FUT Champions Cup April: Day 1 Recap

With 1,500 Global Series points on the line for each console champion, plus $50,000 USD to be awarded to the cross-console champion, a group of the best FIFA 19 competitors in the world took center stage on Day 1 of the FUT Champions Cup April (the final FCC of the season) at the Gfinity Esports arena in London. The gameplay was world class, but one storyline emerged above all on the first day of the tournament.

A heated rivalry is born

A fierce rivalry bubbled up between two players at the top of the XB1 Global Series Points leaderboards. F2Tekkz (#1 in the world on XB1) and Rogue MsDossary (#2 in the world on XB1 and the FIFA 18 eWorld Cup Champion), exchanged some heated words in separate early-round post-game interviews about their respective status as best in the world. 

Kicking off the stream, MsDossary toughed out a hard fought victory against Klutch by an aggregate score of 4-3. After the match, the Saudi Arabian star was asked by broadcast analyst Spencer Owen if his position as defending World Champion has been somewhat overshadowed this season due to the unprecedented success that F2Tekkz has had (six tournament wins including three FUT Champion Cup victories).

“He deserves it because he's won three FUT Champions Cups,” remarked the reigning eWorld Cup Champ. “I've won one. But I think what matters is the World Championship, and I'm the World Champion. So if he wins all six FUT Champions Cups and I win the World Championship, nobody will know him,” MsDossary said confidently with a smirk.

A few matches later, F2Tekkz easily defeated Lyricz (#12 ranked player in the world on XB1 by an aggregate score of 4-1. After that game, the young superstar clapped back at MsDossary's earlier statements.

“I don't really mind what Dossary says, I'm the best player in the world. I've already beat him twice this year, he's beat me once, so I know I'm best,” F2Tekkz told Owen with a bit of swag. 

But this FUT Champions Cup April Day 1 saga didn't end there. As fate would have it, fans were treated to a marquee matchup between the two FIFA eSports elites to close out Day 1, a perfect scenario to truly let the gameplay do the talking.

Both players were smiling and seemed relaxed before kick-off, but MsDossary, F2Tekkz, and everyone watching knew that bragging rights were at stake. (Both players had already earned berths in the Knockout Stage, so for tournament purposes, the match mattered only for seeding in the next round.)

The match was close through the first leg, as MsDossary had the advantage by a score of 2-1 at the break. But in the second leg, F2Tekkz seemed to lose his edge, and the reigning World Champ imposed his will on his rival, eventually emerging with a 5-1 victory.

And with that, the rivalry that bubbled up at the beginning of the day came full circle, with MsDossary getting the final word. 

Megabit goes undefeated, earns Player of the Day

German powerhouse and Werder esports pro Megabit was the only player of the day to go undefeated in the Swiss round (5-0). He recorded more goals, 29, than any other competitor on Day 1 and pulled off a crucial victory against none other than defending World Champion MsDossary. We'll see if he can ride the wave of momentum into Day 2's XB1 Knockout Stage.

Don't miss any of the FIFA 19 Global Series FUT Champions Cup April presented by PS4. The tournament continues in London on Saturday and Sunday, April 6-7.

Make sure to subscribe to the EA SPORTS FIFA YouTube Channel, Twitch Channel, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook so you don't miss any of the action this season. And follow the @EAFIFAesports Twitter account for the latest competitive FIFA 19 content, news, and event coverage.

-Matt Franciscovich (@MattFranchise on Twitter)

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