Introducing the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate UK Team Cup 2019 – 2020!

The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate European Team Cup 2019-2020 season has begun, continuing the unique competitive style that begun with this year’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Smash Ball Team Cup 2019. With a final set for 2020, Nintendo UK is on the search for its most smashing trio to represent the UK & Ireland in this European competition!

This tournament uses a three person team setup and rules that pit combatants against each other in a unique Best of Five series. The Best of Five includes a 2v2 scrap, three 1v1 matches played in Smashdown mode and, if a winning team is still yet to be decided after four matches, a 3v3 Elimination Squad Strike*. The big tweak to the 2019-2020 season rules is that the Smash Ball is no longer incorporated in this ruleset, putting a bigger emphasis on those fundamentals!

The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate UK Team Cup 2019–2020 will take place over a series of seven events, offering both offline and online fields of battle*. The important thing is that all competition is team-based, so you can’t succeed alone! More details about specific events will be shared soon.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate UK Team Cup 2019-2020 Qualifiers:

All events will offer one instant qualification spot to the winning team with the exception of the Last Chance Qualifier which will offer two spots. This is done to ensure that players will not need to attend multiple events to guarantee their place in the Grand Final. The Grand Final will be livestreamed at Twitch.tv/NintendoUK.

Thanks to the team-based nature of this format, and the emphasis on being skilled with a variety of characters, the tournament held earlier this year offered some very unique examples of competition. To get a taste of this format, check out the final between DAT Team and The TPs here:

So if you have your eyes on that final destination and think you have a troupe destined for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate stardom then get practising, follow @NintendoUKVS on Twitter to stay up to date with the championship, and good luck! See you on the battlefield…

Looking for a team?

Are you a solo smasher in need of some sidekicks? We recommend reaching out to the following unofficial communities to help you find allies and rivals alike:

Nintendo Players UK – Find local, unofficial Nintendo Communities near you. Also found on Facebook, Twitter, and Discord.

SmashUK Community – Meet fellow UK & Ireland based Super Smash Bros. fans. Found on Facebook and Twitter.

_{*offline and online rules vary slightly due to limitations of online match setup. Please refer to online tournament pages, once live, for the full online rules.}

Rules regarding players, teams and qualification:

Eligibility

Anyone is able to enter a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK Championship qualifier, however you will need access to a Nintendo Switch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and an active Nintendo Switch Online paid membership 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 upon request.

On Qualified Teams

Once a team wins in a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 qualifier event, that team and its members are immediately qualified with a Top 8 position in the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK Finals taking place in April 2019. 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, stocks remaining upon match conclusions, 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 three core 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 unforeseen circumstances players may wish to leave a team even after it qualifies for the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK 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 regarding the updated team roster.

Note: If two or more members 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 2019/2020 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 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK Championships.

Concerning Unqualified Players & Team Switching

Until a team manages to qualify for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK Final 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).

If you have any specific queries about the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Team Cup 2019/2020 UK Championship, please get in contact by sending an email to NintendoCommunity@Nintendo.co.uk.