We recently talked about the upcoming FIFAe Nations Cup 2022 event, and as we get closer and closer to the event, the hype keeps building up. We all know that with big events, amazing players come with them so it’s important to keep your eyes wide open to not miss any of the greats on the stage. While quite a few players fail to achieve their dreams, there are others in the scene that continue to dominate. One of those players is Argentina’s Nicolas “nicolas99fc” Villalba.
Nicolas is currently a Playstation player for Guild Esports, but let’s take a look at what he has achieved in the most recent years. Four years ago, the 22-year-old caught everyone’s attention with his talent in FIFA 18. Not long after, FC Basel 1893, one of Switzerland’s leading sports clubs, added the young talent to their FIFA roster in October 2018. Nicolas99fc achieved his first success in his new uniform in the FUT 19 Champions Cup December – Finals, finishing 1st on his primary console and 2nd overall.
But that wouldn’t be the last time Nicolas was going to see success. In 2019, Nicolas won the FIFA eClub World Cup 2019, the Gfinity FIFA Series March 2019 and the FIFA Global Series 2019 Playoffs. Nicolas ended up beating LevVinken in the FIFA Global Series 2019 Playoffs grand finals and picked up the $75,000 prize, which is one the highest amounts he’s ever won in a single tournament throughout his career. In addition, he also came second in the FIFA eNations Cup 2019, representing his country Argentina.
In 2020 and 2021, COVID-19 had a huge impact around the world, and that includes FIFA’s professional scene. We started to see big tournaments get canceled one right after the other, players couldn’t find a logical destination to grind. Nicolas’ performance was also affected, and after 2 good years, he had down periods.
Now in 2022, things are getting back to normal, and with that, we also saw nicolas99fc on the rise once again. He took part in the eChampions League 2022 back in May, and defeated strong opponents one by one to win the title and $75,000. Immediately after, he made it to the finals of the FIFAe World Cup 2022 in July out of 32 players, but had to settle for second place, losing 5-4 to RBLZ Gaming’s Umut in the final.
After 2 years at a low level, one of the most talented names in the professional FIFA esports scene has made it back to the top. This season he looks stronger than ever. While we didn’t see him in the FIFA Club World Cup, we are definitely seeing him and team Argentina at the FIFAe Nations Cup 2022.
He will represent his country in the main event in 2v2 mode on 27-30 July. More importantly, his arch-nemesis from the World Cup, Umut “Umut” Gültekin, will be there to represent Germany as we enter another potential duel of the FIFAe gods this week, which is one you can’t miss.
