ESL, the world’s largest esports company, will once again host esports competition in the ESL Arena (Hall 9) at gamescom in Cologne, Germany. Tournaments cover a wide range of games including Counter-Strike®: Global Offensive™, Elsword, Hearthstone®, Heroes of the Storm®, Lawbreakers, League of Legends®, Overwatch® and more.

• Heroes of the Storm Global Circuit Fall Regional – (Wednesday 17.08 – Friday 19.08)The highest level of competitive Heroes of the Storm play is coming to ESL Arena’s Alpha Stage at gamescom 2016. The Fall Regional will see eight of the best teams in Europe competing not only for their share of a US$100,000 prize pool, but also a ticket to the Fall Global Championship at BlizzCon®, where a prize pool of a US$1,000,000 awaits.

• Splatoon Showdown presented by ESL in co-operation with Nintendo – (Wednesday 17.08.)A taste of something new: ESL will, in co-operation with Nintendo, host a Splatoon Showdown on the Beta Stage of the ESL Arena in Hall 9 at gamescom on 17 August from 15:00 CEST onwards. All coverage will be livestreamed via Twitch.tv/ESL, with gamescom attendees able to watch the finals live on stage. To qualify for the showdown, teams of four first have to prove online that they have what it takes. Online qualifications end on 7 August, 2016. Splatoon is Nintendo’s fresh take on the shooter genre that’s all about teamwork and exclusively available for Wii U.

• Dr Pepper Allstar Tournament in League of Legends and Hearthstone – (Thursday 18.08.)Those who think they have what it takes to beat professional League of Legends and Hearthstone players are already warming up for this staple of the annual gamescom trade fair. Hosted on ESL Arena’s Beta Stage on the Thursday of gamescom, this competition will see the best amateur teams and players taking on the top dogs to win top gaming equipment from MEDION in order to help further their careers. For the fourth time, the Dr Pepper Allstar Tournament will grace the gamescom, this time with its League of Legends finals and both the semi finals and finals for its Hearthstone competition. – Absolute must-sees for all community-minded esports fanatics!
• The OMEN Challenge by HP – (Thursday 18.08)The first live action game on Twitch is back: the infamous OMEN Challenge by HP will take place in front of a live audience at 22:00 CEST on 18 August at gamescom. Mousesports’ CS:GO team will take on Flipsid3 Tactics in the most nerve-wracking match you’ll ever see! Once again, armed with the latest OMEN by HP PCs, the pro gamers will be pushed beyond their absolute limits as both the live and online Twitch audiences vote on how to distract the gamers.
• Lawbreakers Show – (Friday 19.08)Lawbreakers, the upcoming first-person-shooter from Cliff Bleszinski and Boss Key Productions, will be showcased in the ESL Arena at gamescom 2016. Cliff will captain a squad that will face off against an influencer team in a battle of epic proportions in Hall 9 on ESL Arena’s Beta Stage!

• Umbrella Corps™ Show – (Friday 19.08)Four teams from Europe and North America will take to the Beta Stage in gamescom’s ESL Arena to fight for their share of the US$15,000 prize money. WeMainMei and Tomodachis (from North America), U-eu (from Great Britain) and U WOT M8 (from EU) are the contenders for the Umbrella Corps title. Don’t miss out on the best international action from Capcom’s fast paced multiplayer shooter set within the Resident Evil™ universe.

• Elsword ESL Legends – (Friday 19.08.)This one-on-one tournament takes the Beta Stage in the ESL Arena at gamescom 2016 on Friday to determine the best Elsword player around. Grueling weeks of competition are already underway to whittle down the contestants to only four. With a prize pool of €2,500, this is an opportunity like no other for Elsword players worldwide.

• ESL Meisterschaft Finals in League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – (Saturday 20.08. –Sunday 21.08)The ESL Meisterschaft will crown its summer League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive champions at gamescom 2016. The season long search comes to its exciting finale as the best German players take to the ESL Arena Beta Stage on the Saturday and Sunday of gamescom in the hopes of lifting the most prestigious of national titles. Those who prove themselves worthy will earn the lion’s share of the combined €50,000 prize pool.

• Overwatch Atlantic Showdown: Europe vs. Americas Finals – (Saturday 20.08. – Sunday 21.08)ESL will host an international Overwatch competition with a six-figure prize pool on their Alpha Stage in the ESL Arena. Awarding US$100,000 in prize money, the six-on-six tournament will pit hopefuls from Europe and the Americas against one another. The Overwatch Atlantic Showdown comes just three months after the blockbuster first-person shooter’s global launch and will be one of the largest Overwatch competitions to date.

The official ESL Event App, for iOS and Android, will once again keep gamescom visitors up-to-date with all ESL Arena action. – Keep on top of schedules for all ESL Arena stages and booth activities! Used at previous mega events like ESL One Frankfurt and ESL One Cologne, the ESL Event App allows for a richer experience of any ESL esports event. More information can be found under: event.eslgaming.com/app

The ESL Shop will be available in both hall 5 and hall 9, offering merchandise from clans and teams across multiple games, as well as general gaming apparel. Much of what will be available is exclusive either to the ESL Shop, gamescom – or both!

HP, Intel, Lenovo, Logitech G, MEDION, NEXON, One.de, Robert Space Industries, Samsung, Sennheiser, Square Enix and ZOWIE will feature exclusive activities at their gaming booths in the ESL Arena. – Ranging from YouTuber appearances to VR experiences, as well as cosplay and gaming competitions, the booths will be decked out with the latest in gaming technology.

Official ESL Arena partners include: Kinguin, Lioncast, One.de, plantronics, Red Bull, Twitch, Wüstenrot Bausparkasse and ZOWIE. For an overview of all ESL-related gamescom 2016 activities, please visit our official event website.