online qualifiers you need to be both registered for the FIFA 19 Global Series and FUT Champions Verified. Registration is now open and will close on October 31st, 2018 at 11:59PM Pacific Time! Once you’re registered and have earned 27 wins or more in a single FUT Champions Weekend League, you will start to receive emails inviting you to compete in every online qualifier.
Each live tournament will have a separate online qualifier for North America; South America; Europe, Middle East, & Africa; and Asia Pacific. Based on the location of the live event, a number of seats at the live event will be allocated for each region and communicated out beforehand.
Online qualifiers will use a Swiss to Single Elimination format similar to the FIFA 18 Global Series live events.
Looking Forward
We still have more to announce in the coming weeks including a new event in the circuit that should be something really special. Additionally, as the team expands and commits to stronger communication, we have two new faces you’re likely to be seeing often at tournaments and online!
Aleirri is our new Player Engagement Manager. You will hear a lot from her as she acts as the link between the FIFA Competitive Gaming Team and our growing player base.
Rushan is our new League Operations Manager. He’ll make sure events are running smoothly and cementing the foundation for a strong continuing FIFA competitive scene.
FAQ
Will players have to fund transport to 3rd Party events?
EA is working with Licensed Qualifying Events (LQE) and 3rd Party FUT Champions Cup Live Event Sponsors to provide funding for invited and eligible player travel to FUT Champions Cups and LQE events.
Can I share my account with another player or have another player earn FUT Champions Verified status for me?
Account sharing of any kind is strictly against the rules and may lead to a full disqualification from the FIFA 19 Global Series. By both registering and becoming FUT Champions verified, we are expecting competitors to uphold a high standard of behavior in-game and at Live Events. By registering on FUTChampions.com, you are agreeing to a higher level of monitoring of your account.
In the last announcement it said that players 'may be invited' from online competition, does this mean you could place highly but a player could be chosen above you?
No, but we must confirm all players are eligible to compete before being invited and additionally have passed our security check process before being invited from Online Qualification to a Live Event.
Will connections between playersbe bad if we play people from different countries or continents?
There may be connection issues as is inherent in any Online Qualification system. We will invite competitors to specific regional Online Qualification Tournaments. We also wanted to make sure that qualification didn’t rely on the results of a single Match, which is why we are using Swiss style for online competition. We will be monitoring the qualification process throughout the year and may make adjustment to regions based on that feedback.
Do I only have until October 31st to get FUT Champions Verified?
No, players may get 27 wins and become FUT Champions Verified during any weekend league until the end of April, 2019. Players only need to become FUT Champions Verified a single time, once they become FUT Champions verified will they be invited to online qualifying tournaments and be eligible to earn Points. Having said that, In order to be eligible to become FUT Champions Verified you must register before October 31, 2018 at www.futchampions.com/register
How will I appear in the leaderboard?
Your name on the leaderboard will be your EA Account Name you register with on FUTChampions.com
*Eligibility restrictions apply. Not all platforms are supported for qualification. See Official Rules for details. Final terms and structure subject to change.