Tora Gold stun Lavvek & co.; amke demolishes Sardinho with 6:1!

Brawl Stars and FIFA, two of the three games that ended their qualifiers last week, closed out the first round of the A1 Adria League Season 7 SWISS stage.

Brawl Stars

Our first two matches of the Brawl Stars group stage were played out yesterday. In the first game of the day, we watched a Croatian derby between Tora Gold and NobleElite Red. These two teams already met each other during the qualifiers with NobleElite Red coming out victorious in that match. This time, Tora Gold managed to outperform their rivals and secured the first SWISS win. The match was intense until the very end and went all the way into the fifth map, which saw Tora Gold triumph over the Red squad.

During the duel between Lil Surprise and 09 Gang, the latter had to forfeit because one of their players left the team during the game, and they had no substitutes to replace him. Lil Surprise – the winners of the second qualifiers are now a part of the 1-0 pool, together with team Tora Gold.

 

FIFA21

Just a day after the first Brawl Stars matches concluded, the regional FIFA players stepped into the football courts to win their first matches for this season. Esad “esad1memic” Memić and Armin “arminho0307” Hasanbegović marked the beginning of this season’s group stage. What followed was a close game that saw esad1memic clinch a 3:2 win in the series. arminho was a great opponent, but the season 5 champion scored one more and entered the 1-0 SWISS pool.

Tarik “amke2001” Novo, the winner of the first qualifying cup for this season, faced off against Leon “Sardinho213” Šardi and managed to get a convincing win in the series. After the games concluded, amke had a 6-1 lead against his Slovenian opponent and secured his spot in the 1-0 pool.

 

You can check the FIFA rankings by clicking HERE, and you can get familiar with the current Brawl Stars standings on the following LINK.

CS:GO Groups start tomorrow!

Tomorrow, we will witness the first matches of our CS:GO SWISS stage. Make sure to tune in on our channels and support your favourite teams – starting at 16:00h with Baro and Proka.

CS:GO Schedule 1

 

ONYX and 4glory receive direct CS:GO invites!

HERE WE GO! Our CS:GO teams list is finally completed with our two invited additions – bronze defenders 4glory and the reigning and three-time champions of A1AL – ONYX. The three-time A1 Adria League champions ended the last year with some drastic roster changes. After the last season, Petar “HOLMES” Dimitrijević and David “Dav” Mijanić joined the team in place of Miloš “dEE” Marčeta and Dimitrije “DiMKE” Veljković, but the latter recently announced his reunion with his former teammates. This time around they won’t have to lock horns with their arch rivals Blink, but both 4Glory and Good Game are ready as ever and they will pose a certain threat for the glorious ex-LVLUP roster.

On the other hand, 4glory recently announced the addition of Sergej “IDZUO” Sovilj and dEE to their roster. These two players came in to replace Dejan “Katalic” Koprivica and Nikola “Dragon” Bošković and have already become a valuable asset for the Serbian organization in the season. dEE was part of the roster that won the last three seasons of the League, and on the other side, we have IDZUO, a talented player that will strengthen the overall firepower of the team. 4glory finished the sixth season in third place, and their form shows that they will be able to at least repeat that success in the seventh season.

ONYX and 4Glory will join six more squads that secured their spot via open qualifiers. With that in mind, these teams will participate in the seventh season of A1 Adria League:

FIFA21, Brawl Stars and CS:GO qualifiers finish in style!

With our second A1 Adria League qualifying weekend coming to a close, the Brawl Stars teams and FIFA players that secured a spot from the qualifiers are known. The CS:GO team list is completed and the invited teams will be revealed soon!

Brawl Stars

Some familiar names were seen playing under the Noble Elite Red and BLK tags during the third qualifier. In the quarterfinals, Noble Elite Red bested Crna ruka, while BLK was better than Immortal Balkans. O9 Gang and QSKE advanced to the semis over Wolfs and Red Devils, respectively. The qualifier ended with a Noble Elite Red win. Lavvek’s Red squad was able to outplay DzonDzon and the rest of BLK and earn the biggest amount of points for this qualifier.

Noble Elite Red weren’t any worse in the fourth qualifier either. In this final match, their opponents were Tora Gold who had just eliminated Noble Elite BLK before advancing to the finals. The other teams that ended up in the top 8 were Mayoi, O9 Gang, QSKE, Wolves, and SM Gaming Elite.

FIFA21

Just like Brawl Stars, FIFA’s four-cup qualifying process ended this weekend. During the previous weekend, klaic upset the usual favorites and managed to snatch the grand 100 points. This time, the player that surprised everyone was the Bosnian player Sulja – he beat brstimir in the grand finals and put himself in the top 8 overall rankings.

Sunday was a day for one of NK Osijek‘s new players, esad1memic. The Bosnian player plowed through the competition on his way to the finals, beating his new Osijek teammate, Jasikm in the quarterfinal. FIFAFICO and Ajdin977 were the last two players separating esad1memic from his grand prize and he managed to beat them.

A1 Adria League - Brawl Stars 2 A1 Adria League - FIFA21

CS:GO

Over 60 teams hopped on the servers to fight for the remaining three CS:GO spots. proWince, fullshock, QSKE Gaming, JUJUTSU KAISEN, PORTUGAL, MADNESS, MIX, and VENDETTAS 5 were the teams that entered the closed qualifiers.

The Macedonian-majority PORTUGAL started the closed qualifier with a win over QSKE. MIX were able to outplay VENDETTAS 5, while fullshock defeated proWince. The fourth match of the quarterfinals was a game between DEPRESHNN’s JUJUTSU KAISEN and MADNESS which ended in a victory for the former. PORTUGAL and fullshock won their semifinal matchups and qualified for the seventh A1 Adria League season. MIX bested JUJUTSU KAISEN in the third-place decider and secured the final spot in the league.

A1 Adria League S7 - CS:GO Q#2

 

One step closer to the Group Stage!

The first week of qualifiers is now behind us. Our FIFA players and Brawl Stars teams earned their first points, and in CS:GO, three teams secured their spot in the group stage of the upcoming A1 Adria League season.

Brawl Stars

Two of the four qualifying Brawl Stars cups were played out during the weekend. We were met with a change of pace in the first qualifier. Good Game Gold and Red, the teams that dominated the last season, faced each other in the first round and the Gold players were eliminated. The Red squad didn’t have much better results either, losing to Immortal Balkans, but they managed to snatch 20 points, finishing this qualifier 5-8th.

O9 Gang triumphed in the first cup after beating Mayoi in the finals. Except for these four teams, Wolfs, QSKE Gaming 5M Gaming Elite and Ekipa 69 also won their share of points.

On Sunday, 32 teams entered the Brawling arenas to battle it out and try to qualify for the seventh A1 Adria League season. Good Game Gold and Red did better this time around, but the up-and-comers once again bested them. Lil surprise took the main prize while Wolfs came in second. Good Game Red, Ekipa 69, Crna ruka and Mayoi placed 5-8th and Good Game Gold and O9 Gang finished in the top four.

 

FIFA21

The FIFA qualifiers started off with a massive bang in the second qualifiers. A player from Bosnia and Herzegovina, klaic, bested arminho0307, Sivii7 and finally, esad1memic, to win the second FIFA21 A1 Adria League qualifier. klaic is a player that has played plenty of FIFA in the past, but this is allegedly his first competitive tournament.

The previous cup was won by amke2001. FIFAFICO was unable to defeat him in the finals and only got 70 points. esad1memic ended this qualifier as the third best player, followed by HRVoje-1995. The top 8 was completed by brstimir, xMarjus, Hara and Sardinho213.

 

CS:GO

Around 60 teams signed up for the first CS:GO qualifier. Good Game, INSOMNIA, SKUAK Gaming, Cobalt Esports, Locco Contigo, Onlinerss, MIX and Qske Gaming were the teams that managed to advance do the closed qualifier.

Two great victories against SKUAK Gaming and QSKE placed the Macedonian team Good Game in the League. The second team to follow them were Onliners who had beaten Cobalt Esports and INSOMNIA in the this stage of the qualifying process. In the end, these two sides were joined by Cobalt who outplayed QSKE in the third-place decider.

A1 Adria League Season 7 - CS:GO

The next qualifiers are starting soon. Head out to our Games page, SIGN UP, and become the next regional esports superstar!

Keno, ZTS: “This tournament was stacked and full of surprises!”

Following our great collaboration with Zagreb Tekken Showdown for the recent A1 Gaming Weekend TEKKEN 7, we decided to sit down with one of the community’s founders, Petar “Keno” Koenigsknecht. The interview with Keno has the goal of introducing our community to Zagreb Tekken Showdown and the great work they have been doing for the past two years.

Hey Keno, thanks for agreeing to do this interview. Would you mind introducing Zagreb Tekken Showdown to our fans that aren’t familiar with the job that you are doing? What are your main objectives?

Hey, glad to be here! Zagreb Tekken Showdown is a project that has been organizing offline Tekken tournaments since 2019. We started creating these tournaments because there was a lot of interest in Zagreb concerning the latest Tekken game. Tekken 7 has boomed not only in our country but across the world. Our goal is to incorporate ZTS into Tekken World Tour – the international Tekken league sponsored by Bandai Namco. During these past two years we have managed to build up a strong community of Tekken players. In the beginning, our events were mostly Zagreb-exclusive, but as we made more tournaments, people from all around the country started to visit us.

We want to create a competitive scene in the region so that the players have a place where they can test their skills without having to go abroad.

How do you feel about the current state of TEKKEN 7 in the region? Are there new players trying to go down the competitive road?

We have noticed a big jump in the average skill level during the last year and a half. The difference is even more visible once you check out our 1st tournament and compare it to the last one. Players that visit tournaments have more motivation to get better and since Zagreb has become a hot spot for Tekken, it’s only natural that we are getting exponentially better over time.

Even though it has been some time since we started as a community, we still see new players every time we host an event. One portion of newcomers always tend to start playing competitively. This influences the dynamics of our tournaments and helps others to grow as well.

That being said, Croatia has become almost undisputedly the best country in the Balkans for Tekken. The player base is large, the average skill level is high and we have been dominating the latest Tekken events in the region. Every top 8 sees at least 4 Croatians, in this latest tournament there were 6 of us in the top 8.

How has the COVID-19 pandemic influenced your projects and the FGC community as a whole? As you are primarily focused on LAN tournaments, how has the transition to online play been going for you?

The COVID-19 crisis has put on hold many of our plans for this community. With the LAN tournaments out of the question, the whole international Tekken community has shifted its focus towards online tournaments. We started as an offline tournament organization and didn’t think we would ever do an online event. Online events just lack that atmosphere and adrenaline we were used to. Luckily, some of our Slavonian members have kept the community together by organizing Tekken podcasts and our Serbian colleagues organized two online events in the recent period. There is always some Tekken content in the Balkans, and we are not the sole providers.

Did you expect a big player turnout in this online format that the A1 Gaming Weekend featured? How does this compare to some of the other tournaments that you have organized?

We couldn’t have guessed or predicted the number of participants for this tournament, but we were content with more than 40 players that attended the event. Of course, offline tournaments that we organized before the COVID crisis would easily feature more than 64 players. This tournament was available only for PC Tekken players, so our PS4 players had to sit this one out. Unfortunately, Tekken still doesn’t feature cross-platform play.

What were some of the favorites going into the A1 Gaming Weekend cup? What regional players are on the rise?

A1 Gaming Weekend featured some of the best Tekken names in the region. Most notable of all is without a question QSKE’s Crashbanter – a player from Osijek that has been dominating the competitive scene in the whole region. He is our star player and we consider him to be one of the best in Europe. The COVID crisis has stopped him from winning the tournaments abroad and getting more international attention, but this is only the matter of time. He recently won the Polish and Serbian online Tekken tournament, A1 Adria’s was his third in a row!

Another favorite for this tournament was Kalash – one of the strongest players from Zagreb whose matches are always fun to watch and commentate. Kalash is certainly one of those players that progressively became a big threat. He wouldn’t be a favorite in our early tournaments but the community has made him one of the best players in Croatia.

The similar could be said for Tkalac. Another Slavonian, Tkalac started to make a name for himself right before the lockdown. He was present for only one offline ZTS tournament, but had good success even there. He is still on the rise, so who knows what’s to be expected of him!

Macedonian players also made a big impact with 2 of their players reaching top 8 and Yamato taking the 3rd place. They are completely new to us but it’s safe to say that Macedonia also knows how to play good Tekken.

This tournament was stacked and full of surprises, especially in the top 8. Still, some notable names were missing – names like: Masamune, BurkeCro and Bagheera. These players usually help create even more drama since they are all candidates for top 8. We will see the biggest clash once the offline events start rolling again.

Goodbye, friend.

It is with our deepest sorrow that we inform you of the death of our beloved team member Marko “LordMare” Jovanović, a regional esports enthusiast, who passed away at the age of 28. Marko was born in Knjaževac on June 7, 1992. At a young age, he developed a huge love for video games, and even after finishing his Mechanical engineering school in Knjaževac, he stayed in esports where he tried to pave the way for future regional gaming stars to achieve success, and trust us – he did!

Mare was a master of his profession, a true expert in games like League of Legends and Brawl Stars who always fulfilled his tasks with the utmost dedication. He was an inspiring personality with a great sense of humor whose superpower was simply making other people around him feel special.

“How can the dead be truly dead when they still live in the souls of those who are left behind?”

Even though a failing heart took him away from this world, that very same heart was exactly what made him so unique. His positive energy and love for gaming will forever be a beacon of light in the regional esports community. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Marko’s family and close friends who probably didn’t know much about this part of his life, but you can rest assured that he was a beloved member of the regional esports world and his work will be remembered forever.

REST IN PEACE, friend.

Crashbanter crushes the A1 Gaming Weekend TEKKEN 7 competition!

After Roksa took the main prize in PES2021, QSKE Gaming’s Crashbanter was the player that outplayed the competition in our second A1 Gaming Weekend, featuring TEKKEN 7.

Our first TEKKEN 7 cup saw over 40 players sign up and battle it out for the grand prize of €200. The double-elimination bracket proved to be a great addition to the tournament as the actual winner of the tournament, Crashbanter, managed to climb back from the lower bracket and defeat his opponent in his second try.

After a couple of rounds of play, four players remained in the upper bracket. Crashbanter couldn’t stand up to Kalash, while Yamato defeated Chipmeister FiGi. Kalash continued his great streak with yet another win against Yamato who was relegated to the lower half of the bracket. Chipmeister FiGi and Crashbanter met in the lower bracket semis and while QSKE’s veteran was fighting for the win, Yamato was waiting for him in the lower bracket finals. Nevertheless, Yamato was powerless versus Crashbanter who calmly secured his place in the Grand Finals.

Kalash and Crashbanter faced each other for the main prize. Crashbanter was able to end Kalash’s winning streak and reset the score before taking one more 3-0 victory and leaving the Grand Finals and the whole tournament as the undisputed A1 Gaming Weekend TEKKEN 7 champion.

These were the top three A1 Gaming Weekend – TEKKEN 7 players:

1. QSKE Crashbanter – €200
2. Kalash – €100
3. RFD Yamato – €50

If you missed this edition of the A1 Gaming Weekend, you can check it out and catch all the great moments below:

PES21: Roksa upsets Kepa_PFC to win A1 Gaming Weekend!

PES2021, the first A1 Gaming Weekend game for this year, is now behind us with Roksa taking the title after beating his mentor in the grand finals.

A number of 156 players signed up for our PES2021 tournament. Players from all over the Adriatic region hopped on the field and played against each other for the grand prize of €200.

As the numbers thinned and the best of the best survived, the final rounds of the cup were a joy to watch. Pedjapedja16 beat Eduka1993, while boki_todor fell short to Roksa. On the other half of the bracket, Kepa_PFC, the reigning champion of the PES A1 Gaming Weekends bested Djole95 and in the other match, spora95 won against GRT_pipeGSW.

Even after a great win against Eduka, Pedjapedja couldn’t beat Roksa who managed to become one of the finalists and secure a match against his teammate from AS Roma, Kepa_PFC.

The final match between Kepa and Roksa was even better because of all of the history that these players have together. Namely, before playing for AS Roma, both of them were a part of FC Nantes so they had a lot of chances to play against each other and learn the tricks that each of the players had. Also, Kepa being the more experienced of the two is considered to be a mentor-like figure for Roksa who is newer to the scene.

Roksa pulled off an amazing win against his AS Roma teammate. The first match finished 3-2 in favor of the young gun which gave him an early advantage going into the second match. There, the match ended with the same result but this time, the winner was Kepa which meant that the match was going to a decider game. The third game was a spectacle – Roksa outplayed Kepa_PFC 3-1 and was crowned the champion of this first A1 Gaming Weekend.

A1 Gaming Weekend - PES2021 Bracket - Roksa

The first exciting A1 Gaming Weekend for this year is finished. The most skilled PES2021 players will split the prize pool in the following manner:

1. Roksa 200€
2. Kepa_PFC 100€
3. Pedjapedja16 50€

While we are waiting for the next season of the League to begin, make sure to sign up for our upcoming TEKKEN 7 tournament which will be played on the 13th of March!

With two seasons of the highest tier, the A1 Adria League is HERE!

Despite the unexpected troubles and hardships that the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the world, the last year was a massive success for the A1 Adria League project. We experimented with two new titles and we are happy to say that it paid off! In the last season, Good Game Gold and Red had a fierce Brawl Stars rivalry and in the end, the Gold players won the main prize during the Reboot Online Games Week.

CS:GO saw yet another win for the lvlUP core. After a shaky start in the SWISS stage, the Serbian powerhouse bounced back and claimed their third A1 Adria League title in a row. Season 6 saw a mix of FIFA20 and FIFA21 as it happened during the usual transitional period for the football simulation game. amke2001 was the player who adapted to the FIFA21 environment the fastest and he secured first place! Lastly, despite LAZR having a perfect group stage, Nikola and Joža Esports were crowned the Clash Royale Season 6 champions.

The new year brings new challenges!

Seasons 7 & 8 will see the return of one of the League’s first titles – League of Legends. As we bid our farewells to Clash Royale, we are glad to welcome League of Legends back to our main games roster. The other games will stay the same which means that we will spend this year watching two more action-packed seasons filled with CS:GO, Brawl Stars, and FIFA!

The regional League of Legends scene has developed during the last couple of years and we are happy to introduce LOL once again. We are expecting a huge turnout from some of the region’s finest as well as the players that are looking for their chance of becoming the next regional superstars. After all, A1 Adria League has been the region’s talent proving grounds for years and we plan to continue that tradition into 2021 as well.

Brawl Stars

While the decision to change Hearthstone for Brawl Stars was surely a hard one, Supercell’s arena shooter showed us all that it is one of the greatest mobile esports in the industry. We have collected your feedback and have introduced some changes for the upcoming two seasons of the League.

Instead of hosting a number of qualifiers throughout the season, we will only have four cups and we will be focusing on the group stage of the tournament. The most successful teams from the qualifying cups will advance to a BO5/BO3 SWISS stage that will determine the four playoffs contestants. The four finalists will clash in a double-elimination BO3 bracket for a chance to win their share of the Season 7 €2,000 prize pool.

During every cup, the 16 best teams will earn points depending on their results. In the end, the first eight will advance to the SWISS stage:

First place – 100 points
Second place – 70 points
Third place – 50 points
Fourth place – 50 points
Fifth to eight place – 20 points
Ninth to sixteenth place – 10 points

You can be a part of the A1 Adria League story by signing up for the Brawl Stars League on the following LINK!

Brawl Stars Prize Pool

Brawl Stars has been turning heads for the last two seasons and the scene in the region is bigger than ever. What does Supercell’s game have in store for us this time?

FIFA

While being a completely different game from Brawl Stars, we have found out that similar formats bring the best out of both of the games. Season 7 will once again be played on PlayStation 4. Four qualifiers will precede the SWISS stage that will see our regional FIFA players fight for the four playoffs spots.

The SWISS stage will boast a BO3 match format, while the final stage will be played in a double-elimination bracket that will once again crown our new football champion in the region.

Once again, the 16 competitors that have secured the top spots will earn points that will be split in the following manner:

First place – 100 points
Second place – 70 points
Third place – 50 points
Fourth place – 40 points
Fifth to eight place – 20 points
Ninth to sixteenth place – 10 points

You can be a part of the A1 Adria League story by signing up for the FIFA League on the following LINK!

FIFA Prize Pool

With the new year, a new challenge awaits. Rise up to the challenge and become the next regional FIFA superstar!

CS:GO

Five years and six A1 Adria League seasons and CS:GO in the region is stronger than ever! The teams are preparing and a huge shuffle has been happening in the Adria regional scene during the last months while everyone awaits the return of the king of FPS games – Counter-Strike. We will feature a similar format for Season 7, with small changes in the teams that will be participating in the League.

This season, six of the eight League teams will join us by playing two qualifying cups that are open to the whole region. Last season’s winners will receive one of the two direct invites, and a second invite will be revealed soon! We will have the chance to watch a spectacular BO3 SWISS stage once again. The four teams that reach three wins will play in the playoffs event for a chance to become the reigning champion of the biggest regional esports competition!

Organizations like 4glory and ONYX along with all the older organizations that are still a part of the scene are noticing the amount of talent that this region produces and are crucial in the development of the Adriatic scene. It is always nice to see organizations investing in the regional teams and our biggest wish is that the A1 Adria League will help those players and teams achieve their biggest dreams!

You can be a part of the A1 Adria League story by signing up for the CS:GO League on the following LINK!

CS:GO Prize Pool

 

Will someone manage to outperform Filip “aVN” Belojica and his team, or will we see the Serbian powerhouse win their fourth season in a row?

League of Legends

Since the first two seasons, our fans have longed for a League of Legends comeback. KlikTech in Season 1 and ASUS ROG ELITE in Season 2 were the best teams at the time and now it is time to decide who will be the champion of the seventh A1 Adria League season. We have prepared an interesting format for all the teams from every country in the region so that each one of the countries included in the A1 Adria League will have their own team represent them in the group stage.

The eight countries in the region will each host two qualifying cups which will earn four teams a spot in their respective National League. The eight National Leagues will have a double-elimination BO3 bracket. The teams that survive this stage will play the Regional Playoff – another double-elimination bracket that will culminate with a Best of 5 grand finals match.

You can be a part of the A1 Adria League story by signing up for the LOL League on the following LINK!

League of Legends Prize Pool

After five seasons, League of Legends is BACK! It’s time for you to take the battle to Summoner’s Rift and come back a CHAMPION!

A1 Gaming Weekends return with PES and TEKKEN!

After coming back from a brief hibernation, it’s time to warm up your mouse and keyboard with the upcoming two seasons of the League by hosting two A1 Gaming Weekend tournaments!

The A1 Gaming Weekend cups were an unforgettable part of the last year. Before, during, and after the seasons, the A1 Gaming Weekends were here for the players that didn’t have their favorite games included in the League, as well as for the fans that were eager to watch some action in the days when the League wasn’t on.

This time, we will host two A1 Gaming Weekend tournaments. The first one will feature PES e-Football 2021, while the second one will be TEKKEN 7.

TEKKEN 7

While PES2020 is a known game for the Gaming Weekend series, our other title, TEKKEN 7 is making its debut on the 13th of March. This fighting game is one of the pillars of the loyal and competitive FGC community. As we could witness on multiple occasions before, TEKKENs fighter diversity, big skill cap, and talented regional player base, make it the ideal pick for our second A1 Gaming Weekend title.

The A1 Gaming Weekend – TEKKEN 7 by Zagreb Tekken Showdown will be played using the Smash.gg platform, as it is one of the most famous platforms for this particular title. The fighters will face each other in a double-elimination Best of 3 bracket. You can sign up for the TEKKEN 7 tournament  by clicking the link below:

13.03.2021 A1 Gaming Weekend TEKKEN 7 by Zagreb Tekken Showdown – SIGN UP

The prize pool will be split in the following manner:

1. €200
2. €100
3. €50

PES21 – FINISHED

We already had PES2020 as a part of the A1 Gaming Weekend on multiple occasions last year and it never failed to disappoint. As one of the founders of the ever-growing PESExpert community stated: “The PES community in our region is really big”. And the players made sure to confirm this claim during the last year when we had over x players every time.

PES21 will boast a single-elimination tournament with Bo1 matches in the first two rounds, while the rest of the cup will be played as a Bo2 with the Away goal rule. Be a part of the first A1 Gaming Weekend for this year by clicking the link below:

06.03.2021 A1 Gaming Weekend PES21 – SIGN UP (ENDED)

A1 Gaming Weekend - PES2021 Bracket - Roksa

The PES2021 tournament was played out and had the following players take the first three places:

1. Roksa €200
2. Kepa_PFC €100
3. Pedjapedja16 €50