The first day of the FIFA 18 Global Series Playoffs on the Road to the 2018 FIFA eWorld Cup, dubbed Survival Day, saw favorites and big names rise and fall, with some familiar names qualifying for the knockouts with multiple rounds to go. FUT Champions Cup Manchester champion MSDossary had a strong day, as did the well-known FaZe Gorilla. The magic number for better or worse in the Swiss-style group stage is four, meaning that four wins earn automatic qualification to the knockout rounds, while four losses mean elimination from the tournament. Some drama and storylines stood out, but day two will produce the real drama as the final qualifications and eliminations to the FIFA eWorld Cup Grand Final are decided in the round of 32.
It's not easy to cruise through a group of the absolute best FIFA players in the world, but two players earned their way into that club. MSDossary, who recently joined team Rogue, didn't seem to lose an ounce of momentum from his massive win in Manchester. From his first win to his last, the young champion from Saudi Arabia never wavered in his dominance on day one. He kicked off the tournament with the first featured match, a 6-0 aggregate drubbing of M Mino, and ended the day by breaking the 4-0 record of JSSF107 with a 4-2 win.
Just days after announcing that he was joining team FaZe, Gorilla showed the world of competitive FIFA that he was still relevant by trouncing top players on his way to a 5-0 record. A tough match with one of the breakout stars in Manchester, Canada's GoalMachine21, was Gorilla's first big test. A 4-4 draw in leg 2 kept things tight, but Gorilla's slim 2-1 lead in the first leg kept his undefeated status alive. Gorilla's final match of the day was perhaps the most intriguing; he and Kurt0411 were both 4-0, and only one would come out with a perfect record. This clash of the FIFA titans wasn't exactly uneven in practice, but Gorilla's 6-3 win was both defiant and deserved.
While we didn't see too many extremely shocking eliminations on day one, the sheer amount of talent present meant that there were bound to be some surprise early exits. Paris Saint-Germain pro DaXee had a day to forget, losing four straight matches as he bounced out before he could even register a win. All of his losses were tight, proof that he still has some quality in his game, but that finishing touch eluded him all day.
One competitor who popped up with some strong performances was Spaniard Losyoruguas92, who defeated German powerhouse VfL MegaBit1848 and Barcelona winner F2TekKz. He ended the day with a 4-1 record, his only loss coming from MSDossary.
German pro NRaseck7, who made it to the Xbox finals at both FUT Champions Cup events qualified fairly easily with a 4-1 record on the day, losing only to Hashtag Ryan. Speaking of, Hashtag Ryan looked like he might roll through the competition all day, but he was sent crashing down to earth by Kurt0411 in round 3, and again in a tight matchup with SKC Alekzandur in round 5. Ryan ended up in an intra-squad match with Hashtag Harry and came out on top, undoubtedly giving him bragging rights on top of his 3-2 record.
F2TekKz, who did well but fell short of expectations in Manchester, also picked up a 3-2 record on the day. Both of his defeats were also tight, including his final match of the day — an 8-7 aggregate loss to AFC Ajax Joey.
With an entirely new set of (massively upgraded) player items coming into FUT since FUT Champions Cup Manchester, many competitors' teams showed why Team of the Season is such a big deal. Some competitors utilized the TOTS Cristiano Ronaldo item instead of the Team of the Year version of the Portuguese winger. Players who saw huge leaps in ratings on their TOTS items like Mohamed Salah and Marco Reus were picked by a sizable chunk of the players in Amsterdam. The most surprising TOTS items were probably German attacker Leon Goretzka, picked by more than one player that was featured on the stream and praised by commentators, and goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who was chosen at least once to dethrone the widely-used David de Gea.
While there will be plenty of nail-biters in the sixth round, especially among those with 2-3 records like Hashtag Harry and PSG Fiddle x. But it's the seventh round that should produce the most drama, especially if the more well-known competitors in the 3-2 group like F2TekKz, Hashtag Ryan, and GoalMachine21 lose their sixth round match. The final group that qualifies for the knockout stage will be decided, and those that don't make the cut are done for the season. With so much talent at stake, plenty of these matches should go down to the wire.
While making it to the knockout stage is a massive achievement in the Playoffs, it's only the beginning. The first round of the knockout stage is the most important part of the entire tournament. 32 competitors enter that crucial first round of the bracket, and the 16 that remain not only move on to the next round — they also punch their tickets to the 2018 FIFA eWorld Cup Grand Final in London. The rest of the bracket stage is important, with prize money and Grand Final group designation at stake, but those that get that far have already given themselves a chance to become the best in the world.
Make sure to subscribe to the EA SPORTS FIFA YouTube Channel, Twitch Channel, Twitter, and Facebook so you don't miss any of the action live from Amsterdam. You can also check out the full schedule, including dates and times, on our schedule page.
Plus, discover extended coverage including exclusive, behind-the-scenes content live from Amsterdam on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.
