You must join the Discord server before competing in any matches.
You must have a way of capturing screenshots and uploading them to Battlefy.

1 Eligibility

1.1 Definition

An Arena Cup participant is a player that participates in the Arena Cup Season. With their participation, the participant states that he understands and accepts all rules.

1.2 Player Eligibility

Players must be aged 16 years or older in order to play in this tournament.

1.3 Additional Eligibility

Arena Cup’s FIFA21 tournament will take place on PlayStation and Xbox. All players MUST use their own PSN Account with PlayStation Plus, or Xbox Live account.

The account submitted in the roster form must be used for the entire tournament.

2 Tournament Glossary

All rules in this rule set apply to both the PS4 and Xbox tournaments unless specifically stated otherwise.

2.1 Game, Series, Match

Throughout this rulebook, and documentation relating to this tournament, the terms Game, Series and Match will be used extensively – it’s important to familiarise yourself with these terms and how they are used in the context of the FIFA21 Cup format to avoid potential confusion.

• Game

A game is classified as the most basic stage of the competition. A game consists of 1 In-Game Football Match in FIFA21.

• Series

A series is class as a collection of multiple games for example 3 games would be called a best-of-3 Series. An aggregate match of 2 games is referred to as a series.

• Match

A match or fixture is the pairing of two players against each other in a round of the tournament. It can be made up of multiple series.

2.2 FUT

FIFA Ultimate Team is the mode used for the Arena Cup. There are restrictions to what players can include in their squad. They are as follows:

• Your squad's overall rating must be 84 or lower as calculated and shown in-game.
• Your squad can include up to a maximum of 2 ICONs total, including your bench.
• All players on your squad, including your bench, must have an overall rating of at least 75 each.
• You cannot have a player with an overall rating above 84 on your bench.

3 Tournament Stages

3.2 Qualifier

3.2.1 Tournament Format

The Qualifiers format varies depending on player attendance. If the tournament is Double Elimination players compete until they have either lost 2 matches, or have reached the top 24.

• 24 - 32 players - Swiss
• 33 - 128 players - Double elimination bracket

3.2.2 Match Format

Players will compete in a Best of 1 (Bo1).

3.2.3 Progression

The top 24 players from the qualifier will progress onto the League Stage.

3.2.4 Score Reporting

All Scores are reported on battlefy.com. Players are responsible for reporting their own scores and recording proof of their scores.

3.3 League Stage

3.3.1 Tournament Format

The League Stage will run as Round Robin. Each player will play one match against each other player. Standings will be based on matches won. Tiebreakers will be used in the following order:

1. Head to head record
2. Goals difference

3.3.2 Match Format

Players will compete in a Best of 1 (Bo1).

3.3.3 Progression

The top 4 players will advance to the Playoffs.

3.3 Playoffs

3.3.1 Format

Playoffs will run as a Single Elimination bracket.

3.3.2 Match Format

Players will compete in a 2-game series, the combined scores from both games in the series will be counted as the overall aggregate score. The winning player will be the one with the highest aggregate score in each series

If players manage to draw the series on aggregate, they will need to play a tiebreaker game. Please refer to 3.2.3 Aggregate Tiebreaker

3.3.3 Aggregate Tiebreaker

Players start a third game. This game will immediately end when 1 goal is scored under Golden Goal rules.

If at the end of the standard game the score results in a 0-0 draw, then extra time will be played. Extra time will immediately end when 1 Goal is scored.

If at the end of extra the score still results in a 0-0 draw, then a Penalty Shootout will be played.

4 Match Setup

4.1 Battlefy

Players must use the match chat in their Battlefy match page for all communication about their match.
All results are reported through Battlefy. The winner of each match is responsible for submitting the score

Any disputes must be raised through Battlefy.

4.2 Online Game Procedure

The following steps outline the process of playing a Match.

1. Players will have to add each other as Friends on PSN prior to playing
2. Players select who hosts the lobby, players can mutually agree or use a coin flip.
3. One player sets up a Friendly Seasons lobby in the FUT mode menu and invites their opponent.
4. Players are given 3 minutes to decide formations
5. The Players play the match
6. At the end of the Game players should take a screenshot of the final score on their phone or other device.
7. The winner of the match submits the score uploading that screenshot as proof

4.3 Breaks

After each game a player may take a maximum of two minutes to join the next game.

5 Bugs and Glitches

It is up to the tournament administration discretion whether the use of said bugs had an effect on the match, and what penalty they will incur. Admins should pause the game and report these to the representative as soon as possible.

5.1 Rehosting

Rehost rules are specified below, including the conditions in which they will be allowed:

• Any issue in the first 30 seconds of the game, if the affected player has not scored.
• Game mechanic not working as intended - rehost up to the first 30 seconds of the action phase, if no goals are scored from either side.
• Disconnect/hardware problem/software problem - rehost in the first 15 seconds of the game.

Each Player can receive up to 1 rehost per series maximum.

If a player requires a rehost and meets the above criteria, they must leave the match and inform their opponent on Battlefy.
If the issues cannot be resolved within 10 min, the affected player will forfeit the match. The affected player must inform an admin that the issue is resolved prior to the start of the next match.

5.2 Connection Issues

If players are unable to connect to a game within 10 minutes of the scheduled start time, that game will be declared a draw. Both players will receive one tournament point.

6 Title Specific Infractions

Definitions for all penalties can be found in the Arena Cup Infractions and Penalties Guide.

6.1 Score Clarification

If a Game is forfeited, or a Game Loss is issued, the game will be scored 3-0 to the opponent, regardless of the current score in game.

If a Series is forfeited, or a Series Loss is Issued, the series will be scored 6-0 to the opponent, regardless of the current score in game.

6.2 Failure to Attend

Penalty: Game Loss

Players must be ready to play at the start of each scheduled round.

Up to 5 minutes may be used if difficulties occur in regard to getting players in-game. If it is likely a player is either going to be late or miss the scheduled start time, then the arena staff must report the fact to their player’s opponent’s Admin.

If a fixture has not started 10 mins after the scheduled start time due to a player not being in attendance on time, then they will receive a Match Loss.

6.3 Using Training Consumables

Penalty: Game Loss

Players are not allowed to use training consumables in Arena Cup matches. Any player found using a training consumable on his squad will receive a Game Loss

6.4 Custom Formations

Penalty: Warning

Players are not allowed to use custom formations in Arena Cup matches. If a player uses a custom formation, they will receive a Warning. A second warning of this type will be upgraded to a Game Loss

6.5 Use of Bugs and Glitches

Penalty: Match Loss

Any player found using a Bug or Glitch to gain a competitive advantage will receive a Match Loss.

6.6 Rehosts

Penalty: Game Loss

Giving an invalid reason for a rehost, or leaving the match before having approval to do so will lead to instant game loss to the player that uses it.

6.7 Leaving a Game

Penalty: Warning

If a player leaves a game voluntarily before the final whistle, they will receive a warning. Additionally, 3 goals will be awarded to their opponent, these will be added to their opponents’ current goals, regardless of current score and match time.

6.8 Using another player's account

Penalty: Disqualification

If a player is found to be using an account which they do not own to compete in the tournament they will be given an immediate disqualification and the account will be reported to EA for breaking terms of service.

6.9 Unlisted Penalties

If an admin or player believes a rule has been broken and there is no assigned punishment for it, they must contact the representative as soon as possible with details and evidence. The representative will judge the case and assign a penalty if required