The home of the last 3 world champions is coming back, as the BLAST R6 circuit begins with a new format and lineup changes.

Format

Europe League group stage schedule, Image: Ubisoft

Like the rest of the leagues, Europe’s league will be played between 10 teams, separated into 2 groups of 5. The Group stage begins with four best-of-1 matches between teams within the same group. The top 3 teams will then be moving on to the playoffs, the 1st place seed from each group will advance directly to the semifinals; leaving them with only 1 series to play in phase 2 of the Six Major.

The second-placed seeds from each group will face off against the 3rd seeds from the other. The loser of this duel will be out of the running for a direct invitation, and will have to play in the closed qualifier. In the Semifinals, the losers face each other, and the winner of this duel goes straight to phase 1 of the Six Major.

Group A

Virtus.pro

Prediction: Candidate for 2nd place

The Virtus.pro tag is back in Rainbow Six: Siege, and ironically, made up of players from their Russian "rival"; Team Empire. Virtus.pro signed Empire’s trio who’d played in several championship finals; "dan", "JoyStiCK" and "ShepparD". Anyone who has seen Team Empire at their peak, knows they’re still in the running to achieve good results, even being left out of the top in the last tournaments.

Virtus.pro’s lineup for Europe League Stage 1:

Pavel “p4sh4” Kosenko
Dmitry “Always” Mitrahovich
Danila “dan” Dontsov
Danil “JoyStiCK” Gabov
Artur “ShepparD” Ipatov

G2

Prediction: In the fight for 1st place

The reigning Six Invitational champions need no further comment. The didn’t look their best in 2022 — even with 5th-8th in Charlotte and Berlin. They were out of the Major in Jönköping, and they lost Ben "CTZN" McMillan to Soniqs; replacing him with "Benjamaster". And the result of that? After 3 years the organization returns as a favorite in Rainbow Six: Siege

G2’s roster for Europe League Stage 1:

Jake “Virtue” Grannan
Karl “Alem4o” Zarth
Jack “Doki” Robertson
Byron “Blurr” Murray
Benjamin “Benjamaster” Dereli

Heroic

Prediction: In the fight for 3rd place

Heroic have undergone several lineup changes in recent seasons, but they’ve still achieved success; including at the Six Major Charlotte and Jönköping. Which took the team to the finals of the European championship (where they lost to Team BDS in the semifinals). And at the Six Invitational, where despite falling early in the playoffs, they showed good teamwork and there is hope from their fans for a good performance.

But with the departure of the team’s standout player in Montreal, Adam "nudl" Hryceniak, along with two more players, Heroic have been forced to change their lineup again.

Here’s Heroic’s lineup for Europe League Stage 1 according to current rumors:

Maxime “Meloo” Cahagnet
Jake “Sloth” Brown
Alexandre “BlaZ” Thomas
Jamie “Skiddy” Diamond
Jordan “Kayak” Morley

Team BDS

Prediction: In the fight for 1st place

Media Day for the Six Invitational 2023, Image: Ubisoft/ericananmalay

The team had a good season in 2022. Champions of the Six Major Jönköping in Stage 3, and conquering the top 8 at the Six Major Charlotte. But on the other hand, they had a lower-than-expected Six Invitational, with 4 defeats in the competition. In comparison, in Stage 3 of 2022 the team lost only 5 games in total. They continue with the same lineup, and with the quality and performance of their players, they’re a favorite to qualify for the BLAST Major Copenhagen.

Check out the Team BDS lineup for Europe League Stage 1:

Olivier “Renshiro” Vandroux
Stéphane “Shaiiko” Lebleu
Bryan “Elemzje” Tebessi
Loïc “BriD” Chongthep
Théo “LikEfac” Mariano

TT9

Prediction: In the fight for 3rd place

The organization that hired Dmitry "Scyther" Semenov’s project at PWNZ, today abandons the idea of a 100% Russian lineup. Instead fielding an international team. The team has the legend "Kantoraketti", "Prano", formerly of G2 and the potential star and former Wylde player "Gsla".

TT9’s roster for Europe League Stage 1:

Luke “Kendrew” Kendrew
Juhani “Kantoraketti” Taivonen
Marko “Gsla” Pilia
Noah “NoaUrz” Urwitz
Kevin “Prano” Pranowitz

Group B

Wolves

Prediction: In the fight for 1st place

The team had a regular season, playing in all 3 Six Majors that took place. And at the end of the season they still managed to conquer the top 6 of the Six Invitational. But for this first stage they arrive with a change to their lineup, the departure of "risze". Filling his spot is "DEADSHT", a player who stood out in the EUCL 2022. Even with the roster shuffle, we’re expecting them to put up a good fight for the spot in the Six Major.

Check out the Wolves’ lineup for Europe League Stage 1:

Bastien “BiBooAF” Dulac
Yanis “Mowwwgli” Dahmani
Nicolas “P4” Rimbaud
Axel “Shiinka” Freisberg
Jimmy “DEADSHT” Vojtasik

Wylde

Prediction: In the fight for 3rd place

This will mark Wylde’s first time competing in a Tier 1 tournament in Europe. They arrive with two well-known players; "AceeZ" and "Hungry". The two Germans have already participated in Tier 1 for a few years, and AceeZ has even been featured in the past. In addition to their experience, the team brings the youth and talent of "Jeggz". Even though Wolves aren’t not favorites in the competition, they’re a team with a lot of talent to try for a place in BLAST Major Copenhagen.

Check out the Wylde lineup for Europe League Stage 1:

Peter "pacbull" Bull
Maurice “AceeZ” Erkelenz
Lucas “Hungry” Reich
Jesse “Jeggz” Ojanen
Edoardo “T3b” Treglia

MNM

Prediction: In the fight for 1st place

Media Day for the Six Invitational 2023, Image: Ubisoft/ericananmalay

After a strong run at the Six Invitational, all eyes are on what MNM is going to do in Rainbow Six: Siege Season 8. Keeping the same lineup as the last tournament, the team that passed without losing a map in a difficult group with two teams from the Top 4 of Jönköping arrives as one of the favorites to qualify for BLAST Major Copenhagen.

Check out MNM’s lineup for Europe League Stage 1:

Josh “Yuzus” Pritchard
Leon “neLo” Pesić
Luke “Tyrant” Casey
Fatih “Solotov” Türker
Nathan “Nafe” Sharp

KOI

Prediction: Candidate for 2nd place

KOI experienced some great moments in 2022— after the arrival of "Spoit" to the lineup— where they won the Six Major Berlin, qualified for the Six Invitational and finished 6th place in the competition. But now it’s 2023, and they no longer have "Spoit" or the legendary "Kantoraketti" in the lineup. One of the new additions is the "nudl", who was highlighted by Heroic during the Six Invitational. There’s no doubt they're a team still worth watching in this stage.

KOI’s roster for Europe League Stage 1:

Pascal “cryn” Alouane
Tom “Deapek” Pieksma
Leon “LeonGids” Giddens
Jake “Leadr” Fortunato
Adam “nudl” Hryceniak

Team Secret

Prediction: In the fight for 3rd place

Team Secret didn't have many great moments in 2022, but they have something that motivates them for the 2023 season: the qualification for the Six Invitational through the European Qualifier. The team secured their spot in the most important Siege tournament by facing teams they’ll encounter during this season. It’s an extra reason to believe they can dream. Despite not winning past matches, all their duels were well-fought and showed that Secret's level is good enough to hold their own. Definitely a team to keep an eye on in this first stage.

Alex “SlebbeN” Nordlund
Lucas “Savage” Alves
Reece “ASTRO” Lambert
Dawid “Gruby” Marciniak
Joe “YZN” Pardoe

The Europe League starts on March 13th on Rainbow6's official Twitch and YouTube channels.