ESL (company) explained

ESL Gaming GmbH
Former Name:Electronic Sports League
Type:Private
Industry:Esports
Predecessor:Deutsche Clanliga
Founders:-->
Hq Location City:Cologne
Hq Location Country:Germany
Area Served:Worldwide
Key People:Ralf Reichert & Craig Levine (Co-CEOs)
Brands:DreamHack
Intel Extreme Masters
Parent:ESL FACEIT Group

ESL Gaming GmbH (formerly known as Electronic Sports League), is a German esports organizer and production company that produces video game competitions worldwide. ESL was the world's largest esports company in 2015, and the oldest that is still operational.[1] Based in Cologne, Germany, ESL has eleven offices and multiple international TV studios globally. ESL is the largest esports company to broadcast on Twitch.[2] [3]

In 2022, it was announced that ESL and esports platform FACEIT were acquired by Savvy Games Group (SGG), a holding company owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. As part of the acquisition, the two companies merged to form the ESL FACEIT Group.[4] [5]

History

The Electronic Sports League launched in 2000 as the successor of the Deutsche Clanliga, which was founded in 1997 by Jens Hilgers.[6] The company began with an online gaming league and a gaming magazine. It also rented out servers for game competitions.[7]

In 2015, ESL's Intel Extreme Masters Katowice was at the time, the most watched esports event in history.[8] The event had more than 100,000 in attendance and Twitch viewership was over one million.[9]

In July 2015, Modern Times Group (MTG) bought a 74 percent stake in ESL from its parent company, Turtle Entertainment, for $86 million.[10] [11] [12] [13] That same month, ESL announced its participation in "esports in Cinema," which would broadcast live esports events to over 1,500 movie theaters across the globe. Esports in Cinema included Dota 2 and coverage from ESL One Cologne 2015 and ESL One New York,[14] as well as a documentary, "All Work All Play," which follows the rise of esports and highlights pro gamers as they work toward the Intel Extreme Masters World Championship.[15]

After a player publicly admitted Adderall use following ESL One Katowice 2015, ESL worked with the National Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency to institute an anti-drug policy.[16] [17] [18] It was the first international esports company to enforce anti-doping regulations.[19] Random tests for the drugs prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency were implemented for its events.[20] [21] Punishments for the use of performance-enhancing drugs range from reduced prize money and tournament points to disqualification and a maximum two-year ban from ESL events.[22]

ESL worked with publisher Valve in August 2015 for ESL One Cologne 2015 at the Lanxess Arena where 16 teams competed in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.[11] [23] [24] ESL implemented randomized drug testing at the event.[25] All tests came back negative.[26] The tournament had over 27 million viewers,[16] [27] making it the largest and most-watched CS:GO tournament at that time.[28]

In October 2015, ESL held a Dota 2 championship at Madison Square Garden Theater.[7] That same month, ESL partnered with ArenaNet to produce ESL Guild Wars 2 Pro League, which is one of seven official ESL Pro Leagues.[29]

ESL held its 10th arena event in November 2015 at the SAP Center in San Jose, California.[7] The event had over 10 million viewers through Twitch[30] and was the largest Counter-Strike event in America at that time.[31] ESL partnered with Activision for the 2016 Call of Duty World League for the World League's Pro Division.[32]

In November 2015, ESL announced its acquisition of the E-Sports Entertainment Association (ESEA), promoters of the ESEA League, after previous collaborations: ESL uses the ESEA anti-cheat system for the ESL CS:GO Pro League.[33] The ESEA platform is used for ESL events as well as offline finals.[34] As of July 2016, ESL is a member of the Esports Integrity Coalition (ESIC), a non-profit members' association to maintain integrity in professional esports.[35] In 2017, ESL partnered with Mercedes-Benz for Hamburg DOTA 2 Major.[36]

In 2017, ESL partnered with Hulu to produce four esports series (Player v. Player, Bootcamp, Defining Moments and ESL Replay).[37]

In March 2021, ESL announced a partnership with 1xBet.[38] On April 28, 2021, Intel and ESL again renewed their partnership in a three-year contract, which will see the two companies invest in esports, throughout 2024.[39]

Acquisition by SGG and merger with FACEIT

In 2022, it was announced that ESL and esports platform FACEIT were being acquired for a combined by Savvy Games Group (SGG), a holding company owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. The ESL purchase is worth $1.05 billion, while the FACEIT deal is worth $500 million; both deals are expected to close in the second quarter of 2022, subject to regulatory approval.[40] As part of the acquisition, ESL and FACEIT are set to merge and form the ESL FaceIt Group. The new company will be headed by ESL CEO Craig Levine and FACEIT CEO Niccolo Maisto, while ESL co-founder Ralf Reichert will serve as executive chairman.

Competitions

ESL hosts competitions around the globe, partnering with publishers such as Blizzard Entertainment,[6] [41] [42] Riot Games, Valve, Microsoft, Wargaming and multiple others to facilitate thousands of gaming competitions annually.[43] ESL competitors are supported on both national and international levels. Some of their more notable competitions include the following:

ESL Play

ESL Play is an esports platform that provides tournaments and ladders across all games and skill levels. ESL Open, the first cup on the league ladder, is open to everyone, including beginners. ESL Major competitions have entry requirements and winning on this level is required to earn a spot in ESL Pro competition. However, ESL Major also contains Go4 Cups, which are free tournaments that are open to everyone. Tournaments at this level require prior qualification.[44]

ESL National Championships

ESL National Championships are region-specific ESL Pro competitions held in various countries. ESL Meisterschaft, the German championship, began in 2002 and is the oldest esports league in existence.[45] The ESL UK Premiership, another regional esports program, has been ESL's largest regional tournament since 2010. National Championships are established in order to spread local esports competition around the world.[46]

ESL National Championships are held for Battlefield 4, Counter-Strike, Dota 2, Halo, Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, Mortal Kombat, Smite, StarCraft II, World of Tanks, and Rainbow Six.

ESL Pro Tour

The ESL Pro Tour is a year-round circuit that uses a ranking system for qualification to a major championship event.

, ESL hosts three titles for the ESL Pro Tour: Counter-Strike, StarCraft II and Warcraft III.[47] The two major championship events for those titles are IEM Katowice 2021 (for the three titles) and ESL One Cologne 2020 (for Counter-Strike only).

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ESL One Cologne was held online in August 2020.[48]

In 2023, the ESL Pro Tour will host tournaments for three titles:, Dota 2, and StarCraft II.

For Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, key events include IEM Katowice 2023, IEM Spring 2023, IEM Dallas 2023, IEM Cologne 2023, and the ESL Pro Tour CS:GO in Sydney.

For Dota 2, major tournaments include DreamLeague Season 19, DreamLeague Season 20, DreamLeague Season 21 [49] and the Riyadh Masters. Notably, the Riyadh Masters is the third-largest esports tournament in terms of prize money, following the Fortnite World Championship and The International.

ESL One

ESL One refers to premier offline tournaments across a variety of games,[50] like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive[51] [52] and Dota 2, and are usually considered among the most prestigious events for each game.[53] ESL One events are often selected to be part of the Valve-sponsored CS:GO Major series. The ESL Counter-Strike Majors have been: EMS One Katowice 2014, ESL One Cologne 2014, ESL One Katowice 2015, ESL One Cologne 2015, ESL One Cologne 2016, IEM Katowice 2019. ESL were originally set to host a major in Rio de Janeiro in 2020 under the ESL One brand, until the event was cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. After 2020, the CS:GO event of ESL One was merged into IEM brand. As of November 2022, ESL has hosted seven of the eighteen CS:GO Major tournaments, while the last one was IEM Rio Major 2022.

ESL Impact League

ESL Impact League was launched in 2022 to promote women's Counter-Strike:Global Offensive around the world,[54] and is often held simultaneously with other ESL tournaments such as IEM and ESL Challengers. In 2022, 3 LAN tournaments were held in Dallas, Valencia and Jönköping.

Intel Extreme Masters

See main article: Intel Extreme Masters.

The Intel Extreme Masters is the world's longest-running global esports tournament series.[55]

DreamHack

See main article: DreamHack. After DreamHack merged with ESL in 2020, the DreamHack Open CS:GO events were renamed to ESL Challengers, the DreamHack Masters events were discontinued. The StarCraft II events retained the DreamHack name.

ESL Technology

ESL created the ESL Wire Anti Cheat software to combat online cheating in the increasingly competitive field.[56] In 2015, ESL enhanced its tournament software by integrating Wargaming's "Battle API" into its tournaments. The API makes player and game data available through the API application.[57] That same year, ESL released ESL Matchmaking which uses ESL's API to match competitors based on skill.[58] [59] Microsoft worked with ESL to create an Xbox app to use the ESL tournament system through Xbox Live on Xbox One in 2016.[60]

AnyKey

AnyKey is a diversity initiative created by ESL and Intel to include underrepresented members of the gaming community in competitions including women, LGBT people and people of color.[61] [62] AnyKey is made up of two teams for research and implementation.[63] [64] AnyKey has researched and implemented a code of conduct, which aims to address an inclusion policy for esports events and online broadcasts and the harassment issues underrepresented populations face. It has also created and hosted women's tournaments. The two teams continue to research and implement inclusion in the gaming community.[65]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Anti-doping in e-sports: World's largest gaming organization will test for PEDs. Bryan Armen Graham. 23 July 2015. The Guardian. 15 June 2016. 26 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171226012037/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jul/23/anti-doping-in-e-sports-worlds-largest-gaming-organization-will-test-for-peds. live.
  2. Web site: Report: ESL is the top esports tourney broadcaster on Twitch (that's not Riot) . Wawro, Alex . 10 June 2016 . Gamasutra . 24 June 2016 . 8 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201108091750/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/274745/Report_ESL_is_the_top_eSports_tourney_broadcaster_on_Twitch_thats_not_Riot.php . live .
  3. Web site: People have watched more than 800M hours of esports on Twitch since August . Alexander, Julie . 10 June 2016 . Polygon . 24 June 2016 . 8 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201108184854/http://www.polygon.com/2016/6/10/11903928/esports-twitch-league-of-legends-dota-2 . live .
  4. News: Wilde. Tyler. 2022-01-25. Major esports host ESL Gaming is now owned by Saudi Arabia. en. PC Gamer. 2022-01-25.
  5. Web site: Jeffrey. Rousseau. 24 January 2022. Savvy Gaming Group purchases ESL Gaming and FaceIt. 2022-01-25. GamesIndustry.biz. en.
  6. Web site: Phänomen E-Sport: ein neues Themengebiet für Journalisten . Katharina Pencz . 28 October 2015 . Fachjournalist . 22 June 2016 . 22 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210122092037/https://www.fachjournalist.de/phaenomen-e-sport-neues-themengebiet-fuer-journalisten/ . live .
  7. Web site: Swedish media house buys world's largest esports company. Conditt. Jessica. 1 July 2015. Engadget. 4 January 2015. 3 January 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160103080327/http://www.engadget.com/2015/07/01/esports-mtg-acquires-esl/. live.
  8. Web site: IEM Katowice was highest-rated European esports event ever . O'Neill, Patrick Howell . 25 March 2014 . Daily Dot . 22 June 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160813030305/http://www.dailydot.com/esports/iem-world-championship-records-esports/ . 13 August 2016 . dead .
  9. Web site: Promise for esports: Record Breaking Numbers For IEM Katowice 2015 . Ren, Victor . 10 April 2015 . Game Skinny . 24 June 2016 . 11 August 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200811010657/https://www.gameskinny.com/x8kte/promise-for-esports-record-breaking-numbers-for-iem-katowice-2015 . live .
  10. Web site: MTG acquires majority stake in ESL for $86 Million. theScore. theScore. 17 October 2015. 28 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210128042322/https://www.thescoreesports.com/news/2699. live.
  11. Web site: ESL sells majority stake to MTG. 2021-06-29. HLTV.org. en. 29 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210629133140/https://www.hltv.org/news/15325/esl-sells-majority-stake-to-mtg. live.
  12. Web site: MTG to acquire the majority stake in the world's largest esports company. 17 October 2015. 19 September 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180919025112/https://www.turtle-entertainment.com/news/mtg-to-acquire-the-majority-stake-in-the-worlds-largest-esports-company/. live.
  13. Web site: MTG invests in world's largest esports company ESL. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150701133011/http://www.mtg.com/press-releases/mtg-invests-in-worlds-largest-esports-company-esl/. 1 July 2015. dmy-all.
  14. Web site: ESL is bringing live esports to more than 1,500 theaters around the world . Barker, Ian J. . 17 March 2015 . Daily Dot . 22 June 2016 . 1 November 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161101035218/http://www.dailydot.com/esports/esl-bringing-esports-theaters/ . live .
  15. Web site: esports in Cinema Live Event Confirmed for All Work All Play July 28 Premiere Broadcast from Cologne, Germany to over 465 European Cinemas . 16 July 2015. Reuters. 22 June 2016.
  16. Web site: Video gamers drug-tested ahead of competition . Molina, Brett . 25 August 2015 . USA Today . 22 June 2016 . 18 March 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200318150102/https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/gaming/2015/08/25/esl-esports-first-drug-tests/32331571/ . live .
  17. Web site: ESL announces plans to test for PEDs . Rovell, Darren . 23 July 2015 . ESPN.com . 22 June 2016 . 17 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190417200122/http://www.espn.co.uk/moresports/story/_/id/13308581/esl-world-largest-e-sports-league-test-peds . live .
  18. Web site: Drug Testing Is Coming to E-Sports . Wingfield, Nick . Dougherty, Conor . 23 July 2015 . The New York Times . 22 June 2016 . 8 November 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151108020616/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/24/technology/drug-testing-is-coming-to-e-gaming.html?_r=0 . live .
  19. Web site: Anti-Doping Regulations Come to Esports: A Q&A With Electronic Sports League's Michal Blicharz . Lumb, David . Fast Company . 22 June 2016 . 3 January 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170103211944/https://www.fastcompany.com/3049041/qa/anti-doping-regulations-come-to-esports-a-qa-with-electronic-sports-leagues-michal-blicha . live .
  20. Web site: Now Coming to E-Sports: Random Drug Testing. Sarah E. Needleman. 23 July 2015. Wall Street Journal. 15 June 2016. 3 January 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160103152314/http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/07/23/now-coming-to-e-sports-random-drug-testing/. live.
  21. Web site: Video Game League Announces Random Drug Tests For Competitors . 13 August 2015 . NPR . 22 June 2016 . 30 May 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160530100451/http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/13/432073720/video-game-league-announces-random-drug-tests-for-competitors . live .
  22. Web site: ESL adopts World Anti-Doping Agency's prohibited substances list, like steroids and pot . Tach, Dave . 12 August 2015 . Polygon . 22 June 2016 . 8 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201108160620/http://www.polygon.com/2015/8/12/9136721/esl-adopts-anti-doping-WADA-list-banned-substances . live .
  23. Web site: ESL One Cologne with $250,000 . MIRAA . HLTV . 8 December 2018 . 29 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170329184713/http://www.hltv.org/news/14297-esl-one-cologne-with-250000 . live .
  24. Web site: ESL Announces World's Largest CS:GO Tournament This August . 23 February 2015 . IGN . 22 June 2016 . 16 August 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160816235233/http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/02/19/esl-announces-worlds-largest-csgo-tournament-this-august . live .
  25. Web site: ESL One Cologne drug tests come up empty . Chalk, Andy . 24 August 2015 . PC Gamer . 22 June 2016 . 15 June 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160615040426/http://www.pcgamer.com/csgo-counterstrike-cologne-drug-tests-esl-one/ . live .
  26. Web site: esports Is Big Time: Pro Video Gaming League Eyes Global Distribution, Drug Testing . Mueller, Saira . 22 October 2015 . IB Times . 22 June 2016 . 17 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190417200124/https://www.ibtimes.com/esports-big-time-pro-video-gaming-league-eyes-global-distribution-drug-testing-2152739 . live .
  27. Web site: ESL One Cologne pulls in $4.2 million in revenue for teams, sets viewer records . Wynne, Jared . 26 August 2015 . Daily Dot . 22 June 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305014611/http://www.dailydot.com/esports/counter-strike-esl-cologne-valve/ . 5 March 2016 . dead .
  28. Web site: 27 Million People Watched the Biggest Counter-Strike Tournament Ever . 25 August 2015 . IGN . 22 June 2016 . 18 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210118235437/https://www.ign.com/articles/2015/08/25/27-million-people-watched-the-biggest-counter-strike-tournament-ever . live .
  29. Web site: Guild Wars 2 Gets Its Own Esports League. 14 October 2015. Richard Procter. Forbes. 15 June 2016. 18 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160818050443/http://www.forbes.com/sites/richardprocter/2015/10/14/guild-wars-2-arenanet-pro-league/#649433bf498e. live.
  30. Web site: esports: the latest 21st century phenomenon or passing fad? . Lee, Kevin . 28 March 2015 . TechRadar . 22 June 2016 . 15 August 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160815112021/http://www.techradar.com/news/gaming/we-went-to-a-dota-2-esports-event-to-see-what-it-s-all-about-1268757/1 . live .
  31. Web site: IEM San Jose With $100K CS:GO Tournament . Domination esports . 22 June 2016 .
  32. Web site: ESL confirms they're partnering with Activision for Call of Duty World League Pro Division. Keshav. 28 October 2015. Charlie Intel. 4 January 2015. 30 October 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151030004131/http://charlieintel.com/2015/10/28/esl-confirms-theyre-partnering-with-activision-for-call-of-duty-world-league/. live.
  33. Web site: ESL Acquires ESEA, Largest CS:GO Platform. IGN. 20 November 2015. 15 June 2016. 13 July 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160713115501/http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/11/20/esl-acquires-esea-largest-csgo-platform. live.
  34. Web site: Trevor Schmidt. ESEA partners with IEM for CS:GO Qualifiers. ESEA. 15 June 2016. 24 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160624131733/https://play.esea.net/index.php?s=news&d=comments&id=14819. live.
  35. Web site: ESPORTS INTEGRITY COALITION LAUNCHED WITH IAN SMITH APPOINTED AS THE FIRST ESPORTS INTEGRITY COMMISSIONER. 8 July 2016. 1 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160821001933/http://www.esportsintegrity.com/2016/07/08/esports-integrity-coalition-launched-with-ian-smith-appointed-as-the-first-esports-integrity-commissioner/. 21 August 2016. dead.
  36. News: ESL partnership with Mercedes-Benz kicking off with Hamburg DOTA 2 Major EGameTube. NikShiP. 2017-08-21. EGameTube. 2017-12-26. en-US. 26 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171226182337/http://www.egametube.com/esl-partnership-mercedes-benz-kicking-off-hamburg-dota-2-major/. live.
  37. Web site: 9 October 2017. ESL and Hulu strike deal for exclusive esports content.. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191024063845/https://www.hulu.com/press/esl-and-hulu-strike-deal-for-exclusive-esports-content/. 24 October 2019. 14 January 2018. Hulu.
  38. Web site: 1xBet becomes Official Global Betting Partner for ESL Pro Tour CS:GO and ESL One Dota 2 - ESL Gaming GmbH. 2021-06-29. en-US. 1 May 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210501195004/https://about.eslgaming.com/blog/2021/03/1xbet-becomes-official-global-betting-partner-for-esl-pro-tour-csgo-and-esl-one-dota-2/. live.
  39. Web site: ESL and Intel Celebrate 20 years of Collaboration. Intel. April 28, 2021. October 13, 2021. 6 May 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210506104835/https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/newsroom/article/esl-intel-celebrate-20-years-collaboration.html. live.
  40. Web site: Šimić. Ivan. 2022-01-24. ESL Gaming and FACEIT merge, companies bought by Saudi-backed group for $1.5bn. 2022-01-26. Esports Insider. en-GB.
  41. Web site: Kontrola antydopingowa wkracza do e-Sportu . 13 August 2015 . Miasto Gier . 22 June 2016 . 10 August 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160810154649/http://www.miastogier.pl/publicystyka,662.html . live .
  42. Web site: La montée de l'e-Sport dans le monde . 15 November 2014 . Labo G4 . 22 June 2016 . 28 August 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160828041720/http://www.labo-g4.fr/v1//node/299 . live .
  43. Web site: This esports company just got acquired for $87 million. John Gaudiosi. 3 July 2015. Fortune. 15 June 2016. 11 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160611235424/http://fortune.com/2015/07/03/esl-esports-acquisition/. live.
  44. Web site: Desk . The Bridge . 2021-10-26 . ISL: FSDL launches revolutionary e-sports platform eISL to reiterate youth appeal . 2022-03-02 . thebridge.in . en.
  45. Web site: Germany's best gamers come in Duisburg against each other. 29 April 2015. WAZ. 15 June 2016. 6 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160806195211/http://www.derwesten.de/staedte/duisburg/duisburg-wird-zum-paradies-der-daddel-experten-id10616731.html. live.
  46. Web site: ESL reveals biggest UK tournament for CS:GO and LoL. Chris Higgins. 16 February 2015. MCV. 15 June 2016. 17 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160617183740/http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/esl-reveals-biggest-uk-tournament-for-cs-go-and-lol/0145251. live.
  47. Web site: ESL Pro Tour - Game Titles. www.eslgaming.com. 11 September 2020. 22 September 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200922141210/https://pro.eslgaming.com/tour/. live.
  48. Web site: Update: Much-anticipated ESL One Cologne 2020 will transition into an online event due to ongoing COVID-19 measures . . 23 July 2020 . 19 September 2020 . 11 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201011071742/https://www.esl-one.com/csgo/cologne/2020/07/much-anticipated-esl-one-cologne-2020-will-transition-into-an-online-event-due-to-ongoing-covid-19-measures/ . live .
  49. Web site: DreamLeague Season 21 . . 18 September 2023.
  50. Web site: ESL Announces $ 1 Million USD Prize Pool for ESL One events . Drall . Pranjall . GosuGamers . 3 September 2015 . 24 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924023325/http://www.gosugamers.net/dota2/news/30045-esl-announces-1-million-usd-prize-pool-for-esl-one-events . live .
  51. Web site: ESL One Cologne with $250,000 . MIRAA . HLTV . 8 December 2018 . 29 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170329184713/http://www.hltv.org/news/14297-esl-one-cologne-with-250000 . live .
  52. Web site: ESL One Katowice with $250,000 . Striker . HLTV . 8 December 2018 . 7 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170307040213/http://www.hltv.org/news/14036-esl-one-katowice-with-250000 . live .
  53. Web site: ESL One 2015 announced for June 20th. Kim. Sovann. GosuGamers. 3 September 2015. 24 September 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150924023320/http://www.gosugamers.net/dota2/news/29319-esl-one-2015-announced-for-june-20th. live.
  54. Web site: Stacco . Dom . 2022-11-23 . ESL Impact 2023 women’s CSGO program and schedule revealed, including three live finals . 2022-12-06 . esports-news.co.uk.
  55. Web site: 3 Things to Know Before Watching Intel Extreme Masters. 21 November 2015. Unikr. 15 June 2016. 13 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211013142109/https://news.unikrn.com/article/3-things-to-know-before-watching-intel-extreme-masters/. live.
  56. Web site: After drug scandal, ESL says "esports needs to mature". Evan Lahti. 24 July 2015. PC Gamer. 15 June 2016. 29 May 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160529112838/http://www.pcgamer.com/after-drug-scandal-esl-says-esports-needs-to-mature/. live.
  57. Web site: ESL Gaming Network to use Wargaming.net Battle API. Will M. 6 March 2015. Programmable Web. 15 June 2016. 8 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160808200026/http://www.programmableweb.com/news/esl-gaming-network-to-use-wargaming.net-battle-api/2015/03/06. live.
  58. Web site: ESL releases matchmaking devkit to debut in WipEout spiritual successor. Chris Higgins. 12 February 2015. MCV. 15 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20170103092449/http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/esl-releases-matchmaking-devkit-to-debut-in-wipeout-spiritual-successor/0145091. 3 January 2017. dead.
  59. Web site: ESL is using its e-sports expertise to offer developers a multiplayer matchmaking tool. Jeff Grubb. 13 February 2015. Venture Beat. 15 June 2016. 26 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160826090737/http://venturebeat.com/2015/02/13/esl-is-using-its-e-sports-expertise-to-over-developers-a-multiplayer-matchmaking-tool/. live.
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