Record prize pool, three stadium events, and new destinations
ESL, the world’s largest esports company, recently concluded a successful decade of Intel Extreme Masters events around the world when Season 10 came to a conclusion at IEM Katowice in March. But that is just the beginning, because with Season 11 on the horizon, a bigger and better IEM is on the way.
This will mark the eleventh year of the world’s longest running global esports tournament series where elite pro players from Counter-Strike Global Offensive, League of Legends® and StarCraft® II compete for fortune and glory, and for the first time in IEM history the fortune will be represented by a prize pool that has grown to over US$1,000,000.
Additionally, Season 11 will provide fans and players new and larger locations to become a part of the experience. IEM will return to the birthplace of esports for the first time in eight years as the hype train rolls into a stadium event in Goyang, Korea, as well as a boat ride across the San Francisco Bay when it moves from San Jose to Oakland and a larger venue.
“It’s a big deal for us to be doing a three stadium IEM season,” says Michal Blicharz VP Pro Gaming at ESL. “Adding one in Korea of all places is historic and will make Season 11 more special than any other before.”
IEM will also host an event at the ChinaJoy Expo in Shanghai, which is the largest gaming event in China, and will return to Katowice, Poland for the culmination of IEM Season 11 to present fans with the perfect cap to the ultimate esports experience.
Intel Extreme Masters Season 11 Calendar:
•IEM Shanghai in Shanghai at ChinaJoy, July 28-31, 2016
•IEM Oakland, November 19-20, 2016
•IEM Goyang, December 17-18, 2016
•IEM World Championship in Katowice, March 2017