Ukrainian esports athlete Andriy “CIG_ST92_UA” Shakalov won Group G of the UEFA eEuro 2024 electronic football championship qualifying stage and secured one of the eight spots for the European championship, which will take place this summer in Germany. This information was reported by the Ukrainian Football Association.
The qualifying stage of the European championship took place from March 16 to 17. Players competed in a 1vs1 format in the FC 24 football simulator on the PS5 platform. 51 winners of national qualifiers from European countries participated in the qualification, including Andriy Shakalov, who emerged as the strongest in the Ukrainian national team selection for FC 24.
As a result of the draw, Ukraine was placed in Group G, where their opponents were representatives from Belgium, Sweden, Finland, Northern Ireland, Wales, the Faroe Islands, and Kosovo.
Over the course of two days, the Ukrainian player played one match against each opponent. Each match consisted of two games (home and away), and the final result was determined by the total score of these games. In the event of a draw, players played a third game following the “golden goal” rule, where the first goal scored would determine the winner.
Andriy Shakalov started the qualification with a decisive victory over a representative from the Faroe Islands with a score of 11:2 (5:2, 6:0). In the next match against a player from Wales, the Ukrainian player faced a draw in both games (4:4, 3:3), and only the golden goal brought victory to his opponent.
The first day of competition ended for the esports athlete with a resounding victory over a representative from Sweden with a score of 9:3 (4:1, 5:2), as well as a win against a player from Finland with a score of 8:7 (5:4, 3:3).
The main match of the second day was the showdown against a representative from Belgium for the first place in the group. Both games ended in a draw (2:2, 2:2), and only the golden goal from the Ukrainian player brought him victory.
With victories of 9:5 (3:4, 6:1) over a representative from Northern Ireland and 8:4 (7:1, 1:3) over a player from Kosovo, Andriy Shakalov concluded the group stage in Group G with 18 points. In a tie with the Belgian player, his victory in the direct encounter allowed him to take first place and qualify for UEFA eEuro 2024.
Source: The Gaze