The first European promotion match for ECS Season 3 saw Fnatic overcome North 3-1.
Set to start on March 31st, there were two teams yet to be decided for ECS Season 3. In order to secure one of two remaining spots North and Fnatic battled in a best-of-5 promotion match. Normally, the North roster would automatically have their spot in ECS Season 3 as they finished 4th the previous season, however the Danish squad was playing under Dignitas colours back then and as a result of switching organisations they lost their spot. Despite this, the Danes secured first place in the Development League and faced Fnatic who finished second to last ECS Season 2.
The promotion battle began with North's first map pick, de_Overpass. A balanced first half saw Fnatic leading 9-6 at the half time. However, as the Swedes switched to the CT side, the game went under Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer and his team's control. Thanks to their solid CT side, Fnatic closed out the first map with a score line of 16-9.
Fnatic's first map pick de_Cache began as Overpass ended, under their dominance. The Swedish side was leading 10-5 at half-time, but North's destructive T performance took the map to overtime. In overtime, it was Mathias "MSL" Lauridsen's squad who stole the victory at a 19-17 score.
As the series equalised at 1-1, the next map was de_Cobblestone, another pick by North. As in Overpass, the first half saw two evenly-matched teams unable to gain control of the half. After half-time though, Robin "flusha" Rönnquist stepped up to help olofmeister and the duo's impressive T performance helped fnatic grab the victory 16-11.
In the fourth map which was de_Inferno, North were fighting to survive but a below-average T side meant a five-round lead in favour of Fnatic at half-time. The second half saw a great comeback from North thanks to MSL and Kristian "k0nfig" Wienecke who carried their team and took the map to the overtime. Strong Northern winds weakened in the overtime and fnatic grabbed the victory 19-16 and avoided relegation.
The 3-1 victory for Fnatic secured the team's spot at ECS Season 3, increasing confirmed team number to 9. The last team for ECS Season 3 will be decided in a best-of-5 matchup between 
Virtus.pro and 
Space Soldiers today, 27th March, at 18:00 CEST.
The confirmed teams for ECS Season 3 so far:
 Astralis |  Team Dignitas |  Team EnVyUs |
| FaZe Clan | G2 Esports |  GODSENT |
| mousesports | Ninjas in Pyjamas | Fnatic |
Headline image courtesy of fnatic
