London,
06
September
2018
|
09:06
Europe/London

EE RIPS UP THE RULEBOOK FOR THE EE WEMBLEY CUP 2018 UNITING YOUTUBE STARS AND LEGENDS FOR A FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT LIKE NO OTHER

  • Stars of YouTube’s most talked about teams and international football legends to take part in another epic showdown at Wembley Stadium, connected by EE, on Sunday 25th November 2018 at 2pm, with faster matches and new rules for the latest series – view the trailer here
  • Tickets to the live final are available exclusively for EE customers from Friday 7th September, and general sale from Monday 10th September via www.ee.co.uk/wembleycup
  • Sport Relief confirmed as lead charity partner with £2 from every ticket sold supporting the charity
  • The EE Wembley Cup 2018 celebrates the launch of EE’s enhanced BT Sport offer*, which allows customers to cast BT Sport content from their phone to their TV

6th September 2018, London: Today, EE is launching the fourth series of The EE Wembley Cup, bringing together stars of YouTube’s most talked about teams and international football legends, for the most epic online football-themed series in history, with a live final at Wembley Stadium connected by EE, on Sunday 25th November 2018 at 2pm.

This year, The EE Wembley Cup is full of new twists on the ‘beautiful game’ with not two, but four teams, set to go head-to-head, packing in even more pitch action and recognisable faces. The team captains include YouTube footballing sensations Spencer Owen (Hashtag United) and returning side F2 Freestylers (F2 FC), plus EE Wembley Cup newcomers, Calfreezy (Rebel FC), with WillNE and Stephen Tries (XO) completing the star-studded line up.

Tickets for the live final at the nation’s home of football, Wembley Stadium, go on general sale from Monday 10th September at midday for £15, with no booking fee. EE customers can get theirs hands on tickets from Friday 7th September for just £10. Just text* WEMBLEY to 141 to receive an EE booking code.

2017’s final saw Hashtag United make it a notable hattrick of wins - as they beat F2 FC 6-1, to take home the trophy for the third year running, with over 34,000 fans in attendance on the day. The latest series will see Hashtag United take on some fierce competition, with revenge on the minds of F2 FC and new additions, Rebel FC and XO, looking to make a mark on the competition.

Designed for the devoted YouTube generation, the tailor-made tournament is set to be the most electrifying yet, with the following rules new to this year:

Shorter and sharper game play - although regular 11-man football rules still exist, each match in the new series will now be a fast and furious 30 minutes, with the semi-final and the final taking place live at Wembley, providing an opportunity for fans to see their team play twice.

Man Down Time - if it’s a stalemate at the end of the 30 minutes, the game moves into the dramatic race against the clock where a player is removed from each team, every minute. The first team to score wins!

A new Draft stage - will allow team captains to boost their teams with international football legends and YouTube stars in preparation for the important semi-finals. Four legends and four YouTubers are up for grabs in an American Football inspired draft episode.

Spencer Owen, founder of YouTube channel Spencer FC, said: “The reaction to the first three series of The EE Wembley Cup has been incredible, so we can’t wait for fans to check out the new series and hear what they think of our new rules! Each year, The EE Wembley Cup goes from strength-to-strength and with the amazing football and YouTube talent we have on board this year and some BIG changes to the format - it’s set to be the best series yet.”

Pete Jeavons, Director of Brand Marketing at EE: “The EE Wembley Cup was created to redefine the football experience for the next generation of fans and as the YouTube football audience continues to evolve, we have to make sure The EE Wembley Cup continues to deliver the football, the drama and the live event that these fans demand. This year, with two new teams, a new tournament format and new rules, we will pit four of YouTube’s best-known teams against each another for the ultimate YouTube bragging rights.”

He adds: “The EE Wembley Cup is just another example of how we are committed to offering our customers the very best experiences through our world class partnerships – whether that’s being able to cast BT Sport from your phone to the TV through our new enhanced offer or getting a great deal on early bird tickets to attend The EE Wembley Cup Final in November.”

Fans don’t have to wait for the live final to see the teams in action, as EE is creating a 7-part series (kicking off later this year), following the YouTube stars build up to the live final day, which can be viewed on Spencer FC’s YouTube channel and on EE’s official website.

The event is not-for-profit, with £2 from every ticket sold being donated to Sport Relief, who bring together the entire nation to get active, raise cash and change lives. Their work helps people both here in the UK and the some of the world’s poorest communities.

Boilerplate

*texts at standard rate, Ts+Cs apply

For more information, please contact the PR team at M&C Saatchi PR:

eewembley@mcsaatchi.com

Notes to editors:

*The EE Wembley Cup series will celebrate the launch of an enhanced BT Sport offer - allowing customers to use their free BT Sport app access to watch the sport they love in HD on multiple devices.

New and existing EE pay monthly mobile or tablet customers who haven’t used EE’s original BT Sport offer can get three months’ free access with inclusive data, so sports fans can stream the biggest events on the move and in stunning HD without impacting their monthly data allowance. Customers who have redeemed the original offer can still benefit. They’ll be able to access all of the above for just £5 for the first three months, saving them up to £30.

About EE

EE, part of BT Group, is the largest and most advanced mobile communications company in the UK, delivering mobile and fixed communications services to consumers.

EE runs the UK's biggest and fastest mobile network, offering superfast 4G in more places than any other operator after pioneering the UK's first superfast 4G mobile service in October 2012. Today, EE has more than 600 shops across the UK, and EE's 4G coverage extends to 90% of the UK’s landmass.

EE has received extensive independent recognition, including being ranked the UK's best overall network by RootMetrics®; Best Network for five years in a row at the Mobile Choice Awards; Best Network at the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Mobile News Awards; Best Consumer Network at the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Mobile Industry Awards; as well as Fastest Network and Best Network Coverage at the 2017 uSwitch Mobile Awards.

EE is the lead partner of Wembley Stadium – working to make Wembley the most connected stadium in the world. Since the partnership kicked off in 2014, EE has introduced many technological advancements to the stadium including delivering a significant network upgrade to more than double 3G and 4G capacity, ensuring fans can stay connected during events, as well as working with the Wembley team to deliver the first official Wembley app.

Follow us on…

Facebook at: www.facebook.com/ee

Twitter at: www.twitter.com/ee

YouTube at: www.youtube.com/ee

LinkedIn at: www.linkedin.com/company/ee-uk

About Sport Relief

Sport Relief bring together the entire nation to get active, raise cash and change lives. The money raised helps people living incredibly tough lives both in the UK and some of the world’s poorest communities.  You can find out more about the great work they do here http://www.sportrelief.com Sport Relief is an initiative of Comic Relief, registered charity 326568 (England/Wales); SC039730 (Scotland)