The first of three LANs in London for the ALGS.
The Apex Legends Global Series Split 1 Playoffs will be kicking off in just a few hours from now until February 5. It will feature the top 40 teams from around the world battling for a lion's share of the total one million USD prize pool with the winner walking away with USD 300,000. The LAN will take place in London, England, the first of three ALGS LANs that will be happening in the UK.
The Copper Box Arena has been home to many esports tournaments and it will soon play host to the ALGS Split 1 Playoffs. The major will feature three stages in the form of the group stage, the bracket stage, and the finals. Scroll on down to find out more about the schedule as well as the format and the teams that will be participating.
Format & Schedule
Starting with the group stage on February 2 and 3, the top 40 teams have been split into four groups of 10. Each group will play one another in a six-game series to ensure each team plays 18 games. After two days of the group stage, the top 20 teams will head to the upper bracket while the bottom 20 will fight for their tournament lives in the first round of the lower bracket.
In the bracket stage, there will be one six-game series in the upper bracket whilst the lower bracket will have to play two six-game series. The top 10 teams in the upper bracket will qualify for the finals whilst the bottom 10 head to the second round of the lower bracket. There, they will meet the top 10 teams who made it through the first round. In the second six-game series of the lower bracket, only the final 10 teams can qualify for the finals.
Image credit: EA
This is where the best 20 teams still remaining in the tournament will face-off in a match-point format. This is also where coming from the upper bracket can help you; the top 10 teams from the upper bracket will be seeded by their placement from the the uper bracket bracket and will start the finals with advance starting points.
As for the match-point format, it's fairly straightforward. Once a team in the finals reaches the match-point threshold of 50, that team will automatically be match-point elligible on the next map. The first team to win their next game after being match-point elligible will be crowned the champion of the Split 1 Playoffs.
Teams Competing
With 40 teams to focus on, it can be a bit tough to decide on which squad you want to follow come ALGS. There are plenty of big contenders in the list, starting with the reigning champions, DarkZero Esports who have been the last two LAN winners in the previous ALGS tournaments. As they are now competing in the North American region instead of Oceania, DZ have had their work cut out for them, given how competitive the region has become.
The likes of TSM, NRG, XSET, as well as The Guard being some of the biggest names to come out from the region, don't be surprised to see a fair few NA teams thrown into the mix come finals. The EMEA region is also thriving with the likes of Alliance, Acend, and Vexed Gaming all proving to be more than capable to step up to NA.
Image credit: EA
And of course, there are the dark horses from the South American and APAC regions. Fnatic has been tearing up the APAC North scene, ensuring they are the top dogs heading into the Split 1 Playoffs. As for APAC South, the team formerly known as Chicken Sandwich has since been picked up by Iron Blood Gaming and have turned the scene onto its heels with a first-place finish during the league portion. Team Singularity from SA has also shown itself to be a worthy contender in SA, given the amount of talent coming out from the region.
Expect plenty of fireworks once ALGS starts with all four groups playing simultaneously. Unfortauntely, some teams may not be able to participate at the upcoming ALGS Split 1 Playoffs, mainly Aurora, EXO Clan, and Fire Beavers due to visa issues. This has long plagued the ALGS with last-minute announcements on tournament dates and locations, which makes it harder for teams and players to secure visas in time.
The ALGS Split 1 Playoffs starts later today at 5.00 pm GMT +8. Don't forget to catch all the action, only on the official PlayApex Twitch channel.