“It's unbelievable, I've been dreaming about this for so long. I have never drunk alcohol in my life, but maybe that will change tonight.”
Umut “Umut” Gültekin of RB Leipzig spoke the quote into the cameras in Copenhagen. The eSports pro of the Red Bulls had just secured the World Championship title of the FIFA eSports individual competition. Umut is thus the second German world champion in a row. In 2019, Mohammed “MoAuba” Harkous had become the first German ever to secure the title. In 2020 and 2021, the eSport FIFA World Championships were cancelled due to corona.
Superior way of Umut in Copenhagen
It had already become apparent in the preliminary round that Umut could land the really big coup. The 19-year-old from RB Leipzig had won his relay with 10 wins and 4 losses sovereign. In the subsequent knockout matches Umut kept his nerve. Especially strong was the 4:1 victory in the semifinals against EmreYilmaz from Holland.
The final was then a very close box. The decision against the Argentine nicolas99fc fell only in the penalty shootout. After no goals were scored in regulation time and extra time, Umut Gültekin sank all five balls from the spot. His Argentine opponent missed one penalty.
Financially, the FIFA triumph really paid off for the young pro from the RBLZ Gaming Team. As world champion, Umut pocketed the proud prize money of 250,000 dollars.
The other German players at the World Cup
Umut's victory can definitely be seen as a small surprise. Just a few weeks ago, the Leipzig player had lost his German championship title to Dylan “DullenMike” Neuhausen from SC Freiburg. The boy from Breisgau was of course also at the start in Copenhagen. After a third place in the preliminary round, “DullenMike” had to admit defeat directly in the round of 16 against EmreYilmaz and quite violently with 1:8.
Koray “Kkoray” Kücükgünar and Benedikt “BeneCR7” Bauer (both VfL Bochum) completed the German team at the FIFA eSport World Cup. For the two guys from the Ruhr area, however, the end of the line was already reached after the preliminary round. After five wins, four draws and four defeats, Kkoray missed the round of sixteen by a hair's breadth (only due to the goal difference). BeneCR7 was one point off the pace in his group after four wins, four draws and six defeats.
The FIFA World Cup results (from the round of 16)
Here are the FIFA World Cup results of the tournament in the Danish capital at a glance, starting with the knockout round:
Round of 16
Stingray (Great Britain) vs. tuga810 (Portugal) 2:3
Obrun2002 (Italy) vs. Chris (Great Britain) 3:0
Nicolas99fc (Argentina) vs. Lamps (USA) 3:2
Manuel (Netherlands) vs. JRA (Spain) 5:2
Paulo Neto (Brazil) vs. LPeixoto (France) 7:2
EmreYilmaz (Netherlands) vs. DullenMike (Germany) 8:1
Umut (Germany) vs. Young (Brazil) 4:1
Matias (Argentina) vs. StefanoPinna (Belgium) 5:4
Quarterfinals
tuga810 (Portugal) vs. Obrun2002 (Italy) 1:2
Nicolas99fc (Argentina) vs. Manuel (Netherlands) 3:2
Paulo Neto (Brazil) vs. EmreYilmaz (Netherlands) 3:5
Umut (Germany) vs. Matias (Argentina) 4:1
Semifinals
Obrun2002 (Italy) vs. Nicolas99fc (Argentina) 2:3
EmreYilmaz (Netherlands) vs. Umut (Germany) 1:4
Final
Nicolas99fc (Argentina) vs. Umut (Germany) 4:5
Here's what's next for the FIFA Professionals
The FIFA World Cup for individual players was the start of a series of tournaments in Copenhagen. Between July 20 and July 23, the FIFA Club World Cup continues, with 1. FC Köln among the teams. Then, between July 27 and 30, the FIFA Nations Cup for national teams will be held.
