MEWC
FMWC
TAC
EEO
The H20 Esports Campus buzzed with anticipation as students, professionals, and Excel enthusiasts from around the world arrived for the first of its kind Excel Esports student event on European soil. It took place at the H20 Esports Campus in Amsterdam, Netherlands, a purpose-built esports venue in Amsterdam with full stage production. The two-day event brought new, exciting game formats for everyone to witness & take part in. This marked a new chapter for Student Excel Esports in Europe, bringing together a high-level competition with a truly unique Excel entertainment experience. The MECC students battled it out for a prize pool of €2,500, with 1st place taking €1,000 and 2nd and 3rd place each earning €750. The venue was filled with an electric atmosphere from the very start, and the newly introduced game formats proved to be one of the standout highlights of the entire event for viewers.
The Excel Esports European Open live-stream casting for the MECC student qualifier and finals was brought to us by Excel MVPs Oz du Soleil, a returning favorite for many and for his first time, Alan Murray. Both well known in the Microsoft Excel community, bringing in-depth Excel knowledge and insights, but importantly great energy and enthusiasm for the viewers in the arena and those who watched the broadcast live at home.
The MECC student Qualifier was the centerpiece of the MECC European Open, the first-ever Excel Esports student event in Europe. Students had arrived from around the world competing for nine available spots in the MECC student Finals alongside Luke Peyton, the Online Regional Winners’ Battle winner. The case with a theme about opening a flower shop, created by Fritz Burkhardt, began with a strong start from Benjamin Weber who completed levels 1 to 4 very quickly, followed by Julian Poeltl who took a different strategic approach and rushed for the bonus questions by completing the first 3 alongside levels 1 and 2. Excel functions, shortcuts, and formulas were put on impressive display from the full field throughout. Every student was in the zone and focused, with the scoreboard changing throughout. The crowd began to cheer with 18 minutes still left on the case, when Benjamin Weber had already completed all levels and bonus points. The atmosphere in the arena lifted seeing this happen, as it was something that came as a shock to everyone at the event and watching during the live stream. Following this, Aurelio Zafindaza, Elena Thai, and Julian Poeltl’s scores kept changing, with them jumping between second, third, and fourth place. Then with a big jump, it was Tsiory Razafitseheno who jumped to fourth with only 30 points behind Julian Poeltl. Throughout this, David Montani Schnickmann and Prateek Mohan had completed levels 5 and two more bonuses each. With 10 minutes left to go, the leaderboard had changed a lot, with Tsiory and Aurelio from Madagascar in the top 3 with both over 1,000 points gained. Right behind them, David Montani Schnickmann, also on more than 1,000 points earned so far. With 6 minutes left on the clock, the crowd began to cheer because another student had finished the case before the timer had run out claiming a spot in the finals — this time it was Tsiory Razafitseheno representing INSCAE from Madagascar. However, not long after, with 4 minutes to go, David Montani Schnickmann had also claimed his spot in the finals. Now with 3 spots already claimed, this meant only 6 more could qualify for the day 2 finals. With only a few minutes to go, you could feel the tension in the arena. Every student competing had one last chance to complete more questions and put more points on the leaderboard. Those last few minutes, every keystroke and shortcut would be important. With a leaderboard that was jumping all over the place from start to finish and students performing against the best collegiate Excel Esports line-up seen in Amsterdam. Only nine spots were available for the finals, with 3 claimed before the timer had run out, and when the results came through, the students joining Luke Peyton in the Finals were:
After an entertaining qualifier, it was time for the ultimate student showdown on the final day. Nine qualifiers joined Luke Peyton and the ten of them took to the H20 stage for the Student Finals in Amsterdam. The question was straightforward: who would be crowned the first ever MECC European Open Champion?
The Student Finals format was an elimination game where every 5 minutes, the lowest scoring player was eliminated until five players remained to compete for the title. Each student faced a standard Excel Esports Case: 7 levels, 5 bonus questions, a real time leaderboard, and delayed bonus feedback to keep the pressure on. With a 50% bonus lockout in place, only five of the ten students would be able to collect points from each bonus question, meaning every decision counted from the very first second.
The crowd fell quiet as the case went live, then the leaderboard started moving with the audience cheering on. With a quick start, it was Chien Chi-He who took the early lead, completing level 1 in the first 30 seconds with the rest of the field tight behind completing level 1 just a few seconds later. Benjamin Weber was the first to complete the bonus questions and jump to 1st place and securing the bonus points without the danger of a bonus point lockouts.
The first elimination when the timer hit 25 minutes was Joy Andriamalala who didn’t score the points needed to stay above the elimination zone. Then every 5 minutes the leaderboard was hot, eliminations were coming in, with Luke Bonaime, Prateek Mohan and Tsiory Razafitseheno all eliminated by minute 20. With one elimination coming up, students were focused more than ever trying to gain points but with many bonus question lockouts, it wasn’t going to be easy.
The students with a strong performance from start to the halfway mark were Aurelio Zafindaza who completed all levels 1-7 alongside Benjamin Weber and with 6 minutes left to go every leaderboard shift could be felt in the audience. The case, themed around house hunting and purchasing property, created by Winston Smith, was an exciting watch from first to final answer.
Then suddenly, before the final elimination came through, the crowd started cheering, filling the arena with so much noise. Benjamin Weber the only person at the Excel Esports European Open to compete in all events, had finished the entire case with 6 minutes left on the game timer. It was something impressive which was felt in the entire arena. He had done it and was crowned as the first ever MECC European Open Champion!
Alongside the student competition, pros competed to determine, who will become the Excel Esports European Open Champion. There were several new introduced game formats across both days, giving the crowd and competitors a wider look at Excel Esports exciting innovative growth. Here is what took place.
The first day began with an all-inclusive new format. Mega Elimination where 67 players took part in a 60-minute game. With eliminations every 45 seconds the tensions in the arena were high. Screens lit up across the arena as participants locked in, ready to show off their Excel skills. Our very own MECC students showed formidable determination in this unique case created by Emils Saulitis and Ny Tsiory Rakotonanahary. The leaderboard was always shifting and being quick was an advantage, but a single mistake could lead directly to elimination. When the timer ran out, it was Diarmund Early who claimed 1st place, though 2nd place Sergio Trifiletti and 3rd place to our MECC student Benjamin Weber with an excellent performance were very close behind. Our other student participants, David Montani Schnickmann,Joy Andriamalala,Chien-Chi He,Juilan Poeltl,Tsiory Razafitsehenoand Aurelio Zafindaza, were all pushing hard and performing admirably against a strong field of competitors.
The Teams format is one MECC hosts at the Las Vegas Championship Finals, and something our students are no strangers to with Team e-Invitationals running throughout the season, competing as a team is already part of the MECC experience. This time, it was incorporated for the pros as part of their featured events, a sign of the format’s impact on the wider Excel Esports scene. Amsterdam was the next chapter for it with 17 teams competing, including two of our students with Team Oachkoatzlschwoaf, consisting of Benjamin Weber, Julian Poeltl and Julien Lacaze, alongside Team Last Minute Crew with David Montani Schnickmann and a last minute entry from our Madagascar students, Joy Andiramalala, Tsiory Razafitseheno and Aurelio Zafindaza. with a team name #NAME?. The crowd leaned in as teams huddled around their screens, strategy and speed combined in real time. Watching everyone work together to solve an Excel Esports case was exciting, and it was clear that the team format has a powerful place in Excel competition. The top 10 teams advancing to Team Relays were teams Titanic, Un#REF!ned, LAMBDA Hope and Glory, Oachkoatzlschwoaf, The Crucible, Project Blackbox, Semicolonoscopy, Last Minute Crew, JET Pack and DACH. Two out of the three teams with student participants made it to day 2 Team Relays with our third team #NAME? narrowly missing out on a place by just 45 points.
After an intense teams battle, the top 10 teams qualified to compete in the day 2 Team Relays event, another first-of-its-kind event. The format put problem-solving center stage, but what really captured the audience was players having to pick up exactly where their teammates left off. It did not look easy trying to adapt to each other’s work, but it was certainly an exciting watch from start to finish! After this new interesting format of players switching with each other every 10 minutes to try complete the case in 30 minutes. The team that prevailed was Team Titanic. And on the student side, it was Team Oachkoatzlschwoaf showcasing the Excel knowledge our students have developed, with Benjamin WeberandJulian Poeltl taking home the 3rd place trophy! The other team taking on this challenging new format was Last Minute Crew with David Montani Schnickmann, where they finished in 8th place. It was a tough battle with some teams implementing their own strategies to help navigate each other’s previous work. But most importantly the student teams proving they can compete, adapting to any format thrown at them.
If there was a highlight trophy from the Mixed Doubles event, it would go to the student Elena Thai and her dad James Thai. A first-ever father-daughter duo on the Excel Esports stage, and one of the most memorable storylines of the entire event. Their performance showcased a level of synergy that only comes from genuine shared love of the craft finishing in 6th place. Benjamin Weber and Franziska Wieser also had the spotlight on them, putting in an excellent showing and demonstrating impressive teamwork and ending up in 5th place. After a close battle, the winning Mixed Doubles pairing was, Emilie & Coby who jumped to first place with less than a minute to go on the case!
It was time to witness our students step onto the professional stage and compete against some of the world’s best! The shift in stakes was visible – these were students going head-to-head with seasoned competitors, and they held their own. Stepping into the Main Event was no small feat; it took courage, preparation, and a genuine belief that they belonged on that stage. The students competing in the Excel Esports Main Event Qualification Round were, Benjamin Weber, Julian Poeltl, David Montani Schnickmann, Tsiory Razafitseheno, Joy Andriamalala, Aurelio Zafindaza, Chien-Chi He, Prateek Mohan and Elena Thai. Every single one of them rose to the occasion, bringing their very best against a field of experienced professionals who had competed at the highest level. They all delivered deserving performances against competitors with years of experience, and the fact that they competed with confidence and composure was a testament to how far Excel Esports student talent has come. After a tense qualification, the students who performed exceptionally and advanced to the Day 2 Semifinals were Julian Poeltl, Benjamin Weber, David Montani Schnickmann, Tsiory Razafitseheno and Joy Andriamalala. A remarkable achievement that should not be understated. The students left the case with an invaluable hands-on experience to carry forward into their Excel Esports and future job careers.
Both Semifinals featured competitors who had come through the Qualification Round on Day 1. It was time for our students who made it to prove that they are capable of competing at the highest level of Excel Esports. The semi-finals 1 case ‘Disc of Luck’ created by Tim Froelich and semi-finals 2 case ‘Spreadsheet Bin’ created by Peter Scharl were not easy and the individuals who earned a place in the Finals showed true Excel class. Both Semifinals were exciting to watch with our students in focus trying to reach the Main Event Finals. In the end, Benjamin Weber and Julian Poeltl missed out on a spot in the Main Event Finals by just 2 places, and Joy Andriamalala, David Montani Schnickmann and Tsiory Razafitseheno put up performances they should be proud of against the some of the best in Excel Esports! The top 5 from each Semifinal qualified for the Main Event Finals. These were the participants who made it through from both of the Semifinals: Diarmund Early, Jasper van Merle, Eric Ashton, Sergio Trifiletti, Jack Franken, Jean Wolleh, Alexander Freedman, Anup Agarval, Ha Dang and Coby Dombrowsky.
With the student finals concluded, it was time to witness the professionals battle for the Excel Esports European Open Champion title. The atmosphere inside H20 reached its peak, this was elite-level Excel Esports, and you could feel it in the venue. The leaderboard evolved constantly, the pros locked in and focused. Casters worked hard to keep up with the pace of leaderboard changes as the crowd reacted to every shift. Excel Esports was alive, and Amsterdam had front-row seats. After an intense main event battle between some of the best Excel Esports players in the world. The player who came out on top was the one and only Diarmuid Early who took back that first place with 10 seconds remaining on the clock!
Across both days, the Excel Esports European Open gave students, industry experts, Excel enthusiasts, and MVPs the chance to connect in person. Conversations about Excel, careers, and the wider community took place throughout, during lunch, between events, and before the Finals. These connections help widen the community through learning and create an environment that continues to grow year on year.
Enjoy the full – 2 Day action here:
© 2022-2026 Microsoft Excel Collegiate Challenge. All rights reserved.
