Pique outclassed by FIFA Interactive World Cup champion

The 2012 FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) winner, Alfonso Ramos, 24, lived every football fan’s dream when he attended the FIFA Ballon d’Or gala, where he met a host of the world’s top footballers and took on Barcelona star Gerard Pique at a game of FIFA 13. Alfonso stormed to victory at the FIWC 2012 in Dubai when he beat former champion Bruce Grannec in a tense penalty shoot-out, landing the USD 20,000 prize along with an invitation to the FIFA Ballon d’Or as a FIFA world champion. Real Madrid met Barcelona at the FIFA Ballon d’Or as Real fan Alfonso took on Barça ace Gerard Pique in a virtual El Clásico, with Alfonso’s Madrid coming out on top 3-1 as Ronaldo bagged two goals. The encounter certainly lived up to all the drama, surprise and controversy that we have come to expect from one of the world’s greatest football clashes. As the game approached half-time, Alfonso’s Real Madrid led Pique’s Barcelona 1-0, thanks to Ronaldo’s first goal of the match. But in a moment of madness that was tinged with irony, Pique made a rash challenge and saw himself sent off and Barcelona go down to ten men. Prior to the match, Alfonso had benefited from talking to football legends Andrés Iniesta and Lionel Messi, who gave him some advice on how to deal with big-game pressure and get results against their team-mate Pique. Commenting on the match, Alfonso said: “Winning the FIWC and getting the chance to attend the FIFA Ballon d'Or really is a dream come true. For any football fan, this is without question one of the greatest experiences you can have. Meeting my heroes and getting the chance to play FIFA 13 against Piqué is something I will never forget.” Despite his defeat, Pique was full of praise for Alfonso, “Alfonso is the best player I have played against for sure. I don’t play FIFA as much as I’d like to, but I’m usually in the final against Leo (Messi) when we play at Barcelona so I’m not bad, but against Alfonso every player seems bad!” The FIWC is a virtual football tournament organised by FIFA and its presenting partners EA SPORTS™ and PlayStation®. With over 1.6 million players already signed up for this year’s tournament, the FIWC has cemented its place as the world’s largest online gaming tournament, giving football fans the chance to live out their passion for the game and to interact with other fans around the world. The FIWC 2013 sees players compete against each other on the latest version of the EA SPORTS™ FIFA 13 video game to qualify for the Grand Final in Madrid, where the FIWC world champion will be crowned. The online tournament takes place on PlayStation® Network and can be accessed through FIFA 13. Contestants can participate in this year’s FIWC by registering “in-game” in FIFA 13 on their PS3™. For more information on the FIWC, please visit the link on the right. From : Fifa