ESL Pro League Season 11 headed to Denver after ownership change

Denver will host the ESL Pro League Season 11 Finals later this year, according to an official press release from the company. The news comes just a day after Astralis and 12 other teams revealed that they were now part owners of the long-running league. 

More information on that ground-breaking shift can be found here.

Starting on March 16, season 11 of the EPL will showcase 24 teams in a LAN league, comprised of four groups with six teams each. The ESL Pro League finals will then take place over the course of three days with the top six performers facing off for the top prize.

EPL Finals in Denver after Pro League switches tournament model

The “Lourve Agreement” between ESL, Dreamhack, and the 13 teams completes a massive shift in the format and business structure of Counter-Strike’s premier league. EPL now somewhat resembles a traditional sports league, rather than a standard esports event.

The list of teams that have signed the agreement includes:

• Astralis
• Team Liquid
• FaZe Clan
• mousesports
• Evil Geniuses
• Natus Vincere
• G2 Esports
• Team Vitality
• Complexity Gaming
• Ninjas in Pyjamas
• ENCE Esports
• 100 Thieves 

Denver will see what is arguably the best competition in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive this year, especially after EPL debuted its list of invited teams earlier this month. The season will be the first EPL Finals scheduled to be held in the United States since the season 7 finals in Dallas, Texas.

“We are beyond excited to bring ESL Pro League back to the States after two years. The North American fans have always been very supportive and we want to reward them by hosting the revolutionary 11th season of ESL Pro League in the heart of North America. The Mile-High city of Denver is the perfect fit to introduce the all-new format at an all-new location for ESL Pro League,” said Senior VP of Product at ESL Ulrich Shultze.

The ESL Pro League Finals will take place from April 10 through April 12 and features a $750,000 prize pool. Tickets for the event go on sale starting at 4 p.m. February 24, with prices for attendance ranging from $15 to $89. Interested parties can find out more information about ticket tiers on ESL’s official Season 11 website.