A full day of fast-paced and Red Bull-fuelled gaming saw UCL snatch the first-ever esports Varsity title from King’s across five popular video games, winning by 3-2.
The Purples dominated across three games including League of Legends and Overwatch 2, only conceding to the Strand gamers on Rocket League and Valorant.
This year’s esports showdown, a historic first for the London Varsity Series, took place at the Red Bull Gaming Sphere and attracted some 50 spectators who were treated to an unlimited supply of Red Bull drinks. Hundreds more watched the livestream on Twitch.
Asked how esports became part of Varsity, Alice Deane, the lead organiser from King’s, said: “This is the first time we’re doing it officially with the SU.
“We did our own one last year, and I think that King’s SU specifically saw what we did and was very impressed with our events, so invited us to the official Varsity.
“I guess we let our actions last year talk for us rather than having to do much convincing, but we definitely have been trying to push our way into the official Varsity for a few years… it’s been something we’ve really wanted to do for a long time.”
Before one of the matches, organisers were forced to cancel the live stream and asked reporters not to take pictures or even mention the game being played by name due to licencing issues with a certain mouse-themed multinational conglomerate. UCL won that round and gained the overall Varsity point without an audience.
UCL Gaming Society said they did not realise licencing was a concern initially as it wasn’t flagged by the venue owners until the last minute.
Reporters from The Cheese Grater attended the Rocket League match and later watched the Valorant game on live stream – here’s how it went down.
Footie… but on wheels
The Rocket League showdown was dynamic and incredibly fast-paced, as players on both sides displayed impressive skill and precision.
Nonetheless, the Purples struggled to defend against a dominant King’s side, carried by star player “JLF” Aaron who made more shots than anyone. He was also the youngest left-handed Grand Champion at age 13.
Watch: King’s players finally find a gap through the UCL defense. Courtesy of UCL Gaming via Twitch
UCL players had a disorganised start, missing a number of opportunities to narrow the King’s lead after missing an open goal in the first round.
Playing in a close formation, the Purples struggled to keep up with the pace and conceded another round to King’s, who drew first blood in the first four seconds.
UCL brought their A-game to round three, forcing a dramatic tie-breaker, but failed to stop the Red’s star player “JLF” Aaron scoring an upside-down aerial shot, finishing 1-0 in overtime.
Feeling a little too comfortable with their 3-0 lead, KCL players changed their vehicles going into round four with a Fortnite battlebus, Lightning McQueen, and a pigeon.
But silly mistakes and a bit of light trolling from the King’s side allowed the Purples to pull ahead, finishing the round with 4-2. “Not being too kachow there”, said commentator Ellis “SirBritte” New.
But the Reds quickly regained composure and “locked in” once again. UCL’s poor positioning led to awkward moments and missed opportunities, finishing a best-of-seven game at round 5 and a final score of 4-1.
Team captain Aryn said after the match: “We were very rusty. At the peak of our powers, we were probably the top one in the country, but we came out of our coffins today just to get the job done, and the lesson learned is that we have to warm up more before we play.
“They [KCL] had a really good team. Really fun match.”
UCL narrowly loses Valorant despite ‘9-3 curse’ clutch play
On Valorant, five players on each side went head-to-head over three tense and dramatic rounds, leaving viewers at the edge of their seats at all times.
King’s had a competitive advantage over the Purples with more experienced players on its roster – some of whom were understood to rank top ten in China – but it did not stop UCL from putting up a good, hard fight.
Watch: UCL clutches a pivotal round to equalise the match. Courtesy of UCL Gaming via Twitch
Round one began in Lotus, an attacker-sided map selected by King’s. A natural disadvantage and a disorganised UCL defence allowed King’s to dominate the early game, but players maintained composure and forced a tight scoreline after the halftime swap, finishing with a close 13-10 to KCL.
The Purples took audiences on a rollercoaster in round two after a disorganised start on Pearl – their own map pick – struggling to hold their ground against a dominant King’s side.
At halftime, UCL was down 9-3. But a common superstition among Valorant players that teams losing by that exact scoreline at halftime are unusually more likely to bounce back undoubtedly gave the Purples some hope.
Indeed, UCL players did precisely that, equalising at 10-10 with an aggressive attack strategy to run down Site A. In a dramatic comeback, the Purples ended up snatching the round from what looked to be a sure defeat, finishing at 13-11 and forcing a round three tiebreaker.
Going into the final round on Ascent, the Purples struggled to maintain their momentum and were down 8-4 at halftime. After the swap, UCL players put up an admirable fight but ultimately failed to clutch the round, ending with a tight scoreline of 13-10 to King’s and narrowly conceding the Valorant playoffs.
Verdict: Did it ‘smell crazy in there’?
This year’s esports Varsity took place in a basement venue tucked away in the back alleys of Shoreditch High Street and attracted a noticeably different crowd. Instead of pints of beer, attendees were drinking cans of Red Bull, which sponsored the event.
Organisers said Red Bull was “very generous” and allowed them to use the venue without charge. They said they were glad to see esports finally being represented in the London Varsity Series.
Eddie, President of the UCL Gaming Society, said the event gave players a “rare chance” to play competitively outside of their local network (LAN).
“It’s going a lot better than we planned”, he added.
Nonetheless, reporters were unable to stay in the Red Bull Gaming Sphere for too long, owing to concern that we would overdose on the unlimited supply of highly caffeinated drinks provided.
It must also be admitted that it did kind of smell crazy in there despite the ventilation doing everything it could to mask the scent of 12 hours of high-octane competitive gaming. But that’s esports for you.
Additional reporting by Go Kitajima
