ESL FaceIt Group and Intel renewed their long-standing partnership to assist premier Counter-Strike esports competitors worldwide.
The brand new multi-year deal will proceed Intel ‘s work with ESL for the ESL Professional Tour and IEM occasions, which have been a cornerstone of the Counter-Strike esports scene. When the renewed contract begins in January 2025, EFG and Intel could have been companions for twenty-four years, relationship again to when ESL was a separate entity. I feel the deal, regardless of Intel’s weakened enterprise, is one other signal that the esports winter is over.
Since that point, Intel Excessive Masters occasions have drawn over two billion hours watched, with LAN occasions on 5 continents and over $27 million in prize cash distributed. In 2024 alone, IEM broadcasts drew 162 million hours watched and practically 160,000 attendees. I attended a Counter-Strike esports occasion final yr in Cologne, Germany — and the sound of the 13,000-strong crowd was deafening.
“Intel has been a robust supporter of aggressive gaming because the Nineties, and ESL and EFG have been important companions in supporting the esports group all through the many years,” mentioned Roger Chandler, basic supervisor of the Fanatic PC and Workstation Section at Intel, in a press release. “With this new multi-year settlement with EFG, Intel® is constant its dedication to develop the {industry}, present aggressive alternatives, and assist gamers with industry-leading Intel Core merchandise.”
The renewal was introduced forward of the Grand Finals for Intel Excessive Masters Katowice, which introduced 24 of the world’s finest Counter-Strike 2 groups to the Spodek Area to face off for a $1,250,000 million prize pool and a win within the race to safe the $1 million Intel Grand Slam V.
In 2024, the companions placed on the A hundredth-ever IEM occasion with the most-viewed IEM Dallas event ever, that includes 22.3 million hours watched and peak viewership of greater than 1.8 million globally because the longest-running esports event on this planet celebrated its centennial look. Final yr, IEM occasions in Cologne, Germany; Dallas; and Katowice, Poland had been totally bought out with packed arenas in each Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Chengdu, China.
“That is greater than only a renewal, it’s a strategic partnership that exemplifies the sort of collaborations we worth most,” mentioned Rodrigo Samwell, chief industrial officer at EFG, in a press release. “Over time, Intel has grow to be essentially the most revered model in esports as a result of they’ve been with us, constructing this {industry} from the bottom up. You merely can not contact the pedigree that Intel has earned with the esports and gaming communities. Collectively, we’re excited to proceed delivering unparalleled experiences and celebrating IEM champions for years to return.”
“Since becoming a member of forces 20 years in the past, ESL FaceIt Group and Intel have invested tons of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} right into a now billion-dollar {industry}, creating lots of the world’s most prestigious esports tournaments and setting the usual for stadium occasions,” mentioned Bastian Veiser, director of companion administration at EFG, in a press release. “From supporting grassroots tournaments years in the past to standing-room-only arenas now, this partnership has performed an important function in bringing esports into the mainstream.”
