This year’s FIFA eWorld Cup final, which will take place on 2nd-4th August, will be held in London, tournament organisers FIFA and EA, who develop the FIFA game series on which the esport is played, have announced. A specific venue has yet to be confirmed.

The 32 finalists (with 16 on Playstation and 16 on Xbox), who have all qualified for the final from the EA Sports FIFA18 Global Series Playoffs, will go head to head in the grand final for a cash prize of $200,000 as well as a trip to FIFA’s The Best awards which take place at the end of the year and honour the best players and goals of the footballing year.

Qualification tournaments for players from all over the world have been whittling the field down over the last few months, and the playoffs in Amsterdam will narrow that down further before the final in London in August.

Over the last few months, we’ve seen more and more major football leagues creating their own FIFA 18 leagues to get involved with esports. The Bundesliga, La Liga and MLS are amongst some of the big-name organisations to create their own tournament, and each have fed into the structure which FIFA is using to crown the best player in August.

So far, some of these leagues have also managed to attract recognisable sponsors to put money behind their tournaments which are going from strength to strength.

Philippe Le Floc’h, Fifa chief commercial officer, said: “Our partnership with EA has elevated competitive FIFA gaming into a worldwide phenomenon that combines the power of football with the spectacle of entertainment in astounding ways. Of course, 2018 is a landmark year for global football with the Fifa World Cup taking place in Russia and a landmark year for competitive gaming ending fittingly at the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018 London, one of the most historic football cities in the world.”

Todd Sitrin, senior vice president and general manager of EA Competitive Gaming added: “The FIFA eWorld Cup Grand Final 2018 will be a signature moment for competitive FIFA after a season-long journey that has engaged millions of players and spectators. In partnership with Fifa, we accelerated the growth of competitive gaming through the EA Sports FIFA 18 Global Series, rallying the global football community together within this singular ecosystem.”