Today’s EMEA matches took place under drastically changed circumstances for the second year of the Apex Legends Global Series (ALGS).
EA issued a statement last night, canceling the upcoming international playoffs that were originally scheduled to be played in person in a LAN format.
The change to the competitive calendar also changed the calculus for playoff berths, which have now been divided into five different regional competitions and will include the top-20 teams in each region’s Pro League. That doubled the number of qualifying teams.
With 12 points on the line today, it was possible for any of the 40 teams in the EMEA Pro League to earn a spot in the playoffs with a strong performance.
In game one, ZETA DIVISION’s Lev “taskmast33r” Grigoriev got his hands on a Kraber in the mid game and the team had great positioning, but Gambit pushed their high ground on a rock outcropping outside Climatizer and wiped them. Gambit were, in turn, flushed off that high ground with a sneaky flank by GMT Esports. Rebel managed to largely stay intact into the end game, picking up some nice kills and cleaning up weakened enemies to take a strong win.
Rebel began the day in 18th place overall with 11 points, just two away from missing playoff qualifications.
The team continued to perform well in game two, which collapsed into a final circle outside The Dome. Teams stacked up like sardines in a cramped end game that saw Natus Vincere pull off a daring respawn of their teammate Maksym “Max-Strafe” Stadniuk. But Rebel were able to outlast everyone else yet again, leaving them way ahead of the pack with 39 points.
In game three, Gambit, a top team in EMEA Apex, showed off their strong fighting skills after a disappointing start to the day. The final circle came down to a shootout between Na’Vi and Dead Inside, two teams that needed strong results to stay in contention for the upcoming regional championship. It was Dead Inside that got an early knock with effective team shooting for a much-needed win. They started the day in 33rd place, in danger of relegation from the Pro League. Game three’s result shot them up into second place, only nine points behind Rebel.
Some of the teams lagging behind did well in game four. Dungeonmast33rs grabbed a win, notching 12 kills with some smart plays and taking them up 12 spots into seventh place.
Going into game five, only a handful of points separated the majority of the field. Myztro Gaming took the win, while MajorPushers got second and Rebel earned a respectable third in a Lava Station finish.
Rebel were 16 points ahead of the second-place team, MajorPushers, at the start of the final game of the day. They only needed a few points in game six to secure their win and 12 points on the overall leaderboard. They were killed off early, opening a window for MajorPushers to overtake them. GMT took the win and Gambit got second place, but MajorPushers didn’t come up with a big enough game to best Rebel’s consistent results.
Teams like Kungarna, 789, Redragon, Na’Vi, and Zeta Division desperately needed good days today to help secure their chances at making the top 20 and the regional playoffs. But none of them really moved the needle and remain right on the threshold of missing out on the substantial prize pool up for grabs.
These teams have one more day of matches on Sunday, Dec. 5 to cement their place in the top 20 or avoid demotion from the Pro League. Gambit are at the top of the leaderboard and with another decent performance on Dec. 5, the skilled team has a good chance at taking home the $30,000 check awarded to the winners of the regular season split.
