Shanghai Major to have live audience at all three stages; venues announced

For the first time since IEM Rio 2022 a Major will feature a live audience across all three stages of the tournament.

Perfect World has announced the venues where the Shanghai Major will take place from November 30-December 15.

The Opening and Elimination stage will be held at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center, a venue with a maximum capacity of 5,000 spectators, a representative from Perfect World has told HLTV.

The SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center indoor arena, with a capacity of 13,000 spectators, will play host to the playoffs on the last four days of the competition.

For a Major to feature live audience at all three stages is a rarity. The only time it has been done on a large scale was at IEM Rio 2022, while StarLadder Major Berlin 2019 also featured a small audience for the first two stages.

It speaks volumes for Perfect World to do so for the first Chinese Major. Counter-Strike's popularity has grown immensely in the country in the past few years, as was apparent at the latest IEM Chengdu and CS Asia Championships competitions.

In an interview with HLTV from PGL Major Copenhagen, a Perfect World director spoke about that growth and shared his hopes that the first Chinese Major will only continue to boost the game's popularity in China.

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Perfect World director: "When we ran TI, Chinese DOTA 2 fans and players increased a lot. I think the same will happen with Counter-Strike"