Gamereactor recently attended the FUT Championship Series Paris Regional Final, where we talked to Peter Moore about clubs signing players and FIFA as a spectator sport, and there was plenty of action to behold, not least of which was Tass "Hashtag Tass" Rushan claiming victory in the final.
The final saw Hashtag Tass take on Cihan "S04_Cihan" Yasarlar, both putting in strong performances and remaining unbeaten throughout not only the knockouts but also the group stage, Cihan actually beating one of the tournament favourites Ali "II_Bruma_II" Riza Aygün to get there. Hashtag Tass' victory means he and team Hashtag United stand in good stead for the Ultimate Team Championship Series Final in Berlin in May, an event which eight players from Paris qualified for.
It didn't all go as expected in the tournament though, as many expected PSG Esports to do well with FIFA pros August "Agge" Rosenmeier and Lucas "DaXe" Cuillerier, however, both of them were eliminated relatively early on, as was other favourite Spencer "Gorilla" Ealing. Gorilla and Agge will no doubt be looking to change things in the future after their Group B exit.
Four from the PlayStation 4 division and another four from the Xbox division went on the qualify for the Berlins finals, and those were Tassal "Tass" Rushan, Cihan "S04_Cihan" Yasarlar, Marcel "Marlut" Lutz, Corentin "Vitality_Rockyy" Chevrey, Florian "Monaco_Rayziaah" Maridat, Timo "ITimox" Siep, Benedict "BenediktSaltzer" Saltzer, and Shaun "XShellz" Springette. The action resumes tomorrow in Sydney, however, where teams from the rest of the world will compete for a place in Berlin.
Is the FUT Championship Series proving to be the boost that FIFA's esports scene needs?
