RLCS Fall Split Major: A Great Start to the 22-23 Season

Despite the fact that 2022 is not yet at an end, the next season of the Rocket League Championship Series is already well underway with their first Major of the year! Sixteen of the best squads in the world came together in Rotterdam for some top tier games, and they definitely haven't disappointed.

With the growing popularity of Rocket League also comes an increase in the skill, talent and production value of their tournaments. With a much larger prize pool up for grabs, the competition was really tough. It’s not just a case of who can score the best goal these days. Let's take a look!

Teams - the best of the best

While many fans may have had their eyes on Team BDS after their surprise win at Worlds, they would be a touch disappointed here! BDS didn't manage to qualify for the Major, which gave some others a chance to shine. It's not clear exactly when BDS will be playing again but we can only assume they'll be taking to the stage for the Spring season!

The 16 teams that got to take part are:

• Karmine Corp
• Oxygen Esports
• Gen.G Mobil1 Racing
• Team Secret
• Version 1
• Team Liquid
• G2 Esports
• FaZe Clan
• Spacestation Gaming
• Moist Esports
• PWR
• The Club
• Team Falcons
• Quadrant
• Pioneers
• James Cheese.

It's always a treat to see such a huge range of teams from different backgrounds go up against each other. It just goes to show that despite a treacherous road to Rotterdam, some younger players can stand against the most famous orgs in the world.

Regardless of who you support, you can't deny that everyone put on a great show. The sheer volume of clutch goals has kept fans right on the edges of their seats. Keeping your mental in such a high stakes environment is never easy so if nothing else, all teams deserve respect!

Group stage - some close games

It may be a little controversial, but some fans may have been surprised to see inconsistent Karmine Corp storming through the group stage go end on 9-1. It's actually not that often that we see them topping the leagues. However, their place is very well deserved. Dropping only 1 game is no mean feat! Unfortunately, though, they didn’t manage to continue the streak in the playoffs.

Similarly, Oxygen Esports weren't far behind, dropping only 2 games in groups. While Spacestation Gaming proved to be the thorn in Karmine's side, it was G2 Esports who almost managed to take down Oxygen.

This tournament has also seen an almost unprecedented amount of British and American players take to the stage. Rocket League is the one game that teams from these regions really seem to shine and while they might not have gone the full way, competing in any Major is a huge achievement.

Playoffs - a real nail biter

The semi finals saw the top four teams taking to the stage. Having fought so hard to get where they were, it really came as no surprise that they were doing everything in their power to score those goals when they really counted. There were no clean sweeps in the best of 7s, which meant a lot more excitement for fans.

In the end, it came down to previous Major winners Moist Esports and Gen.G Mobil1 Gaming. As a brand new team with very few tournaments under their belt, perhaps it was the fact that Moist simply didn’t have the data to build a perfect strategy against Gen.G. After an incredible 4 - 2 series that felt pretty even, Gen.G finished the day with 3 goals to 2 in Neo Tokyo and won the Major.

What's next for Rocket League?

In the wake of the Grand Finals, teams will be moving onto the next stage of the RLCS. If they’re half as exciting as this Major, fans are in for a real treat!

While there is a long road ahead before they'll make it to the World Finals in August 2023, Gen.G Mobil1 Racing are off to a great start after collecting 32 RLCS points in Rotterdam. There are still 2 more Majors to come before then and everyone knows that slow and steady wins the race.

If you can't get enough of Rocket League, there are also a lot of collegiate games ongoing. Who knows, perhaps you'll be seeing some of the college players competing in the Split Majors in years to come.

Image source: Psyonix