The Home Nations and EE have announced the winners of the Connected Club Cup 2023 – Mariam Musa as the champion of the first women’s tournament and Louie Parker of the men’s group.
Mariam and Louie each won the title of the esports FIFA competition after competing in the final against six of the nation’s best male and female grassroots FIFA 23 players at Wembley Stadium connected by EE.
Each of the finalists also had the opportunity to test their skills against Home Nations football players Lucy Parker (ENG), Jess Park (ENG), Emily Ramsey (ENG), Marcus Harrison (ENG), Brad Bates (ENG), Ryan Porteous (SCT), Erin Cuthbert (SCT), Lily Woodham (WLS), Tom Lockyer (WLS), Chloe McCarron (NIR) and Rebecca McKenna (NIR), and Excel Esports gamer, Spencer Ealing aka Gorilla, in exhibition matches.
The eight finalists competed in a two-leg round-robin tournament (each player played against every other player in turn) with matches played on both Xbox and PlayStation.
Hosted at Wembley Stadium and narrated by leading esports commentators Rachel Stringer, Alia Harvey, Richard Buckley and Brandon Smith – the Connected Club Cup 2023 final saw grassroots gamers and fans follow the action on the FA Twitch channel (https://www.twitch.tv/england) as it was livestreamed over EE Full Fibre Broadband.
Fans watched as Emma Rose from Northern Ireland (gold medal winner at the 2022 Commonwealth Esports Championships), Erin Wylie from Northern Ireland, and Mariam Musa and Anna Rynn, both from England, went head-to-head in the women’s tournament, while Louie Parker from England, Robson Evans from Wales, Liam Martin Wilson from Scotland, and Luke Reid from Northern Ireland battled it out in the men’s tournament.
The winners received a tournament trophy, an Xbox signed by Home Nations players, tickets to a Home Nations game and signed National shirts. All semi-finalists won tickets to a Home Nations game and signed National shirts, while the finalists were awarded personalised National and Connected Club Cup shirts.
The news comes a couple of months after it was announced the EE Connected Club Cup FIFA esports tournament would return for 2023 featuring Excel players – and a women’s competition for the first time.
What the winners and organisers said about the Connected Club Cup 2023
Connected Club Cup 2023 winner, Mariam Musa from England, stated: “To be a part of the Connected Club Cup’s first women’s tournament, and then to be crowned the first female winner, has been such an amazing experience. I hope this inspires more women gamers and football fans to get involved in esports and enter competitions like this in the future.”
Connected Club Cup 2023 winner, Louie Parker from England, also shared: “From playing in the round-robin tournaments to having the chance to play a game of FIFA against Home Nations football players like Ryan Porteous and Erin Cuthbert, it has been an incredible once in a lifetime opportunity – and this is all thanks to the Connected Club Cup.”
Stephen Hutchison, Head of Partnerships at the FA, said: “We are proud to partner with EE to support grassroots community football clubs through digital and football initiatives, such as the Connected Club Cup 2023.
“I am looking forward to following the finalists’ journeys as they grow in the world of esports, and we hope that the Connected Club Cup continues to inspire many more youth gamers and football fans to get involved with the sport.”
Stephen Hutchison, the FA
Christian Thrane, MD for Marketing at EE, added: “Congratulations to Mariam and Louie for being crowned this year’s Connected Club Cup champions. As part of our ambition to become the UK’s number one destination for gaming, and our commitment to make football and gaming as inclusive as possible, we are pleased to provide a platform for all grassroots gamers to show off their talent and skills.
Through our partnership with the Home Nations Football Associations, and initiatives like the Connected Club Cup 2023, we will continue to help transform grassroots clubs across the country into community hubs”.
For more information on the Connected Club Cup visit battlefy.com/connectedclubcup
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
