First stage of UEFA eEURO 2021 mapped out

The qualifying draw for UEFA eEURO 2021 – the second edition of the largest efootball national-team competition – took place on Monday 8 February.

The 55 participating national teams were divided into ten groups of either five or six teams for the initial phase of the competition, which will be contested over four Monday Matchdays on 15 March, 29 March, 12 April and 26 April. Gamers compete exclusively on Konami's eFootball PES 2021 Season Update on Playstation 4.

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How qualifying works

Every country plays two matches each (1-vs-1) against the other nations in their group; points from both matches will be added to the group table. The ten group winners qualify directly for the final tournament scheduled to take place in London on 9 and 10 July. The ten runners-up take part in a play-off tournament on 10 and 17 May to determine the other six finalists.

A total of €100,000 in cash prizes will be split between all the finalists, including €40,000 for the winners.

Italy took the top honour in the inaugural UEFA eEURO in May 2020, overcoming Serbia 3-1 in the best-of-five final. "It's incredible," said Italy player AlonsoGrayfox after the decider. "I still cannot believe we did it – it's a dream."