Update (October 17th 2023): UK League of Legends team Brod & Friends have been added to the UKEL 4 Nations Autumn 2023 teams line-up in Division 2, following calls for them to be added.
The UKEL clarified: “Brod replace Vulpine Esports [who dropped out] and will play their remaining fixtures. The results of these fixtures will not count towards the final standings to maintain competitive integrity.
“Brod will work with the UKEL to showcase Division 2 through match streams and other content. At the end of the split, Brod will not take Vulpine’s place in relegation, which will instead be awarded to an additional Open Qualifier team. Brod must play through Open Qualifiers to qualify for spring.”
The news comes after Brod recently signed Trizzy to their roster.
Original article (October 2nd 2023): The full list of UKEL 4 Nations Autumn 2023 teams for Division 2 have today been finalised, following the launch of Div 1.
Division 1 is already underway, with Belfast Storm, DMG UK, Lionscreed, Ruddy Painkillers, Arcadeia, Tempest Gaming, Venomcrest Serpents and Verzik Esports having competed for a few weeks since the September 18th 2023 start date.
We interviewed tournament organisers back in July on the UKEL’s return, bringing back 4 Nations to UK & Ireland League of Legends esports and building a central hub for the community.
Now, the UKEL 4 Nations Autumn 2023 teams for Division 2 have been revealed. They include org-less mix team Diamond 4 Gamers, Exe Machina (featuring a mix of Exeter Uni students and alumni) and the Lionscreed Lionesses, who are the first ever women’s team to qualify for the UKEL.
In Division 2 there’s also Nuclear Vikings, Paragon, R3volt Chemtech (who acquired the spot of G5 Esports, who declined after qualifying) and Rize Gaming. Rize acquired this roster and the spot of NXT, who also declined after qualifying.
Vulpine Esports were also due to play as one of the UKEL 4 Nations Autumn 2023 teams for Division 2, after claiming the Sons of Ivern roster, but the org dropped the team, with the roster falling apart, leading to a forfeit of all remaining fixtures.
Some called for Brod & Friends to take the place of Vulpine’s eighth slot, with the likes of Ruddy Esports, Tyrin, Akkers, Syn, Genmly and more calling for it.
You can hear more from some of these in our recent UK LoL i71 interview with Ruddy Painkillers, Cabbage Corp and Brod & Friends here.
Esports News UK has contacted the UKEL organisers for their reaction to calls for Brod & Friends to play in the UKEL, and will update this article if we receive a comment.
Update: Organisers said the reason for not replacing the team is that Vulpine had already played three matches before they informed the UKEL about dropping out.
The UKEL said replacing a team at this point ‘would affect the competitive integrity of the tournament, due to some teams having played them while others had not’.
That concludes the UKEL 4 Nations Autumn 2023 teams for Division 2 news.
UK LoL veterans return for UKEL Autumn 2023 – interview with Brixton of Arcadeia
The UKEL has seen some UK LoL veterans taking part from the early days of UK League esports, with the likes of Tyrin on Ruddy Painkillers, and Brixton on Arcadeia, plus FastLegged on Venomcrest Academy, to name a few.
We caught up with mid-laner Brixton to ask about playing competitively again.
He said: “It’s been good fun – I’ve definitely missed there being some stakes, and playing and winning as a team is always a really nice time.”
So what’s the plan in the UKEL, is it just for fun?
“Yeah it’s quite different for me to the first time around,” Brixton answered. “Back then, like most people I had the dream of going pro and cared a lot about that. But now I’m purely playing because I enjoy it. I wanted to scratch the competitive itch again.
“I’m not looking to coast by any means. I still owe it to my teammates to work hard and improve and be the best I can be. We are all here to win the league. But now there’s no personal pressure. I’d love to do well and feel the rush of winning, but if I crash and burn I won’t be too sad.”
“I’m really happy with the roster. The atmosphere is just what I was looking for. I think compared to most teams we’re on the older side, which probably helps a bit. But everyone is talented and motivated; we’re all invested in each other’s success and our success as a team. And they’re all big cuties.”
Brixton, Arcadeia
In terms of Brixton’s background in League, he said: “I’ve been playing a long time – I played since beta and first hit ‘high elo’ in season 3. I ended up finding and building a UK team in 2014 through the league forums, where we competed in the UK scene and the original iteration of the Riot 4 Nations.
“Over the next couple of years I played on various EU and UK teams but never found a huge amount of success, and ended up quitting the game for a while before my final year of university. I came back a while later and have just been playing casually on and off since.”
Brixton is joined by top-laner SynapseSprinter, jungler TeaTime, support player Gaylaxy and ADC Blank. All of the team are British except for ADC Blank, who is Croatian.
“I’m really happy with the roster,” Brixton added. “The atmosphere is just what I was looking for. I think compared to most teams we’re on the older side, which probably helps a bit. But everyone is talented and motivated; we’re all invested in each other’s success and our success as a team. And they’re all big cuties.”
Related article: Venomcrest and Lundqvist Lightside promoted to NLC Spring 2024 Division 1, Aurora Cup prepares to kick off, Ladder System details revealed
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.
