ESL to host Major at IEM Katowice

ESL has announced that it will host the first Counter-Strike Major of 2019 as part of IEM Katowice.

This will be ESL's sixth CS Major, the first since Cologne 2016 and the third in the Polish city after EMS One Katowice 2014 and ESL One Katowice 2015.

The event will begin on February 14 with the week-long New Challengers Stage, which will be played at ESL's Katowice studio.

The eight best teams from that stage will join the top eight teams from the previous Major, which will be held by FACEIT in September, in the New Legends Stage, running from February 21-24 at the International Congress Center (ICC) as part of the IEM Expo tradeshow.

The Major will then culminate with the four-day playoffs, from February 28 to March 3, at the iconic Spodek Arena, where the winner will take home the lion's share of the event's $1 million prize pool.

“IEM Katowice has grown to become one of the most iconic esports tournaments in the world,” Michal Blicharz, Vice-President of Pro Gaming at ESL, said in a statement.

"I expect that coupling the heritage of IEM with the gravity of a Valve Major Championship will elevate the tournament to what will be the most incredible IEM event in history."

The event will mark the seventh consecutive IEM in Katowice. The most recent edition came to an end in March, with fnatic taking home the bulk of the tournament's $500,000 prize fund after beating FaZe in a five-map final.