Four participants of the IEM Katowice 2021 – first ESL Masters Championship Series event to be held next year have been announced. Two spots went to FURIA and Evil Geniuses, the top-ranked Road to Katowice teams. Liquid and Chaos have yet to compete for a spot on the main roster: they were among the sixteen teams that will play for eight spots in the tournament during the last qualifier. The remaining participants of the main grid and qualification will be determined later by the results of the Road to Katowice ranking, as well as by special invitations. In addition, one place will go to the winner of the ESL European Championship Winter 2020.
IEM Katowice 2021 will be held from February 16 to 28, and the total prize pool of the tournament will be 1 million dollars. This will be the first event in the ESL Pro Tour series to follow the new schedule. A smaller schedule will allow teams to better prepare for the decisive matches, while the organizers – will focus on creating a coherent story that will be interesting for the audience.
Qualifying and the group stage are expected to take place in the new ESL Pro Tour Europe studio, which will open in early 2021. It will be equipped in full compliance with the new safety requirements associated with Covid-19. It remains to be seen how the playoff games will be played and whether the teams will be able to gather at «Spodek Stadium», as they have done in the past.
