FCB Nicolas 99 is the Grand Champion of the Gfinity FIFA Series January

FC Basel Esport’s Argentinean star Nicolas 99 is the Gfinity FIFA Series Grand Champion after beating M10’s Resende in an epic cross-console final.

How did he take the title? Let’s go back to the start of the playoffs to recap how it all happened…

ROUND OF 8

16 of the top Xbox & PS4 FIFA 19 players in the world entered the Gfinity Arena for the second and final day of the January Series and with no room for mistakes, the Xbox side of things kicked things off with Tim Latka putting an end to DullenMike’s heroic run in the tournament with a score of 4-3.

Brazilian star, M10 Resende eliminated PSG Rocky 4-3, Goal Machine sent Aboazza home with a 6-5 win, and the man of the moment, the double champion F2Tekkz defeated PSG Daxe 3-2 with a last minute goal.

On PS4, FCB Nicolas took on Wolves Fifilza, his first Brazilian foe of the day. Fifilza put up a good fight, but was eliminated 5-4.

M10 Ustun eliminated ProHunter 10-6, xLevVinken sent NBD home with a final score of 2-1 and two Spanish champions faced each other to conclude the round, with the victory going to Andonii, who beat JRA Lion 2-1.

SEMI FINALS

The first Xbox semi-final saw M10 Resende go up against Tim Latka. The Schalke 04 Esports pro found the back of the net on 3 occasions, but it was not enough to stop Resende, who displayed incredible skill and won 5-3, securing his place in the Xbox Final.

The second semi was between Rogue’s Goal Machine & F2Tekkz. F2Tekkz took the lead, but Goal Machine was able to rally back and took victory with a decisive  6-3 win.

This was the second time F2Tekkz had been eliminated from a Gfinity FIFA tournament by a Rogue Esports pro, having lost in December to current eWorld Cup Champion, Msdossary.

FCB Nicolas took on M10 Ustun in the first PS4 semi-final, and dominated from beginning to end, securing a 5-1 win and his place in the final.

Andonii & xLevVinken were pretty even throughout their entire match and with the game finishing 3-3,  it went to penalties to decide the winner. xLevVinken kept his composure and went on to win 4-3.

CONSOLE FINALS

The Xbox Final was a one-sided affair with M10 Resende scoring in the opening moments and racing to a five goal advantage over Goal Machine and all but putting the game beyond doubt..

Goal Machine came back much better on the second half, scoring 3 goals to put a little pressure on Resende but it was too little, too late. The skilful Brazilian managed to hold-off the Canadian with a goal that proved to be the nail in the coffin. With the match ending 6-3, M10 Resende was crowned the Xbox champion.

Xbox Champion: M10 Resende

The PS4 Final featured heavy favourite, FCB Nicolas, who was aiming to win his second consecutive PS4 title at the Gfinity Arena. And the FIFA Gods were shining down as he took the title with a 3-1 win against xLevVinken.

PS4 Champion: FCB Nicolas

One of the greatest football rivalries took place as Brazil & Argentina went head to head for the title of Grand Champion in the cross-console grand final!

THE GRAND FINAL

The cross-console battle started on PS4, and, as expected, Nicolas took the lead. Resende couldn’t force a comeback, and the first leg ended in favour of the Argentinean.

On the Xbox leg,  Resende found his rhythm and the back of the net but Nicolas carried on from where he left off and managed to remain in control.

With a cold and calculated performance, Nicolas beat Resende 5-2 and become the cross-console Grand Champion of the Gfinity FIFA Series January.

He is the first back to back FIFA 19 PS4 Champion in the FIFA 19 Global Series & the first PS4 Champion to defeat an Xbox Champion in the cross-console finals.

Relive every kick from the Gfinity FIFA Series January via our Twitch channel - twitch.tv/gfinitytv