Press release -
Pro League adds Asia-Pacific division securing further coverage of finest CS:GO action
More of the finest Counter-Strike: Global Offensive coverage is coming to the CS:GO Pro League with the introduction of the Asia-Pacific division. ESL and WESA are happy to announce the league’s expansion into the APAC region with the addition of Southeast Asia, China and Australia/New Zealand in Season 7, and intend to further expand the program into additional territories within the region, as well as create a full league system in the future.
To support the expansion, ESL will begin the roll out of offline infrastructure, adding to the existing pool of servers and other technical framework that will allow the players from the newly included regions to compete in conditions on-par with Pro League’s standards.
“This is an incredibly important step on our way to establish a truly global playing field for all professional Counter-Strike players in the world,” said Ulrich Schulze, Senior Vice President of Product at ESL. “The APAC region has waited long enough for a proper inclusion in a global gaming circuit. We’re excited to see how expanding Pro League to this region will further significantly strengthen and develop the professional scene.”
"We are always looking to expand to different parts of the world and further define Pro League as the go-to place for CS:GO competitions,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Chairman and Commissioner, WESA. “With this expansion, high caliber Counter-Strike gameplay will be available to the APAC region as we broaden our audience and expose Pro League coverage to fans around the globe.”
Season 7 of the CS:GO Pro League will feature open qualifiers and season matches held in Southeast Asia, China, and Australia/New Zealand, which will determine which eight teams will proceed to the APAC offline finals, set to take place at the ESL Studios in Sydney, Australia. The top two teams from the offline finals will secure their spots in the global CS:GO Pro League Finals in Dallas, Texas on May 18-20.
The open qualifiers of the CS:GO Pro League will be held on March 18 and 25 for all three regions, followed by the season matches. A detailed overview of dates and new regions, including each country eligible to participate in the Season 7 qualifiers, can be found here.
For more information about the Pro League CS:GO, please visit the official website. Be sure to follow ESL CS on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates.
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Pro League is the world’s largest professional league for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, featuring the best teams from North America and Europe. Primarily broadcasted on YouTube and staged in major venues across the globe, Pro League hosts the most widely-watched CS:GO competitions. Pro League was established in 2015 and has a total prize pool of $2 million US dollars for 2017 (www.en.pro.eslgaming.com/csgo/proleague).
WESA was founded in May 2016 and counts as its members thirteen of the world’s most popular esports teams (EnVyUS, Faze Clan, Fnatic, G2 Esports, mousesports, Natus Vincere, Ninjas in Pyjamas, North, Optic, Renegades, SK Gaming, Splyce and Virtus.Pro) together with ESL, the world’s largest esports company. This elite group shares a collective vision to continue to professionalize esports by introducing elements of player representation, standardized regulations and revenue sharing for teams. Based on traditional sports association models, WESA also aims to create predictable schedules for fans, players, organizers and broadcasters by engaging all appropriate stakeholders. Pro League for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is the first professional esports competition that is played under WESA regulations (www.wesa.gg).
