Press release -
PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS (PUBG) makes its second Intel® Extreme Masters appearance at IEM World Championship 2018
ESL Once Again Brings One of the World’s Most Popular Games to Poland After its North American Competitive Debut at IEM Oakland
Cologne, Germany -- January 12, 2018 -- ESL, the world’s largest esports company, today announced the PUBG Invitational at Intel® Extreme Masters Katowice (IEM), licensed from PUBG Corporation, developer and publisher of PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS (PUBG). The event, a highlight of the IEM Expo, the world’s largest esports-themed trade show, will take place adjacent to Spodek Arena at the International Conference Center, as part of the IEM World Championship 2018 in Katowice, Poland. 16 teams from regions around the world will battle for their share of a $50,000 prize pool throughout the weekend of February 24-25, 2018.
Out of the 16 teams competing, 9 teams will be directly invited from North America (3), Europe (3) and Asia (3). The remaining 7 teams, from North America (3), Europe (3), and South America (1) will fight their way through a series of regional qualifiers that starts with a 512 team open qualifier to participate in Poland. Qualifiers will start January 20th-21st on ESL Play.
The 1.0 version of PUBG for PC was just released in December 2017 and has emerged from its early access stage. With more than 30 million users on all platforms, a record breaking 3 million concurrent players on Steam, and the addition of a new in-game map, Miramar, the game’s foundation is concrete for a truly epic competitive title. Additionally, with the growth of the competitive gaming community skyrocketing, PUBG Invitational at IEM Katowice will once more shape the competitive component of PUBG.
“The IEM World Championship Katowice 2017 was the world’s largest esports event in history, and with PUBG’s competitive debut at IEM Oakland, we are thrilled to feature it again at such a renowned IEM event,” said Michal ‘Carmac’ Blicharz, vice-president of Pro Gaming at ESL. “Previously adding PUBG to the agenda brought a lot of excitement to the arena and we feel that it will be a great addition to the IEM Expo.”
In August, PUBG players and influencers competed in the gamescom PUBG Invitational Presented by PUBG Corporation and ESL, which marked the very first offline invitational for PUBG. In November, the partnership continued with ESL’s second installment of the game by bringing PUBG to the mainstage at IEM Oakland with the IEM Oakland - PUBG Invitational, where 20 teams and 80 players competed in the first PUBG competition to take place in North America.
Stay tuned for updates and more details on qualifying teams, or visit the official website for the event at intelextrememasters.com.
Tickets to Intel® Extreme Masters Katowice World Championship and the IEM Expo are available on Ticketmaster. General admission to both events will be free of charge.
For more information head over to https://en.intelextrememasters.com/season-12/katowice/ or follow IEM on Twitter and Facebook. To stay up to date on all things ESL and PUBG, follow ESLPUBG on Twitter and Facebook as well.
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About ESL
ESL, a part of the international digital entertainment group MTG, is the world's largest esports company, leading the industry across the most popular video games with numerous online and offline competitions. It operates high profile, branded international and national leagues and tournaments such as the Intel® Extreme Masters, ESL One, ESL National Championships and other top tier stadium-size events, as well as grassroots amateur cups, leagues and matchmaking systems. ESL covers a broad field of services in gaming technology, event management, advertising and television production, fully catering to the needs of the esports ecosystem. With offices in North America, Germany, Russia, France, Poland, Spain, China, and partners in many other countries, it has a truly global footprint. (www.eslgaming.com)
About Intel® Extreme Masters
Intel® Extreme Masters is the longest running global pro gaming tour in the world. Started in 2006 by ESL and Intel, the competition features the world's best gamers in multiple esport titles. With IEM having over a decade of history, it is considered one of the most prestigious and traditional events in the world. (intelextrememasters.com)
