Warwick and Roehampton win 2 events each during University Esports 2023 Winter Finals

28 December 2023

A crucial part of developing the industry for esports in the UK at a grassroots level is the university system in the United Kingdom and Ireland. These institutions tend to be hubs for technology, innovation and creativity, filled with young people who are most likely already familiar with gaming, at least in a recreational sense. It’s a potential match made in heaven, which explains why, for example, Access Creative College recently opened a brand-new esports facility in London, and why Williams Racing announced an official student racing league last month. This also explains the growing popularity of University Esports, the biggest university esports season in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Recently, the 2023 Winter Finals were played and we’ve got all of the winners for you!

University of Warwick takes 2 titles

It may not come as a big surprise to those who closely follow university esports in the UK, seeing as the institute was crowned “UK Esports University of the Year” earlier this year, for the fourth year in a row, but the University of Warwick managed to clinch two victories during the University Esports 2023 Winter Finals. The first success came in Overwatch, where the Warwick Angels beat the Euston Outlaws 4 to 1. As if that wasn’t enough, Warwick’s Mama P also took the glory in the event’s first-ever Counter-Strike 2 event, beating Podbots 2-3 in the final showdown.

University of Roehampton surprises with 2 victories

Perhaps more surprising than the two titles for Warwick was the fact that they were not the only school to achieve that feat. The University of Roehampton, situated in southwest London, forced the spotlights to be shared during this year’s University Esports Winter Finals by claiming victories at the Open Valorant and the Rocket League finals. The Roehampton Yetis beat the Bristol Bagres for the Valorant trophy, while the Rocket League final was actually a complete Roehampton affair. In the end, Roehampton Esports Gold came out on top by overcoming Roehampton Esports Black, 4-0.

Warwick tops overall leaderboard

With the end of the Winter Split, we have only come at the end of the first of half of the current University Esports season. As far as the overall leaderboard goes at this moment, the University of Warwick is on top, followed by the University of Bath and University College London. This marks the second year in a row that Warwick leads the line at the season’s halfway mark.

Up next is the University Esports Spring Split, during which all of the participating teams can compete to win more points for their university. It’s at the end of the Spring Split that the overall champion of the thirteenth season of University Esports in the UK will be crowned. The Spring Split, which is set to kick off in February 2024, will also help determine which teams will be competing in the University Esports Masters. The most recent edition of this European event took place in Nottingham earlier this year, but the date for the next edition has not been revealed yet.