Darragh Harbinson reports on the Counter-Strike UK & Ireland Circuit (UKIC) League Season 4 Division 1 finals between Verdant and Belfast Storm, before sharing his opinion on the UKIC and the state of UK CS.
Verdant continue domestic dominance following tight UKIC contest in Sheffield
Verdant defeated Belfast Storm in a pulsating three-map contest to claim the UKIC League Season 4 Division 1 trophy this evening.
With Storm Darragh raging outside (and reporter Darragh writing inside – Dom), Verdant kept their composure in rough winds to silence Belfast Storm, who came within inches of claiming their first domestic trophy.
In a scintillating contest, Verdant and Belfast Storm traded their map-picks of Nuke and Dust2 before Verdant finally managed to take the series in a third Inferno overtime at Endpoint’s Praccrooms facilities in Sheffield.
Verdant’s domestic dominance looked under threat as they conceded map point at a stage, but their experience and depth protocols paid dividends as they closed the map out 22-20.
The win sees Verdant win back-to-back UKIC Division 1 titles, having defeated Dreams To Legends at Birmingham’s LogiPlay facility in September. The roster also claimed victories at Epic 42, Epic 43 and Insomnia 72. The victory is yet another confirmation of their supremacy in the UK scene.
Verdant achieved the feat without their star AWPer Remi ‘diviiii’ Alexandre. The UK org have been no strangers to playing with stand-ins in the second half of the year, having fielded various competitions with James ‘bevve’ Slinn, William ‘dobbo’ Dobson and (most commonly) leaf.
However, diviiii’s absence in such a vital match raises the question of his future in the roster. In effect, diviiii’s absence was not too bitterly felt as leaf provided a strong performance in the final, having struggled to assert himself in previous Verdant showings. Despite the success, it is unclear whether this Verdant line-up will become permanent, with the team continuing to experiment with various role swaps in an attempt to return to their best.
As for Belfast Storm, they were only competing in their second UKIC League season as an organisation, having re-entered the scene in July. It was a heartbreaking defeat but they can be proud of their progress having been knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Season 3 playoffs.
Their run to the final this time was a major achievement for the organisation, who used the final as a chance to have a local watch-along in the well-known Belfast bar, The Botanic Inn.
Having only signed Lucian ‘devi’ Manolache and Karl-Hendrik ‘tsutskam’ Palu in October, the roster looked more confident with each stage of the competition.
While it wasn’t the fairytale ending Belfast Storm wanted, they can look back at how hard they pushed Verdant as a positive sign for the future.
Is the UKIC League successfully filling the hole left by ESL UK’s withdrawal?
With the final representing the completion of UKIC League’s first calendar year, Darragh Harbinson looks at how well the UKIC League is making up for the loss of ESL UK Premiership last year, in this opinion column.
With the cessation of ESL’s National Championship programme at the end of 2023, the UK lost a vital pathway to the European, professional level. ESL Premiership victories led to spots in qualifiers, which could then lead to Tier-1 events such as IEM Cologne and Katowice Play-ins and the ESL Pro League.
Initial talks were held for a replacement set of national leagues which would integrate with the CCT circuit, but plans fell through.
In the absence of other opportunities, a proposal was made to UKIC owners and operators: UK stalwarts Endpoint. UK tournament admin, Finn ‘Mischief’ Farrer, wished to create national and collegiate leagues which would fill the gap left by ESL Premiership, while allowing teams to progress through a pyramid structure.
Matching Endpoint’s goal to expand and support the UK scene, the plan was approved and branded UKIC League with the first season, ‘Season 0’, starting in the Winter of 2023.
‘The UKIC is achieving the goals we set out for it’
With its first full calendar year completed, is UKIC League successfully filling the gap that ESL Premiership left? UKIC League manager, TJ ‘FFACT’ Caffrey, believes that the league is matching its ambitions.
FFACT said: “Overall, I think it is achieving the goals we set out for it to achieve. I think in the first season, Season 0, we kicked off with about 80 teams.
“This season was our best yet with 93 teams from the get-go. So our goal is just to provide opportunities for teams and players to play and have fun and then also for the top teams to be competitive, especially with the lack of ESL National Championships nowadays.”
TJ ‘FFACT’ Caffrey, UKIC
With 240 total teams across the five seasons, five LAN finals, and £18,750 in prizes awarded so far, UKIC League is continuing to grow and intends to expand its senior and collegiate formats again next year.
The platform is therefore creating a stable platform for competition at all levels, allowing a basis for investing in teams and their growth through competition.
UKIC League benefits from having four seasons in a year compared to ESL Premiership’s two, allowing for more officials for teams as well as progression up the pyramid. The result is that British and Irish teams play each other much more frequently, creating rivalries and storylines which can then be promoted on social media to further fan engagement.
The competition also allows top teams and players to showcase themselves by qualifying for the HLTV-featured semi-finals and grand finals.
UKIC League also provides a key avenue for UK broadcast talent to grow and improve, with live LAN finals in both studio environments and in front of a live audience.
British casters, Harry ‘index’ Bayliss and Tim ‘TIMMO’ Musters, have become the voices of UKIC, casting the last three UKIC LAN finals – including the Season 3 final which was played in front of a crowd at Birmingham’s LogiPLAY facility.
TIMMO spoke to Esports News UK about the opportunity UKIC represents for talent: “It means a lot to be able to cast in front of a crowd so early on in my casting career… Getting reps in, in front of crowds, is so important to get that experience, as at the end of the day the goal is to one day cast in arenas.
