The 2020 eMLS season kicks off this week when some of the top EA Sports FIFA players in North America gather in Philadelphia for League Series One presented by PlayStation. If you're new to the eMLS or competitive gaming scenes, or you just want the latest information on how to watch and attend the event, we've got you covered.
What is League Series One and how does it work?
League Series One is the first of three eMLS tournaments that will take place in 2020, followed by League Series Two in February and eMLS Cup in March. Players from 25 MLS teams (including 2021 expansion side Austin FC) will compete to be crowned League Series One champion as well as for points in the 2020 eMLS standings. The League Series One winner will also receive a $7,500 cash prize.
All 25 players played 12 games during the regular-season portion of the event, which took place on Thursday. The top eight overall players (regardless of conference) qualified for the live-stream portion of the event on Friday (7pm – 10:30pm ET), with the host club (in this case the Philadelphia Union) guaranteed a place on the live stream no matter their player's result.
Who qualified and what are the matchups?
Of the eight qualifiers who will take part in Friday's event, five are newcomers to eMLS in 2020. Representative for the Vancouver Whitecaps, exraa was the top-performing newcomer, only missing out on top spot on goal differential. The New York Red Bulls' G_Adamou, LAFC's RemiMartinn and Atlanta United's highly anticipated Brazilian arrival Paulo Neto also made it through to Friday's live-streamed event behind first-placed Didychrislito. The most talked-about newcomer to eMLS will also take part on Friday, although it was a tough first outing for Superbowl-winning quarterback and Philadelphia Union representative Jay Ajayi.
You can the full bracket of matchups for Friday below.
How to watch and follow?
The entirety of Friday's event will be live streamed on Twitch and Twitter, as well as on MLSsoccer.com and the MLS mobile app.
In addition to the live stream, fans can follow the results of their team's player and get up-to-date standings for both Thursday's non-streamed games (10am – 5 pm ET) and Friday's main event. Be sure to bookmark these pages if you want the latest on how your preferred player is doing.
Twenty four teams so far have signed players for the 2020 eMLS season, and you can get the full list right here.
