There are few grander demonstrations of eSports' rise than this week’s FIFA eWorld Cup.

No less than 20 million gamers competed for the chance to be crowned world champion in FIFA 18, and only 32 made it to the O2 Arena for a shot at the trophy.

The finalists have not only proven themselves to be in the top 1% of their craft but with a prize fund totalling £190,000, there’s a tangible suspense between each console and within every game.

Although the competition – in its various incarnations – has been contested for 14 years now, it has experienced a meteoric rise in recent instalments.

Brazil’s Thiago Carrico de Azevedo was the inaugural winner, before the tournament came to English shores for the first time in 2005 and has resided in the O2’s famous dome for the past two iterations.

2018 FIFA eWorld Cup

Yet the event remains a distinctly international affair with no less than 60 nationalities represented in the initial qualifying rounds.

Germany are the most successful country with eight qualifiers, while reigning champion Spencer ‘Gorilla’ Ealing and Luke Crafty fly the flag for England.

The likes of AS Roma, Ajax, Manchester City and Werder Bremen are all represented by gamers as football clubs continue to expand their influence in eSports.

Although this premier level of competition is dominated by established players, FIFA have been keen to advertise their philosophy of ‘couch to champion.’

Such is the accessibility of the game that there is the opportunity for anyone to take their FIFA skills from their bedroom to one of the UK’s most prestigious sporting arenas.

What was once a niche event lacking any great publicity, is now at the pinnacle of eSports competition and helping to spread its growing influence into the mainstream.

An intense competitive atmosphere

Its continued rise and popularity – exemplified by lucrative YouTube views and Sky Sports coverage – is beginning to highlight the remarkable preparations that go on behind the scenes.

The competitive FIFA circuit has already procured 30 million views so far this season with last year alone seeing an 80% rise in average viewers. FIFA are certainly justified in their suspicions that 2018 will go onto better that.

Players are joined by coaches at their gaming chairs, supplying them with advice and suggestions as the match unfolds before them and custom tactics are put to the test.

Such are the stakes that dramatic goals spark the kind of celebrations you’d associate with on-pitch strikes as first pumps and shouts fill the booths.

The amount of practice required to reach the top level is simply gruelling.

A number of players prepared with their very own boot camps – one taking place with Bayer Leverkusen – and champion ‘Gorilla’ committed to 10 hour’s worth of daily practice upon the game’s release back in September.

There is also drugs testing taking place at the tournament and FIFA will be monitoring betting behaviour, highlighting the undoubted seriousness surrounding the event.

That’s not to mention ambassadors such as Alvaro Morata, Ruud Gullit and this year Mesut Ozil playing integral roles in proceedings.

Football and eSports' relationship

It goes to show the increasing interactions between football and its presence in eSports, both under the banner of FIFA in the case of the eWorld Cup.

The competition takes place between August 2 and 4, eventually culminating in the Grand Final.

Proceedings begin with a group stage round robin with two leagues across the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, locking horns with their rivals across two-legged fixtures.

The top four from each group then qualify for the last 16 as the competition evolves into a knockout affair.

Players can call upon the squads they use in FIFA Ultimate Team (FUT), allowing them to control a highly individualised starting XI made up of stars both past and present.

Contemporary legends such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo can be seen exchanging passes and providing assists to anyone from Pele to Diego Maradona.

Everything on the line

The minutest of tactical alterations, squad selections or mid-game substitutions could be the difference between suffering a painful defeat or claiming the £190,000 prize.

Beyond the money, however, winning the 2018 eWorld Cup would elevate a player to the pinnacle of competitive FIFA gaming and at its largest competition yet.

They would, in many ways, become the figurehead of an increasing convergence between football and its virtual companion as respect for eSports sky-rockets in line with its growth.

With coaches, associations, sports science and even entire clubs beginning to bridge the gap, mainstream sport will be keenly watching whoever lifts the trophy aloft on Saturday.