ESL has announced how the next two IEM tournaments will play out. It is expected that the November IEM: Beijing-Haidan competition will be held in online format with division into regional divisions, but IEM: Global Challenge in December is planned to be held with the usual LAN-matches, which players had to get used to over the past six months.
ESL representatives explain that these plans remain in force, «unless there is a dramatic deterioration of the situation on a global scale». IEM: Global Challenge will be the first major LAN tournament since March, when the event organizers had to abandon this format due to risks associated with the coronavirus pandemic. The prize pool for the IEM: Global Challenge will be $500,000 and the top eight teams from North America and Europe will compete for it. The Cologne studio has been chosen as the venue.
However, even before that, in November, another ESL tournament – IEM: Beijing-Haidan is to take place, It will be organized into four divisions according to geographical principle. The 32 teams will play for a total prize pool of $250,000 and will also be eligible for ranking points that will count toward qualifying for the inaugural Masters Series tournament in 2021.
