In the light of recent community debate, we felt it was only right to remind and provide clarity on the slot allocation for our various tournaments and leagues within the ESL Pro Tour for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
EPT Masters tournaments into EPT Championships
Only the winning team of a EPT Masters tournament is eligible to receive the direct invitation. In case the winning team already earned a direct invitation, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible for the EPT Championship, then the slot will be transferred to the global ESL World Ranking pool and does not trickle down to the second placed team in said tournament.
If a team first wins a slot for the EPT Championship Play-In, and then later on wins a slot for the EPT Championship Group Stage, then the Play-In slot will be transferred to the global ESL World Ranking pool and does not trickle down to the second placed team in said tournament.
The ESL Pro Tour Championships are the pinnacle of our CS:GO eco-system competition and are held twice a year. For these tournaments there are 3 ways to qualify and that is by winning a EPT Masters tournament, an affiliate tournament or a CS:GO Major. If the winning team won’t take the slot, then we will go with the highest ranked team globally per the cut-off date from the ESL World Ranking to achieve the strongest possible field of teams for the subsequent EPT Championship.
EPT Masters competitions in 2023 are:
- ESL Pro League Season 17
- IEM Rio
- IEM Dallas
- ESL Pro League Season 18
- IEM Fall
EPT Championships in 2023 are:
- IEM Katowice
- IEM Cologne
ESL Challenger into ESL Pro League
If the winning team of an ESL Challenger tournament already has a slot in the subsequent season of ESL Pro League, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible, the second placed team can inherit the slot. If second place has a slot, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible, the slot will be transferred to the global ESL World Ranking (at the time of the cut-off date) and does not trickle down further.
ESL National Championship into ESL Pro League
If the winning team of a ESL National Championship already has a slot in the subsequent season of ESL Pro League, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible, the second placed team can inherit the slot. If second place has a slot, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible, the slot will be transferred to the global ESL World Ranking (at the time of the cut-off date) and does not trickle down further.
For the above EPT Challenger tier tournaments we allow the second placed teams to inherit the spot, in the event the first placed teams already has a slot, declines the invitation or is otherwise unable to attend. This is to accommodate the aspiring teams that attend and compete in our Challenger tier tournaments, as these act as a gateway for these teams into the EPT Masters tournament ESL Pro League. Anything beyond second place we are simply unable to distinguish between and as such the slot will transfer to the ESL World Ranking.
ESL National Championship into EPT Championships
In two regions, Poland and Germany, ESL National Championship winners receive a direct invitation to the subsequent Play-In Stage of the EPT Championship in their home region, Katowice and Cologne respectively. Only the winning team is eligible to receive the direct invitation. In case the winning team already earned a direct invitation, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible for the EPT Championship, then the slot will be transferred to the regional ESL World Ranking pool and does not trickle down to the second placed team in said tournament.
ESL Challenger League into ESL Pro League
If the winning team of a ESL Challenger League season already has a slot in the subsequent season of ESL Pro League, declines the invitation or is otherwise ineligible, the second placed team can inherit the slot. If second place has a slot or declines the invitation, the procedure continues for the top four teams of the season. If none of the teams within the top four will take the slot, it will be transferred to the regional ESL World Ranking (at the time of the cut-off date) and does not trickle down further.
outro
All of the above refers to the current amount of tournaments, leagues and formats we run within the ESL Pro Tour eco-system for CS:GO. Should any of our tournaments, leagues and formats change in the future, then the slot allocation is also subject to change and will be announced at the same time. The ESL Pro Tour - CS:GO General Rulebook is reflecting all of the above relating to slot allocation and replacement terms.
