SINGAPORE, 20 APRIL 2020 – Singapore will be represented in the inaugural FIFA eNations StayAndPlay Cup, an international esports FIFA20 tournament that is part of a global initiative between EA SPORTS and FIFA.

 

Tampines Rovers midfielder Joel Chew and Team Flash representative Amraan Ghani – a professional eSports player – will team up to fly the Singapore flag. The FIFA eNations StayAndPlay Cup will kick off on 21 April and will see participation from 53 of FIFA’s Member Associations (MAs) spread across three regions – West, Central and East.

 

Singapore has been drawn against Australia and New Zealand – two regional eSports powerhouses – in Group B of the East region and kick off their campaign against Australia at 7pm SGT on Tuesday, 21 April, before taking on New Zealand at the same time on Wednesday, 22 April. The games will be streamed “live” on the Football Association of Singapore’s Facebook page, which can be accessed HERE.

 

Each MA will be represented by a FIFA20 professional eSports Player and a MA representative (professional footballer, ambassador, celebrity etc). Each match will be played twice: once between the eSports players and the other between the MA representatives from each of the opposing countries.

 

In the event Singapore finish in the top two, they will proceed to the knockout stage on Friday, 24 April and face one of the top two from Group A, which comprises Japan, Malaysia and Taiwan.

 

Chew, who made his professional debut last year with the Stags, has played the game since the 2007 iteration but only started spending more time on it when the 2016 edition came out.

 

“I’m honored and excited to represent Singapore at this tournament as not many people get the chance to do so,” said the 20-year-old, who averages seven hours a week in gaming time.

 

Amraan has played FIFA since the 2012 edition and spends a weekly average of 15 to 20 hours honing his skills.

 

“It’s an honour to represent Singapore in this tournament,”the 26-year-old said. “I will try my best and do our country proud.”

 

The duo are relishing the opportunity to display their skills on an international stage and have set their sights on progressing to the semi-finals.

 

“I’ve been working on my skills and my teammate is good at the game as well,” Amraan said. “I’m quietly confident that we can progress to the next round although the countries in our group are highly rated in Asia.”

 

Should they make it through the semi-finals, Joel and Amraan will be involved in the culmination of the StayAndPlay Cup on Saturday, 25 April, which will see the final of each region – East, Central, West – take place in a hours-long broadcast that also includes entertainment in the form of live music, community engagement, interviews and guest hosts.

 

The FAS wishes Joel and Amraan all the best!