It is with pride that we can finally welcome everyone to the 2009 World of Warcraft Regional Finals in Cologne, Germany. After much anticipation and many practice matches, the day has finally arrived for those about to put their abilities to the test. As we find ourselves writing this update, we can see pro-gamers setting up and practising their respective games; all equally anxious about the day ahead. It is not without reason either, as the competition here today is fierce. From veterans such as Grubby, Lucifron, and Sase in Warcraft 3, to SK Gaming, Ensidia and x6tence in World of Warcraft, the bar is set for competitivie play of another level.

Outside, the sun is once again shining at levels that could make even the stoutest of outdoor wanderers break a sweat. We are quite happy to be sitting inside in a cool, airconditioned and fresh tournament venue. This, ladies and gentlemen, is what you all have been waiting for.

Some of you may already have seen the brackets announced on our news pages, but for the rest of you - the day is set to start with the following matchups:

World of Warcraft
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Woah vs x6tence
aAa vs aAa RAT
eDawgs vs SK Gaming EU
Rest in many pieces vs Ensidia Habaneros

Those looking to follow the progress, this brackets page will be updated on-the-fly as the day goes by: http://eu.blizzard.com/rf09/brackets-wow.xml

Warcraft 3
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Happy vs Nicker
DeMusliM vs Grubby
Lucifron vs ThomasG
Vortix vs Sase

For those interested in following the the Warcraft 3 brackets, this page will be updated as the days go by: http://eu.blizzard.com/rf09/brackets-wc3.xml

It is now only one hour left til we kick the day off with the initial matches. We are sure some of you who are following this event already have favourites picked, and would like to welcome everyone to share their thoughts, predictions and visions of what the tournament will bring in this thread.

As the day goes on, we will be updating this thread with match statistics and recaps even from the matches that are played outside the stream. For those interested in following the event in it's entirety, this thread is where it's at.

With that said, let the games begin!

The first couple of games being played off stage have finished for both World of Warcraft and Warcraft 3.

The results were as follows:

World of Warcraft
aAa Nawak: 3 - aAa RAT: 1

Warcraft 3
Lucifron: 2 - ThomasG: 0

Stay tuned for more as the day passes!