In this particular instalment of news, we will be focusing on the two headlining teams for this particular organisation and its branches, H2k-Gaming and Team Thermal-take. Both teams highly recognised in the respective regional scenes.

- Read H2k's Story
- Read Thermaltake's Story

H2k.Call of Duty 4: The Story

Straight from Sweden, the success story of H2k.cod4 is strung up by a series of event-wins, tournament participation and player recognition. Playing to the highest of their abilities since the release of Call of Duty 4, the team have high prospects for taking first place at this evidence, with confidence ever rising, already being seeded third place prediction from Vita Nova.

Team Line-up:

 Johan miRACLE Gärtner
 Adam Mumma Timle-Händel
 Fredrik qLimAxzU Idh
 Hampus mySpyS Karlsson
 Roe froz Langaas

The team were picked up by H2k Organisation back in January, when they were formally known as moO.se . Back then their line-up consisted of Joakim fAEkE Åberg and Victor vissEh Gunnarsson, who both unfortunately left the team respectably, leading onto the risky pickup of Roe froz Langaas, known within the scene for cheating allegations which were immediately stomped out, not only this but also because of his play-style, being labelled risky and unproductive, which was soon proved wrong when he bought his complete A-game to the SteelSeries Esports Challenge. Even in the darkest of times in the COD4 scene, H2k have always shined, bringing not only excellent skill, but also sheer passion for the game, which makes them worthy of taking gold in Belgium.

Statement from Johan "miRACLE" Gärtner (tek-9 – source):

My expectations of the event are really high! This is going to be the biggest Call of Duty 4 LAN so far, and we are aiming to win it. It is going to be hard, but we know we have every chance to make it happen. Everything expect a top 3 would be a major disappointment for us being a part of H2k. I'm really looking forward to meeting all the guys in the team and of course some other players as well.

Statement from Adam “Mumma” Timle-Händel (H2k – source):

We definitely have huge expectations for AEF. We are going there to win but we know it wont be easy. I would say there are probably 5-6 teams that could potentially beat us BUT if we bring our best to the event we shouldn't have a problem ending in the top 3. This is also the first event with froz in the team so it will be awesome meeting him. The change from vissEh to froz wasn't easy in the beginning but during the last week we have found the key form and I think with it, this team really can win the Antwerp Esports Festival!

ThermalTake: The Story

Team Thermal-take is another highly respected team participating at AEF this weekend. We decided to take a closer look at Thermal-take’s participation in the competition due to the pre-group posts by Vita Nova, not being seeded for the top 15 positions. Being one of the only German teams in the competition (four all together) it is important for The German ThermalTake to bring their absolute best to the competition.

Now Thermaltake have been planning and preparing for this competition since early June. Making two crucial switches in their line-up to equal perfection ready for AEF.Moritz moe Mencwel and Elias BudzR Bork were both picked up by the organisation back in June as a smart move ready for AEF. This was due to Steffen flinN Barth being removed from the roster due to inactivity through his newfound job, preventing him to give 100% dedication to the team. Philipp steelt Romano is another who will not be attending AEF, who after being a long-time member of the Thermaltake crew, was removed due to him not fitting in with the newly revamped team. After their fairly average ESL Pro Series, Germany #16, result (placing 8^th overall), the team are confirmed to come back with a vengeance in Belgium this weekend.

Although the team was not seeded, this hasn’t disrupted their focus; on the contraire it has in-fact pushed them to work that little bit harder during the few days before the event in order to get maximum benefit from it. The team is looking strong, but with fellow respected German team SPEED-LINK also looking strong for the event, it is crucial that Thermaltake bring their A-game.

There are a lot of reasons for this team to achieve in the competition, not only to make a comeback from their ESL performance, not only for sole purpose of winning the event, but also representing Germany. As mentioned before, there are only 4 German teams in the entire COD4 competition, which consists of 56 teams all together. Other teams from the German Regions consist of Anexis Gaming, Hardware4u Gaming and SPEED-LINK. But with Hardware4u and SPEED-LINK placed in the same group, it narrows the chances of all the German Teams qualifying, putting more emphasis on the fact Thermaltake are representing not only themselves as an sophisticated organisation, but also representing Germany.

The Line-up participating the event stands as: 

 Marc sPwNz Uhlich
 Kevin Kevvin Koch
 Felix spooN Schwarzlose
 Moritz moe Mencwel
 Elias BudzR Bork

Related Articles:

• AEF Pre-Coverage [Part 1]: The Teams
• AEF MVP List - Courtesy of Cadred.org
• AEF Pre-Coverage [Part 2]: Spotlighting Teams
• Antwerp Esports Festival
• AEF: The Round-up.
• Antwerp Esports Festival
• Team Thermaltake cod4 at AEF interviewed!
• miRACLE Cadred Interview
• ESL Major Series Season VII Swedish Qualifier
• Clanbase Eurocup XXI