Introducing the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018!

Attention UK Inklings and Octolings of all style and skill! Following on from European champions BackSquids finishing as runners-up in the Splatoon 2 World Championship at E3 2018 last week, the search for Europe’s best Splatoon 2 squad starts anew in the Splatoon 2 European Championship’s 2018 - 2019 season, culminating in a live grand final in spring 2019. As such, Nintendo UK is turning its attention back to home soil…

That’s right, the United Kingdom and Ireland need to find their representative for the European stage once again, and so the search to find the best squid squad is back on in the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018! What’s more, we’re pleased to announce that 2018 will see an extended tournament series at multiple events and this year, for the first time, the UK championship will offer multiple age divisions!

New for this 2018 series will be the introduction of the Octo League and Inkling League. Octo League matches will be played in ranked game types in best of five matches, this league is open to teams of all ages. The Inkling League is a new division specifically for squads of younger players aged 13 and under, with matches played as Best of Three in the Turf War game type.

While Team 4D’s recent victory at MCM Comic Con London 2018 fast-tracks them to the grand final, the first official Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 qualifier will take place on Saturday 28 July 2018 at the first ever @NintendoUKVS Live event, @NintendoUKVS Live: London. For more information about this event, including how to register your team for the tournament, or just how to get tickets to attend this event, please check out the @NintendoUKVS Live: London announcement here.

Between this event and the others listed below, 7 Octo League teams and 4 Inkling League teams will be found to take part in a grand final this November, where the top squads in both age divisions will be crowned as the Splatoon 2 UK Champions 2018. The winners of the Octo League will then go on to represent the UK at the Splatoon 2 European Championship 2018/2019 final next Spring!

Splatoon UK Championship 2018 Qualifiers:

All events offer instant qualification to the winning team, meaning that teams will not need to attend multiple events to secure their place in the grand final which will be held at a special @NintendoUKVS Live event in November.

A lot has changed in Splatoon 2 since its launch last July, including new maps, modes, weapons and even the Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion, which adds playable Octolings for the first time.

Not that these changes did much to disrupt the mighty Team 4D, who won the recent MCM Inkling Open with extreme confidence, showing a squad back on form following their defeat at the Splatoon European Championship earlier this year. Will Team Mako return to contest their reign? Or could we see a fresh squad rise through the ranks over the coming months to challenge the UK’s supreme splatters? And ultimately, can a UK and Ireland team topple the mighty BackSquids of Germany, the Splatoon 2 World Championship runners-up? Whatever happens, be sure to tune in at Twitch.tv/NintendoUK, where we will be livestreaming footage from all qualifier events, and follow @NintendoUKVS on Twitter, to keep up to date with all of the exciting competitive UK Splatoon 2 action as it unfolds over the year!

Octo League Qualifier 1: MCM London Inkling Open

Congratulations to Team 4D on becoming the first team to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 Grand Finals!

Octo League Qualifier 2: Nintendo UK VS Live: London

Congrats to Donald Gamers on becoming the second team to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 Grand Finals.

Octo League Qualifier 3: Online Open #1

Congratulations to Inkxiety Sirens, who qualiied for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship after winning the first Online Open.

Octo League Qualifier 4: Insomnia63

Congratulation to Team Mako, the fourth team to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 Grand Finals.

Octo League Qualifier 5: EGX 2018

Congrats to Inklings Anonymous on becoming the fifth team to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 Grand Finals.

Octo League Qualifier 6: Online Open #2

Congratulations to Drunken Sailors, who qualiied for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship after winning the second Online Open.

Octo League Qualifier 7: MCM London Comic Con

Congrats to Ducklings on becoming the seventh team to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 Grand Finals.

Rules regarding players, teams and qualification:

_Eligibility

_{Anyone is able to enter a Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 qualifier. You do not need to own a Nintendo Switch or Splatoon 2 to enter an offline event, however the purchase of an entry ticket may be necessary. You will need access to a Nintendo Switch, Splatoon 2, and an active Nintendo Account to take part in an online qualifier. It is recommended that you register for events as a full team, as groups of players will be prioritised over individual players if a tournament is close to reaching its maximum number of participants.}

_{Tournament Rules}

_{A full list of tournament rules, concerning a variety of topics including rulesets, player behaviour, and requirements from participants, will be available at any event upon request at the tournament registration desk.}

_{On Qualified Teams}

_{Once a team wins in a Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 qualifier event, that team and its members are immediately qualified with a Top 8 position in the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 finals taking place in November 2018. A qualified team’s seeding within this Top 8 will be based on their performance in the season to date including, but not limited to, factors such as games won, games lost, number of games won via KO, number of games won via time out, and skill of teams faced.}

_{As the team is qualified there is no need for further competition in UK Qualifiers and any attempts at entry will be rejected. Additionally, players for qualified teams are prohibited from competing for other teams, as they are already registered as a part of their qualified team.}

_{Regarding Substitute Players}

_{A team is allowed one substitute player on top of their four key players. This substitute player is considered a qualified member of that team, and is therefore held to the same rules and restrictions as the core members of that qualified team mentioned above. Substitutes must be registered no less than 24 hours ahead of the start of the first event at which the player will be a substitute, by contacting NintendoCommunity@Nintendo.co.uk. Once a substitute is registered, they will remain as that team’s substitute until further notice. Substitute players cannot be drafted during a tournament. Players cannot be swapped during a match.}

_{Ruling Regarding Players Leaving Qualified Teams}

_{We accept that due to a multitude of potential unforeseen circumstances players may wish to leave a team even after it qualifies for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 final. If a player wishes to leave a qualified team they must personally send an email to NintendoCommunity@Nintendo.co.uk stating as such. A specific reason does not need to be supplied. A remaining member of the team will be contacted for an update regarding the updated team roster.}

_{Note: If 50% or more members leave a qualified team leave a qualified team then the remaining players will be considered as a new team, therefore forfeiting the team’s qualification spot to the team that placed second in the tournament at which they achieved qualification. If the team that placed second has subsequently qualified, the spot will go to the team that placed third. If they have also qualified it falls to the team in fourth. This process continues until the spot is filled.}

_{Previously Qualified Players & Future Competition}

_{Allowing for unforeseen circumstances as mentioned above, the first time a player leaves a qualified team they may enter as part of a new, unqualified team. However there are two stipulations for previously qualified players which are as follows:}

• _{1. A previously qualified player may not re-join the team that they leave. Once a player leaves a team, this is a permanent decision for the remainder of the 2018 season.}

• _{2. If a previously qualified player does achieve qualification again with a second team and then subsequently chooses to leave this team as well, then they will not be permitted to take part in any further activities within the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018.}

_{Concerning Unqualified Players & Team Switching}

_{Until a team manages to qualify for the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018 its players are considered free agents. As long as a player is not part of a qualified team then they may attempt qualification with any other players at as many events as they wish (obviously accepting that they may only enter a qualification tournament as a member of one team). Please note that not continuing to play alongside previous teammates could affect any seeding position that a competitor may feel entitled to receive, as initial seeding decisions of pre-registered teams for future tournaments will be based on the performance-to-date of teams as a group of players rather than as individuals due to the team-based nature of Splatoon 2’s gameplay.}

_{If you have any specific queries about the Splatoon 2 UK Championship 2018, please get in contact by sending an email to NintendoCommunity@Nintendo.co.uk.}