Jun 26, 2017 16:00 BST ESL Announces European Grassroots Initiative Expanding Path to Pro League for CS:GO The world’s largest esports company, ESL, is today proud to reveal a new initiative to expand its path for aspiring Counter-Strike: Global-Offensive (CS:GO) players to rise through the ranks from the National Championship level onto the amateur ranks in order to qualify for the largest CS:GO league in the world, the ESL Pro League. Starting with ESEA Season 26, the winners of the ESL UK Premiership and the ESL Mistrzostwa Polski, the official national leagues of the UK & Ireland and Poland respectively, will claim a place to compete in the Mountain Dew League (MDL). This unique partnership provides a clear pathway for CS:GO players to progress from amateur ranks to compete on the world stage linking the national leagues to the Pro League through MDL. The investment in the path-to-pro system will continue from Season 27 with ESL’s French, Spanish and German leagues providing qualification spots to the MDL, establishing ESL’s national leagues as the leading grassroots CS:GO leagues in each territory. The already-established ESEA League will continue to run alongside this new initiative. To achieve this, ESL is set to move its European National Championships to be part of ESEA’s system creating promotion spots up to MDL, the only league that feeds directly into the Pro League. The team that wins the National Championship will qualify for the MDL, creating a clear path from there to the Pro League. If the team that wins has already secured a spot in the MDL, then the second place team will get the promotion instead. The currently confirmed promotion slots are as follows: ESEA Season 26 • Mountain Dew League will expand from 24 to 27 teams • 2 from ESL Major Series • 1 from ESL UK (UK Premiership) • 1 from ESL Poland (Mistrzostwa Polski) • 4 slots from ESEA Main division Additionally, VirtusPro will compete in MDL Season 26 after relegation from the Pro League ESEA Season 27 • 1 from ESL Germany (Meisterschaft) • 1 from ESL France (Championnat National) • 1 from ESL Spain (Masters) • 4 from ESEA Main division “The continued growth of the esports industry relies on the fostering of new talent,” commented Ulrich Schulze, VP Pro Gaming at ESL. “ESL and ESEA have a staunch belief that anyone wishing to play at the top level in esports should be supported, and offered a clear path to make their dream a reality. Today’s announcement does just that by uniting ESEA’s leading anticheat, local servers for Europe with ESL’s passionate fan base.” The Mountain Dew League is the exclusive path into the Pro League, offering support for the EU and NA regions as well as the wider world through the Mountain Dew League Global Challenge. With the inclusion of the European national leagues into the path to the ESL Pro League, amateurs can join the Mountain Dew League and compete for their chance to join the elite teams. For more information on the Pro League CS:GO, visit the official website. Be sure to follow ESL CS on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates. For any questions or queries, please contact [email protected]. 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). Contacts Ravi Vijh Account Director [email protected] +44 (0)20 3927 6430.