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  The ECL is the pinnacle of European NHL esports. The abbreviation stands for the European Championship League and it features NHL 6v6 esports in five divisions aimed at various skill levels. Every player, including the goalies, is controlled by a human. League games are played in the EASHL mode and the platform is PlayStation and Xbox. ECL has been played since 2015, so the upcoming season is already the 21st. The latest addition to the ECL product family is a 1v1 tournament, where Europe's best solo players fight for the championship. ECL 1v1 has been played since the ECL '23 Winter season.   Basic information/requirements of ECL: Regional restrictions: ECL is a European tournament format, however, we do not necessarily exclude players located in North America or Asia. A European server will always be used. We reserve the right to exclude teams or players in case of severe connection issues.   Individual requirements: Each player needs to have an account at SportsGamer.GG and create their personal player card.   ECL licenses: Teams in ECL Elite & ECL Pro, ECL Lite, and ECL Core will require their respective ECL ‘26: Spring team licenses in order to play. In addition, every player in the above-mentioned divisions needs to have a valid ECL ‘26: Player License or ECL ‘26: Winter Player License before taking the ice. Players in ECL Neo require only an ECL '26: Spring Neo Player License. More information about licenses will be available in the "Sign up now" article, coming soon.   Rules: The ECL '26: Spring rulebook will be an updated version of the '26 Winter rulebook and will be shared soon. The Spring season will be played without Abilities.   The divisions framework for the ECL ‘26 year will follow the same logic as for previous seasons. We will have a total of five divisions with the following team allocation: Elite 16 teams Pro 32 teams Lite 64 teams Core (up to) 128 teams and Neo 32+ teams.   Please refer to this ECL Ranking in order to understand which teams are eligible to sign up for each division. Generally speaking, teams that are new to the ECL will start in the Neo or Core division. However, it is possible to apply for the ECL Lite if you believe you can compete at that level.   Don't have a team yet? Team looking for additions to your roster? If you are a free agent looking to be picked up, please head over here. If you are representing a team looking for players, please head over here.     Hall of Fame: The ECL Champions so far ECL 6v6: ECL 1: Nordic Blizzard ECL 2: Mukimiehet ECL 3: X Factor ECL 4: Laser HT ECL 5: Aapon Taikasauva ECL 6: Carlsberg HC ECL 7: FILADELPHIA ECL 8: Written In the Stars ECL 9: Linköping HC ECL 10: HAVU Gaming ECL 11: FILADELPHIA ECL 12: hREDS ECL '22: Grand Champion: hREDS ECL '22 Winter: hREDS ECL '22 Spring: hREDS ECL '23: Grand Champion: Tunnel Vision ECL '23 Winter: Tunnel Vision ECL '23 Spring: Tunnel Vision ECL '24: Winter Champion: hREDS ECL '24: Spring Champion: Tunnel Vision ECL '25: Winter Champion: Parasite ECL '25: Spring Champion: Last Dance ECL '26: Winter Champion: Tohtorit   ECL 1v1: ECL '23: Winter: Sisu "sisu33_" Nurminen ECL '23: Spring: Väinö "Pikkarii" Pikkarainen ECL '24: Grand Champion: Teemu "Temppanen" Karvonen ECL '24: Winter: Erik "EkiOriginal" Tammenpää ECL '24: Spring: Väinö "Pikkarii" Pikkarainen ECL '25: Spring: Teemu "Teemuyy" Polttila ECL '26: Winter: TBC on Thursday 12.3.2026

SportsGamers, This news story is intended to help understand the ECL Ranking for teams at the end of the ECL '26: Winter season. This ranking determines the eligibility for teams entering various divisions this upcoming ECL '26: Spring season.  Below you will find a list of teams that have secured a division spot at the Elite, Pro, or Lite league level. If you didn't find your team on the list, don't worry! You can apply for a wildcard spot for your team in the Pro qualifiers or apply to the Lite, Core, or Neo divisions, which are open to everyone. Please note that the Qualifiers will be starting very soon, and the registration time will be short, so start mentally and psychologically preparing for them as we look to release the details regarding the ECL '26: Spring season. Season registration is now available by clicking here.   Elite 1 Elite 🏆 Tohtorit 2 Elite 🥈 vNexs I 3 Elite 3 HAVU Gaming 4 Elite 4 GOONS 5 Elite 5 Mythix 6 Elite 6 Umpikuja 7 Elite 7 KUUSAMO.gg 8 Elite 8 ROBE Esports 9 Elite 9 AFTERLIFE 10 Elite 10 Polski Boys 11 Elite 11 Tiki x Pwolle 12 Elite 12 Kastikekauppa Esports 13 ▶ Elite 13 EXEN/F0CUS 14 ▶ Elite 14 SSK ESPORTS 15 ▶ Elite 15 Vizio 16 ▲ Pro 🥇 POGGERS       Elite Qualifiers (if needed) 1 ▼ Elite 16 VESUVIUS ESPORTS 2 Pro 2 Unique 3 Pro 3 Finnish Roosters 4 Pro 4 EXEN/F0CUS 5 Pro 5 Puck Over Glass 6 Pro 6 GREATEST 7 Pro 7 xBots 8 Pro 8 Aspyre             Pro 1 ▼ Elite 16 VESUVIUS ESPORTS 2 Pro 2 Unique 3 Pro 3 Finnish Roosters 4 Pro 4 EXEN/F0CUS 5 Pro 5 Puck Over Glass 6 Pro 6 GREATEST 7 Pro 7 xBots 8 Pro 8 Aspyre 9 Pro 9 Carpe Diem 10 Pro 10 NOSTREETSPORTS 11 Pro 11 vNexs II 12 Pro 12 MoDo Hockey 13 Pro 13 Deadly Phantoms 14 Pro 14 SSK Prospects 15 Pro 15 Otukset 16 Pro 16 Rusty X 17 Pro 17 Vesuvius Academy 18 Pro 18 Turun Gasellit 19 Pro 19 Brynäs IF Esport 20 Pro 20 The Oldtimers 21 Pro 21 REIVILUOLA 22 Pro 22 HC Lugano eSports 23 ▲ Lite 🥇 Renegade IHC 24 ▲ Lite 🥈 Wida 25 ▲ Lite 🥉 Conexion   Pro Qualifier Wildcard procedure has been updated Anyone can now apply to play in the ECL '26: Spring - Pro Qualifiers by checking the appropriate box during season registration. While the Wildcard restrictions have been lifted and there are no absolute requirements for applying, League Administration will still review Qualifier Applications (identified by PRO QUAL REQ on the registered teams page). As such, teams with more experience still have a better chance of making the cut and playing in the Qualifiers. All teams will be notified once the decisions have been made. To be properly evaluated for the Qualifier spot, please have your full roster in your SportsGamer ECL '26: Spring roster as early as possible. The number of available Wildcard spots may vary depending on the quality of the applications.   What if all Pro Qualifier positions are not filled? Teams will not be promoted straight, and all open spots will be filled through qualifiers (excluding automatically relegated/promoted teams). If there happen to be more open spots than anticipated (e.g., from teams disbanding, which would have been invited to play in the qualifier), spots are filled as follows: Pro relegated teams Wildcard teams Lite #17-32 Pro Qualifiers 1 Pro 23 Golden Sticks 2 Pro 24 DEG eSports 3 Pro 25 Lemmenvelhot 4 Pro 26 NOVA 5 Pro 27 Pasilan SKA 6 Pro 28 Including Me 7 Lite 4 Tinted Visors 8 Lite 5 vNexs Vipers 9 Lite 6 Fallen Rangers 10 Lite 7 Kokemus Puuttuu 11 Lite 8 Hockeyholics 12 Lite 9 Veterankraft 13 Lite 10 Supernatural 14 Lite 11 Pata Hellalla 15 Lite 12 HC KOROBKA 16 Lite 13 HC VADELMA 17 Lite 14 M3 Esports 18 Lite 15 SSK Academy 19 Lite 16 Bladerunners HC 20 Wildcard   21 Wildcard   22 Wildcard   23 Wildcard   24 Wildcard         Lite 1 ▼ Pro 29 Saucer Hockey 2 ▼ Pro 30 Sunne IK Esport 3 ▼ Pro 31 Jagrs in Paradise 4 ▼ Pro 32 6 MAN AVALANCHE (DNF) 5 Lite 17 VBO STARS 6 Lite 18 Sopranos 7 Lite 19 KELAGOLDCARD HC 8 Lite 20 HC Nova Hut 9 Lite 21 ARMEIJAN KURI 10 Lite 22 TROJANS 11 Lite 23 Jurricanes 12 Lite 24 SSK Adepts 13 Lite 25 Invasion Hockey 14 Lite 26 Macho HC 15 Lite 27 Nordic Nosebleed 16 Lite 28 Hc Kasapallo 17 Lite 29 German Ice Gladiators 18 Lite 30 Eisbaeren Gaming 19 Lite 31 MIELENSAPAHOITTAJAT 20 Lite 32 MIESKISSAT 21 Lite 33 Game Over Esports 22 Lite 34 Silver Sword Griffins 23 Lite 35 TeNo 24 Lite 36 Dynamo IHC 25 Lite 37 FatBurritos 26 Lite 38 Iserlohn Roosters eSports 27 ▲ Core🥇 HC Lisko 28 ▲ Core 🥈 HC Punishers 29 ▲ Core 🥉 German Elite Hockey 30 ▲ Core 4 Chlastpumpy 31 ▲ Core 5 German Elite Hockey 32 ▲ Core 6 Chlastpumpy 33 ▲ Core 7 Torspot 34 ▲ Core 8 Hungry Bears 35 ▲ Core 7 HCP eSports 36 ▲ Core 8 Pullasorsat HC   All teams without an Elite, Pro, or Lite league spot can participate and choose to apply for ECL Lite without restrictions. There will be no ECL Lite qualifier for ECL '26: Spring, but a maximum of 64 teams can participate in the season, so signing up on time is encouraged. Spots will be filled in the order of registration. As always, League Administration will monitor sign-ups and reserve the right to step in to make sure teams don't sign up too high or low compared to their perceived skill level.