Wargaming announced today that the World of Tanks 2017 APAC season finals will be held in Sydney. The four best performing teams from the APAC region throughout the season will battle for a share of $100,000 USD. The top two teams will also gain entry into the World of Tanks World Finals.
The four teams taking part in the finals are reigning champions EL Gaming, homegrown heroes Team Efficiency and two brand-new teams out of China; Yato RSGaming and Seven Pirates. EL Gaming will be looking to take home its fourth straight APAC victory, while Team Efficiency, Yato RSGaming and Seven Pirates will be chasing their first finals victories.
Jini Jun – Wargaming.net Head of Competitive Gaming APAC
We spoke with Jini Jun Wargaming.net Head of Competitive Gaming APAC ahead of the tournament to get her thoughts.
“We’re surprised and thrilled that we have new teams coming up in the Finals this Season,” Jun told me. “We have two different teams from the recent seasons (Yato RSGaming and Seven Pirates) and two favourites, EL Gaming and Team Efficiency.”
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EL Gaming’s Dominance has been especially prevalent this year. Jun told me that it has developed fame throughout the Wargaming.net Leagues throughout the world. “EL Gaming has been winning in almost all of our leagues around the World,” she said. With that in mind, would the other teams in the APAC Finals stand a chance?
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“The other teams do have a chance,” Jun told me, quite diplomatically. “I’m hoping to see a new and more interesting and fun match for the finals.”
Wargaming brought the APAC Season Finals to Sydney in 2016. Jun told me that Wargaming seldom does esports events in Australia and that having the Finals here with an audience was a great experience. “Last year in Sydney, the audience liked the event a lot. This year, the timing aligns with the launch of the ANZ server, so we figured that coming to Sydney was perfect for the Finals.”
World of Tanks 2017 APAC Season Finals
Taking place on Sunday, November 12, the action kicks off with Team Efficiency vs. EL Gaming at 12pm AEDT. ANZ Country Manager Travis Plane was also on hand to discuss the finals and in particular Team Efficiency and Australian fans.
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“Australian fans are hugely passionate about whichever sport they’re into. We see that translate to World of Tanks really clearly,” he explained. When it comes to sport, Aussie fans love to watch and they love to get behind their local heroes. “With Team Efficiency included in the finals again this year, Aussie fans obviously have a huge reason to get excited.”
An even bigger reason to get excited is that the top two teams from the APAC Season Finals will be headed to the World of Tanks Final Battle to be held in Moscow in December. If Team Efficiency places first or second in the World of Tanks 2017 APAC Season Finals, the team will represent Australia in Moscow on the World Stage.
On the road to Moscow
In addition to the chance to compete at a world level, the teams in the World of Tanks 2017 APAC Season Finals will be competing for a share of $100,000 USD. The first place team will win $50,000, but overall, this Season has seen a total prize pool of $325,000 USD. This is split between six and eight teams and is a pretty hefty sum.
Speaking to Jun, she’s most looking forward to the new strategies teams will bring to the series. “With two new teams in the Finals, it could be an entirely new scene. I can’t wait to see what the teams can do and who will be the winner.”
The World of Tanks 2017 APAC Season Finals will take place on Sunday, November 12. The first match will take place at 12pm. The second semi-final, between Yato RSGaming and Seven Pirates, will take place 3:30pm AEDT. The winners of the two semi-finals will face off in the Grand Final at 7pm AEDT.
Fans can tune in on Twitch, Facebook, and YouTube. World of Tanks fans from across the APAC region can also tune into the broadcast in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese on their respective Twitch channels:
- JP: http://wgl.gg/WatchJP
- KR: http://wgl.gg/WatchKR
- ZH-TW: http://wgl.gg/watchTW
We’d like to thank Juni Jun and Travis Plane for their time.
Best of luck to all the players this weekend and let’s hope Team Efficiency can bring home the gold.
