The FIFA Ultimate Team Championship Series Americas Regional Finals left the sunny beaches of Miami to resume in the mountainous landscape of Vancouver, Canada on April 22.
The top 32 FIFA competitors from North, Central and South America will converge in the Canadian city with players coming from Colombia, Brazil, Mexico and the United States. The players will be playing for more than just bragging rights as there is $30,000 USD on the line and a chance to secure a spot at Ultimate Team Championship in Berlin.
In Season 1 it was South American competitors who dominated the tournament. With a heavy contingent of players from the USA, will this be the time for the Americans to shine? Here's a list of five PS4 competitors you need to watch out for on April 22.
Christopher “didychrislito” Holly made his live event competitive debut at the Season 1 Regional Final in Miami. His excellent online form during the November qualifier, which earned him 151 wins and only 9 losses, pegged the New Yorker as a favourite. In Miami, didychrislito put together a decent outing and ended up just one win away from securing his ticket to the FIFA Ultimate Team Championship in Berlin.
Since then, didychrislito has become the first FIFA competitor to join an MLS club when New York City FC announced his signing just weeks before the Season 2 Regional Final in Vancouver.
Holly will have his first opportunity to represent his new club in Vancouver. Will he be able to take the extra step and book his trip to the Ultimate Team Championship in Berlin?
This Colombian competitor comes to Vancouver with a plethora of experience in the competitive space. After competing for the first time back in 2010 at the Liga Interactiva Postobon, and reaching the group stage in the FIFA Interactive World Cup in 2013, Altair joined eSports team Club de Futbol Interactivo.
In the Season 1 Americas Regional Final in Miami, Altair_CFI's teammate Javier “Janoz_CFI” Muñoz reached the Playstation 4 division final and booked his trip to Berlin. Will Altair be able to emulate his compatriot in Vancouver?
John “xbLeU” Garcia surprised many during his qualification campaign in the Weekend League leaderboard back in November. With 153 wins and just seven losses, the Stockton, California native secured his spot in the Miami Regional Final of the 2017 FIFA Ultimate Team Championship Series with a first-place ranking.
His performance in the Season 1 Regional Final was not one that left xbLeU happy. With one win and two losses, Garcia was unable to progress to the knockout rounds of the tournament.
In January, xbLeU once again demonstrated that he has the skills to compete with the best players in the region by qualifying for the Season 2 Americas Regional Final in Vancouver. The question remains though – wil xbLeU use his experience in Miami as motivation to take his performance to the next level on Canadian soil?
A severe ankle injury almost prevented John "JKO1707" Oliveira from helping his team win the state championship on the real pitch. However, JKO1707 put his hard work and resilience to test and was able to come back just in time to be on the bench and make an impact for his team in the big match.
That same hard work and resilience allowed the New Jersey native to have a strong FIFA competitive debut back in February at the Season 1 Regional Final in Miami. With two wins and one draw, JKO1707 topped his group and progressed to the knockout stages of the competition.
After winning 2 matches and tying one, he came out on top of his PlayStation 4 group. But once in the knockout stages, JKO1707 finished his participation in the lower bracket quarterfinals, succumbing against heavy favourite Matheus "Mazuco786" Mazuco.
JKO1707 will have another shot at achieving FIFA glory as he prepares to compete in the Season 2 Americas Regional Final after qualifying as the second best player in the Americas region with 113 wins and 7 losses. Will his work ethic, resilience and dedication to the game push him to the next level and translate to big stage success?
Don't forget to check out all the action live from Vancouver on April 22 at 8:45 a.m. PST / 5:45 p.m. CET, right here at FUTchampions.com/Live.
