After two weeks of furious voting, the Socios Esports Fanflux Voting Challenge has ended, with Finland's Conquer Gaming taking the top spot of €25,000 in funding with 5,561 votes. With a current player roster of 12, the team has been active since August 2016.

Jyri Karvanen, owner of Conquer Gaming, said: “When we got invited to this concept I knew we had to win this because they can give us what we need to take the next step. We have huge respect for all their work because in my opinion in esports everyone needs to work together. Our Fortnite players have been a part of Conquer for 6 months now and we have been thinking about what we can do to achieve more in the Fortnite scene. This sponsorship helps us a lot.”

In second place, receiving €20,000 in funding, are Danish team Copenhagen Flames. Established in August 2016, they have a current roster of 13 pro players, including 2 Fortnite players, and 5 academy players.

Copenhagen Flames Management team

Head of Esports at Copenhagen Flames, Daniel Vorberg said: “As a club, we are constantly trying to figure out how we can get closer with the fans, and that’s one of the principles that Socios is also built on. Having the fans have a say in how to do certain things makes sense, as in the end we are in the entertainment industry, and what we do — we do for the fans. We are very much looking forward to create awesome features and events, together with socios, for the fans.”

3DMAX PUBG Team

In third place and receiving €15,000 in sponsorship money, is French team 3DMAX, who were founded in 2009 and now boasts a team 14 players on the roster.

Founder of 3DMax, Remy Chapot said: “Eight months ago, when we initiated the restart of 3DMAX, we were driven by only one goal: please our fans by placing 3DMAX back where it belonged. In a way, Socios gave us the opportunity to prove to the whole scene that hard work always pays off and that our fans are one of the most hardcore & faithful kind!”

Socios.com CEO Alexandre Dreyfus congratulated all the teams and wished the winners good luck for their upcoming games. “This sponsorship programme represents our commitment and passion for esports. With Socios.com, and Socios Esports, our goal is to change the way esports and sports organisations connect and engage with fans. We want to both support and grow small and medium-sized teams, and in turn, help the ecosystem grow in a healthy, sustainable way.”

As part of Socios Esports’ goal to help the esports ecosystem grow no matter the size of the team, the six-month battle royale sponsorship programme was aimed at esports teams with ambitions in PUBG or Fortnite competitions in 2019.

Nine teams from France, the United Kingdom, Denmark and Finland battled it out to secure sponsorship. The challenge received more than 16,000 votes over the two-week voting period.