Refreshed Proximus ePro League kicks off in February

Next month, the search for Belgium's EA SPORTSTM FIFA 23 champion begins. On the 8th of February, the e-players representing the 18 Jupiler Pro League clubs will begin competing in the fifth edition of the Proximus ePro League with a new more competitive format. Whoever wants to take the title will have to be top in every match.

"Shorter, more powerful and duels with higher intensity. That is what the new format of the Proximus ePro League stands for," says Lorin Parys, CEO of the Pro League. "Previous seasons still featured a regular competition, but this year we are splitting the 18 Jupiler Pro League clubs into two pools. From matchday one, it's make or break for everyone. Moreover, we are making the road to the official FIFAe World Cup significantly shorter. The Pro League thus takes further steps in esports, which in the meantime already reaches 37% of Belgians."

The Proximus ePro League kicks off on 8 February, with one day of play every Wednesday. Today, all clubs went into the drum for the group draw. The result is two strong groups, with last year's finalists - Gilles Bernard (KRC Genk) and Quentin Vande Wattyne (Standard de Liège) - in Pool A. In Pool B, we are especially looking forward to newcomer Kinane Al Nabhani, who won the selection tournament at R. Union Saint-Gilloise.

On the opening day of play, we immediately get a replay of last season's semi-final, between Standard de Liège and KAA Gent (Pool A). Defending champion Bernard gets another week of extra preparation time, as he has a bye for the first week.. After eight match days, the top four of each group will advance to the knockout phase. There it will be decided who will be crowned champion of the Proximus ePro League 2022-23.

Apart from the honour, there is a lot at stake for the e-players this year. The two finalists of the knock-out phase will qualify for the EA SPORTS FIFA 23 Global Series Play-Ins. This gives the prospect of advancing to the FIFAe World Cup.

All the matches of the Proximus ePro League, as well as tips & tricks from e-players and other fun content, can be watched again from Wednesday 8 February on Eleven Sports and the Pro League channels.