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Series and Main Event both exceed their guarantees

PokerStars’ has once again smashed expectations in Southern Europe, with the Galactic Series, one of its most popular series for players in France, Spain and Portugal, generating an €8 million prize pool, over €1 million above the guarantee. The prize pool was shared out across 261 events and more than 343,000 entries. The highlight of the series was the Main Event that paid out €365,025 to players across the three weeks.

GALACTIC STAR BATTLES FOR SILVER AND GOLD PRIZES

Throughout the series, players had the chance to get their hands on additional Silver and Gold Passes by opting-in to the Galactic Stars Battle. Players opted in for a PokerStars Ambassador, and all those who chose to support the leading Ambassador each week being entered into a freeroll to win a Silver Power Pass.

In Spain, captains ‘WilloelPillo’ and ‘and1ero’ saw a similar pattern. Willo was victorious in weeks one and three with 327,805 and 250,763 points respectively while Álex ‘and1ero’ Romero took the advantage in week two with 318,631 points and Esteban ‘estiwinho’ Pascual couldn’t reach the top spot in any week.

Silver and Gold Passes can be redeemed as entries to a range of PokerStars Live events throughout the year, including marquee stops at the European Poker Tour (EPT) and the PokerStars Open, which debuted this year and have provided players across Europe with world class poker at accessible price points with lively, grassroots-style atmosphere and entertainment. Closing out the season, EPT Prague starts December 3 and runs until December 14, and will be followed by PokerStars Open Cannes on December 16. Players with Gold or Silver Passes can redeem them for entries at both of these events.

“Once again, we’ve seen players from all over France, Spain and Portugal come together to enjoy the Galactic Series”, said Sandro Forleo, Head of Poker Operations for Southern Europe and Italy at PokerStars. “Our Mega Mystery events, where bounties can be won as soon as late reg closes, proved especially popular and continued to offer something new and enjoyable to players at all experience levels.”

The post POKERSTARS GALACTIC SERIES PAYS OUT MORE THAN €8 MILLION TO FRENCH, SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE PLAYERS appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Commemorating the start of the tournament, a new in-game update arrives and fans can take part in a campaign launching today in eFootball

Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. (Konami) announces the FIFAe World Cup 2025 featuring eFootball. Kicking off on December 10th in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the official eSports tournament is hosted by FIFA® for a live audience and live streamed worldwide. This year marks the second edition of the tournament where a record of 90 countries and regions participated in the preliminaries totalling 16.51 million participants.

eFootball official website: konami.com/efootball…

FIFAe World Cup 2025 is an official eSports world championship co-hosted by Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA®). This year 12 national representatives emerged victorious from regional qualifiers and will now compete in the console and mobile divisions for the tournament’s highest honours and be crowned champions.

For the console division, it will be held in a 2v2 format with players participating in teams of three whereas the mobile division will be a 1v1 format. Both divisions will feature players from 12 different countries where they compete through a group stage and knockout stage before battling it out in the finals.

To celebrate the start of the tournament, users can participate in an eFootball campaign and can obtain free special items. Logging in during the campaign period rewards users with different items.

Additionally, users also receive one player item each day from a curated special player list. Users can also take on a Squad Challenge Event where clearing challenges with specific rules will reward them with various items. The campaign period is from December 4th – December 18th.

Coinciding with this campaign, a new game update has been implemented to adjust game balance and adds various features and gameplay elements to enhance the experience. A new particular feature analyses in-game player tendencies and adds an “Advice” feature where players and coaches provide feedback in real-time that could serve as a catalyst for improvements in tactics.

Another feature is the “Analysis” which aggregates and analyses the results of each user’s last 10 PvP matches and visualises their playstyle via comparison graphs and data against opposition from Division 1 – Division 4 users.

Also being introduced to this update is Ronald Koeman receiving the “Link-up Play” feature. Ronald Koeman possesses the “Aggressive Centring A” Link-Up where the “Centrepiece” is in possession of the ball, the “Key Man” will actively make runs towards goal from crosses. Activating this Link-Up increases the accuracy for high and low crosses as well as direct shots from those passes from the “Centrepiece” to the “Key Man”. Legendary player items such as “Epic: David Beckham” and “Epic: Jan Koller” meet the activation conditions and are now available in-game from December 4th – December 11th.

Other features and improvements include:

• “Auto Control” which allows the AI to take control when the user is not actively playing. • Adjustments in speed and acceleration for defenders by reducing the extreme disparities against speedy players.
• Acceleration during latter periods of a match with decreased stamina has also been fine tuned to allow players with decreased stamina to maintain their reaction speed even with a reduced stamina.
• Alterations to the “Defensive Awareness” parameter where defenders with high “Defensive Awareness” can now keep up with opponents more effectively even if their acceleration stat is lower.

Access the viewing page from ‘eFootball’ and watch the broadcasts for the Console Division and Mobile Division to earn up to 2,500eFootball points.

Day 1-3

• Console / Mobile
• Viewing Reward: 500 eFootball Points

Day 4 Final

• Console:
• Viewing Reward: 1,000 eFootball Points
• Mobile:
• Viewing Reward: 1,000 eFootball Points

The post The eSports World Tournament FIFAe World Cup 2025™ Kicks-Off in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 10! appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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A total of six players will be selected for the six-month program, running from January to June 2026, following the finals of the talent hunt

Selected athletes will receive professional coaching, fully funded participation in Tier-1 international tournaments, complete travel support, a monthly stipend, and integration into S8UL’s content ecosystem

Mumbai, December 4, 2025: S8UL, a global powerhouse in esports and gaming content, has announced a landmark initiative for India’s fighting game community (FGC) with the launch of a first-of-its-kind Talent Hunt Program for Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6. Running from January to June 2026, the six-month program aims to identify and develop India’s next breakthrough fighting-game athletes through a structured, high-performance ecosystem and position the country prominently on the global FGC map.

Unlike traditional talent hunts, S8UL’s initiative is designed as a development pipeline, focusing on long-term athlete growth rather than one-off competition. From a wide pool of participants across the nation, a total of six players, including two for Tekken 8 and four for Street Fighter 6, will be scouted and selected solely based on their performance in the nationwide qualifiers and finals.

Selected players will receive one of the most comprehensive support structures ever provided in India’s competitive FGC space, including:

• A dedicated professional coach for each game throughout the six-month program
• Fully-funded participation in a minimum of three international Tier-1 tournaments
• Comprehensive travel support covering flights, accommodation, meals, local transport, and tournament registration
• A monthly stipend to ensure athletes can focus entirely on training and performance
• Integration into S8UL’s industry-leading content ecosystem, offering visibility, narrative-building, and community reach to both the players and the fighting game titles

Speaking about the program, Animesh Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO, S8UL Esports, said, “India’s fighting game community has shown tremendous potential but players have rarely had access to a structured environment that supports long-term growth. Through this Talent Hunt Program, we want to change that by giving selected athletes professional coaching, international tournament experience, and the day-to-day support they need to improve. This is not just a short-term project for us—it’s the beginning of a sustained effort to help build a strong foundation for fighting games in India and give our players a fair chance to compete on the world stage”

S8UL today stands as the only Indian esports organization competing across nine leading titles, and it has begun establishing a strong foothold in fighting games as well. After becoming the first Indian team selected for the Esports World Cup’s Club Partner Program, S8UL competed in qualifiers for titles such as Fatal Fury and Tekken 8, underscoring its long-term commitment to the FGC ecosystem.

S8UL’s state-of-the-art gaming house is one of India’s most advanced training and content facilities built to global esports standards. The setup includes structured training schedules, dedicated practice zones, content studios, analytics support, and a high-performance environment that drives discipline and growth. For the FGC Talent Hunt athletes, this access will be transformative. They will train like professional competitors while also learning to build their personal brands through content, storytelling, and community engagement, preparing them to become both top-tier players and future esports personalities.

With fighting games gaining momentum worldwide through major events such as EVO, the Esports World Cup, and the Asian Games, S8UL’s initiative arrives at a crucial moment for the Indian esports ecosystem. The Talent Hunt Program is poised to play an important role in positioning India as a rising force in the global FGC landscape.

Players interested in participating can register here – start.gg/tournament/s8ul-gauntlet/details?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleAOeRm5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAacpQXYhiJrLqlKmzwd17yHb8kmDHaXK8HAYTh5ltYtSyZqF5OSnaP6oHxgrtw_aem_ps-_uz-8aMSR5Nqa3IgPjA

The post S8UL launches India’s first-ever FGC Talent Hunt Program to discover the next stars in Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.