eSports
It Is Time To Brawl As ESL One Powered By Intel® Returns to Birmingham, United Kingdom
Announced last week as ESL One Europe 2024 – part of the second season of the ESL Pro Tour (EPT) for Dota 2 – ESL One Birmingham 2024 will feature 12 teams battling it out for the lion’s share of the $1,000,000 total prize pool.
The competition will also be awarding 22,520 EPT leaderboard ranking points. With these points, contenders increase their chances of rising on the leaderboard and thereby receiving a direct invite for EPT tournaments as well as the EPT Finals later in the year.
Teams and Qualifiers
The top four squads on the leaderboard will receive a direct invite to ESL One Birmingham 2024. Which teams will fill the remaining eight slots will be decided via a set of Open and Closed Qualifiers taking place on FACEIT, the world’s leading platform for competitive gaming:
- The Open Qualifiers will take place on January 22 – 25;
- The Closed Qualifiers will take place on January 26 – 30.
Stay tuned as more details will be revealed in due course.
Format
On April 22 – 24, these 12 squads will enter the Group Stage of ESL One Birmingham, which will see two round-robin groups featuring six teams battling it out in a two-game-series. The two best teams of each group proceed to the Playoffs Upper Bracket, while the teams placing third and fourth in their groups advance to the Playoffs Lower Bracket.
During the Playoffs on April 26 – 28, these eight teams will then face off against each other in a double elimination bracket. During this final stage of the tournament, all matches will be best-of-3, except for the Grand Final, which will be best-of-5.
Where to watch and tickets
The competition will be broadcast live on the ESL Dota 2 Twitch (Main, Ember, and Storm) and YouTube channels, and via dedicated broadcast partners. Fans looking forward to enjoying the culmination of the competition live at the Resorts World Arena on April 26 – 28 can anticipate the ticket sale commencing on December 14, 2023, at 15:00 GMT.
Wave 1 prices for 3-day tickets start at £62,20 (including service fees; excluding £2,95 administration fee per order). Ticket categories include: 3-day Premium tickets, 3-day Plus tickets, and Regular 3-day tickets. Day tickets will be released during later waves, depending on availability. More details about ticket types and information on how to secure your particular ticket can be found on esl-one.com/birmingham.
Fans visiting the event live can also look forward to multiple on-site side-activities, including Dota 2 cosplay. Those looking to take their experience a step further and anticipating to visit the Resorts World Arena in character can apply for a cosplay ticket which grants them Premium access for two people and access to a dedicated cosplay lounge and dressing rooms throughout the weekend. Furthermore, all cosplayers have the opportunity to show off their costume live onstage during the official Showcase. Regardless of experience level, all cosplayers can sign up here. Additional on-site activities will be announced in due course.
Time to Brawl
Throughout the tournament, ESL One Birmingham’s theme – Time to Brawl – encapsulates Birmingham’s pubculture, while also recollecting and expanding on the competition’s previous editions in the city – live in 2018 and 2019, and online in 2020. Fans, players, and teams alike will be invited to join the open-minded and positively spirited Brewmaster in a daring challenge and prove themselves.
“The Dota 2 community, especially in the UK, has truly proven itself for being fun-loving, engaged with the show, and not afraid to get involved,” said Shane Clarke, Director Game Ecosystems – Dota 2 at ESL FACEIT Group. “Bringing live Dota 2 to Birmingham once again, we are therefore thrilled to create more memorable and electrifying moments for fans, not just for those uniting at the Resorts World Arena next April, but also for those joining us from their homes around the globe.”
Fans looking forward to experiencing the nail biting Dota 2 action sooner can tune in to ESL One Kuala Lumpur powered by Intel® commencing on December 11, 2023, with the final three days of the competition taking place live at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tickets are still available and can be purchased here.
For more details about ESL One Birmingham 2024 and the latest news, head over to the official website, and follow ESL Dota 2 on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook. For more general information, check out eslfaceitgroup.com and follow ESL FACEIT Group on LinkedIn.
eSports
Emmy-Winning Director R.J. Cutler’s Docuseries Esports World Cup: Level Up Premieres June 6 on Prime Video
Prime Video, one of the leading entertainment destinations, will premiere the five-part documentary Esports World Cup: Level Up on June 6, with new episodes released weekly. Directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker R.J. Cutler (Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry, Elton John: Never Too Late and Martha), the series goes behind-the-scenes of the inaugural Esports World Cup (EWC) in 2024 — a defining moment in global esports, where over $60 million in prize money ignited a high-stakes, multinational battle to crown the world’s top esports Club.
The series is produced by This Machine (a part of Sony Pictures Television), with R.J. Cutler directing, John Dorsey serving as showrunner, and Jane Cha Cutler, Trevor Smith, Elise Pearlstein and Mark Blatty executive producing. Level Up will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
Esports World Cup: Level Up offers a rare look inside a global competition that’s redefining what it means to be a champion for a new generation of athletes and fans. R.J. Cutler and his team of expert storytellers embedded themselves within the eight-week tournament – watched by over 500 million fans globally – to uncover the personal sacrifices, rivalries and stakes driving the action.
Shot in verité style, the series combines intimate home visits from around the world and on-the-ground coverage from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It follows a wide cast of characters – from Club CEOs orchestrating million-dollar strategies to rising stars chasing life-changing wins – while capturing the pulse of elite esports competition.
“What drew me to the Esports World Cup was the compelling human stories unfolding within this high-stakes arena. Level Up isn’t just about the incredible competition and prize money; it’s about the dedication, the passion, and the sheer will of these athletes and teams pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. Under high pressure, we discover the true character of the competitors who vie for $60 million, but who also expose their humanity in the process,” said Cutler.
At the heart of Level Up is the “EWC Club Championship,” an unprecedented, multi-title tournament format where Clubs compete across more than 20 games, earning points toward a single leaderboard. Every match, every point, reshapes the race for global dominance. With the highest prize pool in esports history on the line, the EWC is not just a tournament – it’s a proving ground for the next generation of sports icons.
“A win might make the headlines — but the real story is the people behind it. Level Up dives into the human side of esports: the pressure, the ambition, the sacrifices. It’s about what it really takes to compete at the highest level — and why it matters. R.J. is the best at bringing those stories to life, and this one captures the heart of what we’re building,” said Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation.
The post Emmy-Winning Director R.J. Cutler’s Docuseries Esports World Cup: Level Up Premieres June 6 on Prime Video appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Esports betting pioneer adds daily fantasy esports offering to its growing range of products, with its sights set on the US market
PandaScore, the award-winning provider of esports odds, data and betting products, has continued to push boundaries with the launch of Daily Fantasy eSports, a truly groundbreaking product for operators and players.
Daily Fantasy eSports has been developed for the US market but will have global appeal with players drawn in by the chance to create virtual teams of real-life players and earn points based on their actual game performances.
Contests range from daily matchups to season-long leagues, with plenty of prizes up for grabs.
PandaScore’s Daily Fantasy eSports is backed by an expert-led esports trading team to deliver fast, accurate settlement data across unique, player-focused markets driven by the provider’s established and proven betting models.
An Interactive Player Widget serves up rich player stats and profiles, with PandaScore’s powerful BetBuilder enabling same-game parlays.
But that’s not all. PandaScore has more than 17,000 players in its esports player age and info database, the largest in the market.
It also offers dedicated helper codes and documentation to ensure smooth and seamless operator integration. It really is as easy as 1-2-3.
1 – There is a kick-off call to align on goals, timelines and fantasy formats.
2 – The operator accesses PandaScore’s dedicated fantasy-focused API to accelerate the build
3 – The dedicated integration manager ensures effortless onboarding and a successful launch
By leveraging PandaScore’s odds and data, alongside its team of experts and specialists, online sportsbook and daily fantasy sports operators can launch faster, ensure accuracy and scale their Daily Fantasy eSports offering with confidence.
Oliver Niner, Head of B2B at PandaScore, said: “Daily Fantasy eSports is a pioneering product from PandaScore that will really hit the mark with operators across North America, as well as other global markets.
“It allows operators to engage esports fans and bettors with a compelling product and proposition, but without the degree of risk that comes with standard betting as the payouts are controlled.
“Daily Fantasy eSports is already live with Dabble and is performing incredibly well, so we look forward to going live with more operators in the coming months.
“This really is a game-changing product, and we can’t wait to see it become available at some of the biggest betting brands in North America and beyond.”
The launch of Daily Fantasy eSports complements PandaScore’s growing esports betting offering, which includes odds and data for a huge number of disciplines, plus betting products like its BetBuilder, MicroMarkets and StoryBuilder.
The post PandaScore launches game-changing Daily Fantasy eSports product appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Esports Charts, a Ukraine-born analytics company that aggregates real-time viewership insights about esports, has won the Esports Innovation Award at the EsportsNext Industry Awards, hosted by the Esports Trade Association (ESTA) in Dallas, US.
The Esports Innovation Award recognizes an organization or individual that has introduced groundbreaking technology, services, or strategies significantly advancing the esports industry.
Esports Charts was honored for its scalable analytics platform, which provides comprehensive tournament and viewership statistics across more than 25 livestreaming services — helping stakeholders from publishers and teams to fans make smarter, data-driven decisions.
“Winning the Innovation Award from ESTA is an important milestone for us as a leading esports analytics service in the world. Also, we’re especially proud to represent Ukraine-born innovation on an international stage.
“From day one, our mission has been to bring clarity and transparency to the world of esports data. And this recognition from the industry is both an honor and a motivation to keep raising the bar.
“Thank you to our incredible team and partners, who believed in us from the start. This award is a shared success — and we’re just getting started,” Artyom Odintsov, co-founder and CEO of Esports Charts.
The post Esports Charts Wins “Esports Innovation Award” at the EsportsNext Industry Awards appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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