Apeks qualified for EPL Season 18 by defeating Spirit Academy in the match for the slot

The European team, Apeks, secured first place in the ESL Challenger League Europe Season 45, earning a spot in the upcoming season of the ESL Pro League, set to start at the end of August.

In the tournament's final, Apeks overcame Spirit Academy, despite the youth team initially having a one-map advantage due to their progress in the decisive bo3 match through the upper bracket. Apeks only conceded one map, Anubis, while emerging victorious on Inferno, Mirage, and Overpass.

Although Spirit Academy suffered defeat, donk showcased impressive performance in terms of rating, kills, and entry frags, with statistics of 92-88.

Detailed match statistics are available on the match page.

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It is worth noting that earlier in the tournament, Apeks also defeated 9INE, 1WIN, and Monte in the lower bracket final, earning not only the qualification but also a prize pool of $20,000. For the Ukrainian club, winning the tournament was not as crucial as it was for other teams since they secured their slot for EPL S18 in a different tournament.

Let's recall that MIBR and Rare Atom emerged victorious in the parallel ESL Challenger Leagues for the Asian and American regions, respectively. However, since the Brazilian club already had a slot, ATK, who secured the third-place finish, will represent America in EPL.

Rrize distribution

ESL Challenger League Season 45 Europe took place online from April 11th to May 28th. The tournament featured 24 teams competing for a prize pool of $55,000. The 46th season of ECL will start on July 11th and will follow the same format.