Rocket League Championship Series Season 8 Finals Viewer's Guide

The Rocket League World Championship Season 8 Finals kicks off at the Palacio Vistalegre in Madrid this weekend. After an exciting online season, 12 teams have travelled from Europe, North America, South America and Oceania to compete for their share of the $529,500 prize pool and the title of World Champion.

When is the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)? 

The action all starts on December 13th at 2pm UK time (15:00 CEST / 08:00 EST), with the first two days being dedicated to the sixteen group stage matches. The third day is purely allocated to the five playoff matchups, with the precise timings currently unconfirmed.

What’s the format for the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)?

After last season’s three-team groups were met with backlash from the community, Psyonix have opted to return to the double-elimination style of previous World Championships.

This time around, the twelve teams have been split into two groups of six, with the six teams playing in a double-elimination bracket.

The team that finishes first in each group will receive a bye into the semi-finals of the single-elimination playoff bracket, but the teams who finish second and third will have to start from the round of six.

Who’s playing in the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)?

The following teams are attending the RLCS S8 Finals:

• Canberra Havoc
• Chiefs Esports Club
• Dignitas
• eUnited
• Lowkey Esports
• NRG Esports
• Pittsburgh Knights
• Renegades
• Spacestation Gaming
• Team Reciprocity
• Renault Vitality
• The Three Sins
• Veloce Esports

Of Season 7’s top four teams, Renault Vitality are the only side to return this time around.

They’re joined by fellow Europeans Team Reciprocity, Veloce Esports and Dignitas, who are all looking to topple the French powerhouse from the top. NRG Esports’ addition of Pierre “Turbopolsa” Silfver looks to have worked wonders for the Season 5 runners-up, with new kids on the block Pittsburgh Knights, Spacestation Gaming and eUnited shattering NA’s Big Three by sending Cloud9 and G2 Esports down to the relegation spots.

Although all four of the SAM and OCE teams failed to make it out of the group stage last season, Aussie favourites Renegades and former Brazillian titans The Three Sins are well placed to take some victories for the smaller regions. They’re joined by Canberra Havoc, who upset the Chiefs back in OCE to make it to Madrid, and Lowkey Esports, who many would argue are a stronger team than The Three Sins.

Who’s going to win the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)?

Although Vitality are coming into this season as the reigning world champions, Reciprocity, thanks to some monstrous performances from Thibault “Chausette45” Grzesiak, were able to get the better of them in the European playoffs by sweeping them.

Reciprocity’s main rival looks to be NRG Esports, with the aforementioned addition of Turbopolsa turning a side known for not showing up when it matters to one capable of demolishing any team they come up against.

Who’s casting the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)?

The English talent list for the RLCS S8 Finals stream is as follows:

• Brody "Liefx" Moore (desk host)
• John "Johnnyboi_i" MacDonald (sideline reporter)
• Randy "Gibbs" Gibbons (analyst)
• Adam "Lawler" Thornton (analyst)
• Callum "Shogun" Keir (caster)
• Isaac "Turtle" App (caster)
• Caleb "Wavepunk" Simmons (caster)
• Jack "Corelli" Collier (caster)
• James "Jamesbot" Villar (caster)
• Joey "Jorby" Ahrens (caster)
• Michael "Achieves" Williams (caster)
• Jake "strangest_stranger" Friedman (observer)

There are five official sets of talent for this season’s LAN, the highest number ever. The English broadcast sees the return of Callum "Shogun" Keir, making his return to the casting booth for the first time in eighteen months.

He is joined by desk host Brody "Liefx" Moore, sideline reporter John "Johnnyboi_i" MacDonald, analysts Randy "Gibbs" Gibbons and Adam "Lawler" Thornton, and fellow casters Isaac "Turtle" App, Caleb "Wavepunk" Simmons, Jack "Corelli" Collier, James "Jamesbot" Villar, Joey "Jorby" Ahrens and Michael "Achieves" Williams.

Behind the cameras is Jake "strangest_stranger" Friedman, who is observing the action after impressing all season.

However, in the venue, Psyonix have decided to go for a Spanish casting setup, with League of Legends host Ibai Llanos being joined by a mixture of South American and Spanish casting talent.

The other online broadcasts are Rocket Baguette’s French broadcast, ISPO’s German broadcast and Movistar Riders’ secondary Spanish broadcast.

The Spanish talent in the arena for the RLCS S8 Finals will be:

• Ibai Llanos (stage host)
• Rodrigo "Rosdri" Marín (desk host)
• Adrian "ByMateos" Mateos Arana (analyst)
• Felipe "Alternix" Bedoya (caster)
• Abner "Chamako" Custodio Gonzalez (caster)
• Miguel "Dex" Blanco Montoya (caster)
• Marco "Isengard" Montouto (caster)
• Jose Luis "Zakx" Riquelme (caster)

Where can I watch the Season 8 Rocket League World Championship Finals (RLCS)?

There are four official streams for the World Championship that can be found on Twitch: an English stream (RocketLeague), German stream (ISPODigitize), French stream (RocketBaguette) and Spanish stream (Movistar_Riders).