The first trickle of Global Poker League wildcard picks has hit the media airwaves with both Fabrice Soulier of the Paris Aviators and Anatoly Filatov of the Moscow Wolverines announcing their final team lineups.

The first round of matches of the Global Poker League (GPL) are set to take place less than a week away, and we still don’t know what the full team lineups will be.

The excitement leading up the GPL Draft was palpable. It turned out to be a fantastic event. The lapse in announcing the wildcard picks has been a stumble. It was important to keep the foot on the gas after that glorious evening. It’s time for someone to release the handbrake. It needs to keep moving.

Two managers have done that during the past 24hrs, and a trend has started to form. The first Team Manager to announce their wildcard picks was the World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, Fabrice Soulier. The Paris Aviators chief selected himself and online cash game star Alex Luneau.