The first European team has been confirmed for the $100,000 North American LAN.

DBL PONEY have qualified for ESL Challenger Anaheim 2022 after defeating Savage 2-1 in the grand finals of the European closed qualifier. The rematch of the upper bracket finals saw the French squad double down on their opponents to secure their second-ever LAN appearance.

The Frenchmen are the fourth team to qualify for the event and will be joined in the Californian city by ORDER, 9z, and Extra Salt. Four additional teams will be invited to round out the roster for the opening ESL Challenger tournament, taking place between February 11-13.

Djoko dominated Savage on Vertigo with a 2.43 rating

Savage opened up the series on their own map pick of Ancient, setting the early tempo after converting the opening pistol and earning a 5-0 advantage. DBL PONEY started to claw back at the Swedish lead after settling in their defense, with the Frenchmen finishing the half 9-6 ahead thanks to the firepower provided by Lucas "⁠Lucky⁠" Chastang. The Swedes looked much more comfortable on the CT side, retaking control of the map with a seven-round winning streak before securing their pick 16-13.

Vertigo was a much more straight forwards affair. The Frenchmen of DBL PONEY walked over Savage's defense with very little resistance, ending the first half ahead 13-2 as Thomas "⁠Djoko⁠" Pavoni collected 21 frags in the offense. DBL PONEY wasted no time in forcing the decider, converting the second pistol round and closing 16-2.

DBL PONEY's early advantage on Inferno was short-lived as a Deagle 3k from Denis "⁠grux⁠" Gutaj prevented Alexandre "⁠bodyy⁠" Pianaro and co. from running away with the game. The two squads were close going into halftime as a late stumble from the Swedish offense allowed the French squad to limit the deficit to 7-8. The turning point came in round 22 as a crucial 1v3 Pierre "⁠Ex3rcice⁠" Bulinge broke the CT economy, putting DBL PONEY in the perfect position to claim the map 16-12 and the series 2-1 after a chaotic last round.

ESL Challenger Anaheim 2022 Europe Closed QualifierBest of 3 DBL PONEYMatchpage 2 1 13th December 2021 Savage 13Ancient 16 16Vertigo 2 16Inferno 12

DBL PONEY	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Aurélien 'afro' Drapierafro	57 - 40	+17	70.5	1.23
Thomas 'Djoko' PavoniDjoko	55 - 45	+10	83.7	1.21
Alexandre 'bodyy' Pianarobodyy	55 - 53	+2	83.5	1.18
Lucas 'Lucky' ChastangLucky	46 - 41	+5	71.2	1.03
Pierre 'Ex3rcice' BulingeEx3rcice	47 - 53	-6	64.5	0.96

Savage	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Hugo 'chawzyyy' Güntherchawzyyy	53 - 50	+3	73.1	1.05
Denis 'grux' Gutajgrux	53 - 56	-3	83.3	1.05
Adam 'dezon' Wahlqvistdezon	42 - 50	-8	69.8	0.91
Niclas 'PlesseN' PlessenPlesseN	43 - 51	-8	66.4	0.83
Simon 'twist' Eliassontwist	38 - 54	-16	60.0	0.80

The team list for ESL Challenger Anaheim look as follows:

Extra Salt
9z
TBD
TBD ORDER
DBL PONEY
TBD
TBD Extra Salt #22 Edgar 'MarKE' MaldonadoJohnny 'JT' TheodosiouRicky 'floppy' KemeryJosh 'oSee' OhmJustin 'FaNg' Coakley 9z #44 Bruno 'BIT' Fukuda LimaMaximiliano 'max' GonzalezFranco 'dgt' GarciaMartin 'rox' MolinaSantino 'try' Rigal Alexandre 'bodyy' Pianaro Age: 24 Team: DBL PONEY Rating 1.0: 0.98 Maps played: 1203 KPR: 0.67 DPR: 0.68 Savage #46 Simon 'twist' EliassonNiclas 'PlesseN' PlessenDenis 'grux' GutajAdam 'dezon' WahlqvistHugo 'chawzyyy' Günther Denis 'grux' Gutaj Age: 22 Team: Savage Rating 1.0: 1.01 Maps played: 425 KPR: 0.70 DPR: 0.68 Lucas 'Lucky' Chastang Age: 23 Team: DBL PONEY Rating 1.0: 1.04 Maps played: 1086 KPR: 0.69 DPR: 0.64 DBL PONEY #28 Alexandre 'bodyy' PianaroLucas 'Lucky' ChastangThomas 'Djoko' PavoniPierre 'Ex3rcice' BulingeAurélien 'afro' Drapier Thomas 'Djoko' Pavoni Age: 24 Team: DBL PONEY Rating 1.0: 1.01 Maps played: 365 KPR: 0.69 DPR: 0.68 Pierre 'Ex3rcice' Bulinge Age: 21 Team: DBL PONEY Rating 1.0: 0.96 Maps played: 191 KPR: 0.63 DPR: 0.65 ORDER #66 Ricardo 'Rickeh' MulhollandKarlo 'USTILO' PivacJireh 'J1rah' YouakimMatthew 'Valiance' HartrickDeclan 'Vexite' Portelli