There are guaranteed to be many nerve-wracking matches when Europe’s 41 best athletes in e-sports EAFC24 meet in London this weekend.
Well-known big teams such as Manchester City, Ajax, Juventus and PSG will fight for further advancement from the group stage in the Champions League.
A Norwegian team has made it through the narrow eye of the needle. And no, it’s neither Brann, Molde nor Bodø / Glimt.
Andreas Aarstad is in the yellow uniform for Raufoss football.
– We will meet extremely good players, but I have faith in myself and can do well, says Aarstad, who originally comes from Sokndal in Rogaland.
Together they put Raufoss on the world map in the e-sport game FC24, player Andreas Aarstad and coach August Rognlien.
Photo: Øystein Tommelstad
One of the world’s best
Two weeks ago, Andreas and Raufoss won the Norwegian eSeries. It also secured him a place in the Champions League.
He is thus one of a total of 41 players from 17 countries who are ready for this weekend’s group stage.
And here Andreas can run the risk of meeting several of the world’s very best players.
Although Andreas is not the first Norwegian player to play in major international tournaments, it is the first time Norway has a team in the Champions League.
Coach August Rognlien singles out Manchester City’s one team in particular, which is led by former world champion Tekkz. A difficult task, but not hopeless.
– I have seen Andreas play against players at his level in the last week. He has beaten them. So it’s not completely impossible, then. Far from. I have a lot of faith in Andreas.
– So does Raufoss have any chance of winning the Champions League?
– Yes, are you crazy! Raufoss has as big a chance as the other teams that have made it to the group stage, says a confident coach.
100 percent focused
The 20-year-old had his big breakthrough last year. Then he signed for Raufoss.
Coach August Rognlien is on the trip to London, and says that as a coach he has an important function:
– Especially for Andreas, who often loses his head when he plays, Rognlien jokes and laughs.
According to August, those who play FC24 will eventually learn the mechanisms. They will master the purely technical part of the game.
Then the mind will separate the chaff from the wheat.
– Maintaining concentration for two times nine minutes is difficult. Being able to see every little detail that happens on the screen. My main task is to keep Andreas calm, make him feel at home, says August.
He is from Raufoss himself and proud of the suit, coach August Rognlien. Now the yellow kit will be worn with pride during the Champions League group stage in London.
Photo: Jonas Oden Ulset / NRK
Trains on details
In the run-up to this weekend’s group stage, player and coach have been in contact electronically. In the room, coach August has two screens: One is used to communicate with Andreas, and the other to follow how his friend is playing.
– We have spent a few hours there now, says August.
Together they hunt for the small details. And it is these details that will make Andreas as well prepared as possible for this weekend’s game.
This is what FC24 is: A virtual football match with a gaming console.
Photo: Jonas Oden Ulset / NRK
The way forward
In the group stage, the teams are divided into a total of eight groups. Only the top three from each group advance.
If Raufoss and Andreas Aarstad manage to do it, they must add a new London trip to the calendar already next weekend.
On 18 and 19 May, the teams that finish second and third in the group stage this weekend first meet. The winners of these matches then meet the group winners from the weekend’s matches.
Then it goes really well.
Quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final will be played on 29 May. And here there are also opportunities to collect a few kroner for the very best:
The prize pool is 280,000 dollars – or just over 3 million Norwegian kroner.
Another win in the eSeries for Andreas is rewarded with a “high five” from coach August.
Photo: Øystein Tommelstad
Bet on FC24
Raufoss football has become a leading club for e-sports and especially FIFA / FC24 in Norway. The club has identified this as an important area to engage younger boys and girls.
Øystein Tommelstad, e-sports manager in Raufoss, says it has been important to create a physical meeting place with organized training where safe adults are present. The club has also made a name for itself with strong results in both the NM and the eSeries.
– We have thus become a club that many look up to when it comes to eFootball. And many want to be part of the club, says Tommelstad.
He believes that the club’s willingness to bet on FC24 is one of the reasons why Andreas Aarstad chose to go from Lørenskog to Raufoss last autumn.
Tommelstad believes that more traditional football clubs will join the e-sports world because precisely their players are used in the e-games.
– It is a way of engaging even more people in the clubs and as spectators of regular football
Andreas Aarstad swept aside all opposition in the Norwegian eSeries. Now much tougher opposition awaits.
Photo: Øystein Tommelstad
Tags: Andreas Aarstad Raufoss fight Champions League title esports NRK Innlandet Local news radio
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