Since its founding in November 2021, Eintracht Spandau has been shaking up the German eSports scene. Now, the LoL team of popular gaming influencer Maximilian “HandOfBlood” Knabe, aka Hänno, was able to secure an important victory against their rival – however, something else was at stake.
What is behind the derby?
- Eintracht Spandau (short: EINS) likes to present itself like a football club – complete with press conferences and public viewing in the local pub
- Of course, this also includes a fierce rivalry with another club
- This rival was found in BIG (Berlin International Gaming), and the supposed enmity is relished on social media
- Since both teams come from the same region, it is referred to as a (local) derby when they face off – a major event for the rivals
- In the first big city derby, EINS suffered a painful defeat, but since yesterday, it’s 2:2 in the direct comparison between the two teams
What’s behind HandOfBlood’s team, we will show you in the video:
Eintracht defeats rival in thrill derby
What a match it was! On July 26, 2022, the now fourth edition of the big city derby between Eintracht Spandau and their rivals from Berlin International Gaming took place. The two teams were relentless.
BIG got off to a strong start, even securing four drakes. But Eintracht managed to catch up, gained momentum, and ultimately took over the game. However, BIG did not easily concede defeat.
Several times, it looked like a defeat for the Berliners, but they fought their way back into the game continuously. The back-and-forth not only provided thrills and heart racing for the fans:
That Eintracht was able to win the important derby was not least thanks to the performance of their AD Carry Kynetic. This now puts the team in 5th place in the overall ranking of the Prime League.
This is the highest league in the German-speaking region consisting of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The last game week of the current summer split ends this week. Afterwards, the six best teams will head into the playoffs, where they can compete for a spot in the European Masters.
You can also watch the entire game on the Twitch channel of Eintracht Spandau. There, the games are always commented on in an entertaining manner by the in-house streamer Broeki, in the best fan mile style.
For Eintracht, it was about more
What was behind the derby: Eintracht and BIG skillfully stage their rivalry on social media. Häno is sometimes thrown through a table or knocked out by the opposing chairman Christian Lenz in his role as President Knabe:
For the ongoing summer split, both have come up with something special: If either team manages to beat the other twice without the rival winning during the split, the losing team leader must come over and cook for the winner.
For Hänno, this was not just about winning or making it to the playoffs and thus the chance to participate in the European Masters. Broeki put it this way on the team’s Twitch channel: “It’s about decency, it’s about honor!” (via Twitch)
After the victory, it is 1:1 between the teams in the summer split and 2:2 in the overall ranking. Hänno will not have to wield the cooking spoon – which is a pity, as he already had the appropriate pot.
Eintracht wants to take one from BIG
This is how they wanted to hit the rivals: Boerki even went a step further and announced a “hate crime” against the rivals from BIG. They are currently in 2nd place in the table (as of July 27, 2022) and would therefore have the entry to the European Masters secured.
With 12 wins and 5 losses each, BIG and the SK Gaming Prime team share the second place. In case of a tie, team names are usually listed in alphabetical order – a fact that Hänno also took advantage of by simply renaming his team.
With the win, SK still had the theoretical chance to push BIG down to 3rd place. Then the Berliners would have to battle it out with Eintracht in the playoffs for a spot in the Masters – and that’s exactly how EINS wants it.
What happens next?
After their spectacular victory, Eintracht is pretty much guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. Hänno had already announced during the founding of the team that they wanted to compete for the EU Masters long-term and declared that they aimed to win the Masters within two years.
It remains exciting to see whether they can finally fulfill this dream. However, their outstanding performance in the derby should give them some momentum.
While Eintracht Spandau is just starting to ramp up, a major career recently came to an end in the USA: Top laner Huni had to retire from the active roster due to injury and thereby caused quite a stir in his team.
