Arctic Raptors lock in promotion

Arctic Raptors, formerly known as XRAVEL, were somewhat of a sleeper team heading into Season 42, with a team made up of talented, but largely untested players at the Main level.

So, it was a surprise when the team only dropped one match in their run to a second-place finish by the end of the season. This resulted in a high seed and a great chance to get promoted to Advanced. The team would fall short in their first attempt at a playoff run and some wondered whether their season was merely a flash in the pan.

The team would prove those doubters wrong, posting impressive results in other competitions, such as making playoffs in ESL Premiership Autumn 2022, and boasting wins over teams such as 7AM and eMasters.

Having been signed up by Arctic Raptors, they came back for Season 43 with a vengeance. Once again putting together an impressive regular season, dropping only two maps and placing second in back-to-back seasons. On this occasion they would make no mistake in their playoff run, going flawless with their victory over Enhanced Esports, subsequently securing promotion.

This is not only a major step for the team, but it is also a sign of movement in the scene, as Arctic Raptors moving up makes it now six UK teams in Advanced joining 1PIN, ex-ITB, Viperio, 7AM and last seasons promoted UK team, Dripmen, in the division.

There are still two UK hopefuls left with a chance of making Advanced alongside Arctic Raptors, as both ROYALS and The Smiley Boys are still in playoff contention at the moment, though they both have to fight through the tougher lower bracket, after notching up a loss each.

The Arctic Raptors squad is;