Everything you need to know about The Draft Group Stage
The Draft Super 6 is almost upon us, but first, it's time for the Group Stage.
The teams involved will be battling it out for an opportunity to take part in The Draft Super 6, an innovative event that will take place in Kuala Lumpur this February.
The event, which will feature three teams from India and three from Pakistan, will see those teams take on a mentor from the annals of Counter-Strike to see who can gain the most from a legend and be crowned the best in their region.
Let's take a look at everything you need to know about the Group Stage of The Draft, when it will take place, the teams involved, and where you can watch all the action.
The format
The Group Stage of The Draft will take place in two parts: The Pakistan group and the Indian group.
Both groups, which are made up of six teams each, will take place in a good old-fashioned round-robin tournament.
From those twelve teams, the top three in each group of six will qualify for the Super 6 LAN finals, which are set to kick off on February 8th.
When does the Group Stage take place?
The Group Stage is set to begin on January 27th and end on February 3rd.
In an eight-day event, each nation has been allocated four days and they will play every other day. First up, on January 27th, will be India, then on the 28th, Pakistan. This reverts to India on the 29th and so on and so forth.
Indian teams in attendance
For the Indian Group, two teams had to battle through the Open Qualifiers while four teams received direct invites.
The two teams who qualified from the Open Qualifiers are FIREDUP Gaming and 2EZ Gaming. FIREDUP Gaming are the one to watch, they made light work of 2EZ Gaming following a 2-0 win in the final.
The four teams invited to the Group Stage alongside FIREUP Gaming and 2EZ Gaming are True Rippers, Enigma Gaming, Gods Reign, and KingPins.
The complete team list for the India Group Stage is:
- FIREDUP Gaming
- 2EZ Gaming
- Enigma Gaming
- True Rippers
- Gods Reign
- KingPins
Pakistani teams in attendance
In the Pakistani division, five teams have qualified for the Group Stage from the Open Qualifiers.
Those teams are Pak Boys, Aimstars, Team Mystic, Team VRN, and Come Mid.
Come Mid were the last team to qualify, they had to take down Team Paradox in a fifth-slot decider match. An easy victory for them, they closed out the series with a decisive 2-0 scoreline.
The winner of the Open Qualifier was Pak Boys, who beat Aimstars 2-0 to claim that crown.
The final team to gain a spot in the Pakistan Group Stage will be decided by a direct invite, although that invite slot is yet to be announced.
The current team list for the Pakistan Group Stage is:
- Pak Boys
- Aimstars
- Team Mystic
- Team VRN
- Come Mid
- (6th team to be decided via direct invite)
Where to watch The Draft Group Stage
The Draft is in partnership with NODWIN Gaming, so, just like the qualifiers, head to their Facebook, YouTube, or Twitch to watch the Group Stage.
You don't want to miss any of the action from this one-of-a-kind event.