Freaks 4U explores options for successor league to ESL Meisterschaft

With the release of Counter-Strike 2, the ESL Faceit Group is withdrawing from organising national tournaments and pulling the plug on all national ESL championships. They say they are open to third party solutions. In Germany, Freaks 4U will seek dialogue with the scene to discuss the possibilities of a successor league.

It is the end of an era from the early days of e-sports: For more than 20 years, the ESL has organised national competitions, in Germany the so-called ESL Meisterschaft (Championship), in addition to the major international tournament events. These were by far less successful and lucrative in terms of prize money, but they were the first choice for non-endemic brands with only a national reach to enter e-sports sponsorship. However, the ESL championships are now over.

As the ESL Faceit Group (EFG) announced in a global statement, the national championships, which are all played in CS:GO, will be discontinued with the upcoming release of Counter-Strike 2. "As e-sports has matured over the years, we have seen it move in a different direction, towards a borderless sport where teams recruit players from all nationalities," EFG said. For years, both ecosystems - national leagues and national and international events - have been cultivated. On the one hand, this has led to a loss of focus, but on the other hand, it has become clear that the borderless, open system offers a more dynamic basis for the ESL Pro Tour," the company explains. Specifically, the national championships in the Benelux, France, Spain and Turkey will end immediately. In Australia and New Zealand, Brazil, Poland, the UK and Ireland, as well as Germany, there will be at least one final season in 2023.

The domestic leagues, however, do not appear to have reached the end of the road. Even the EFG believes there is room for regional and national competitions and is open to working with other organisers to support players and teams who wish to continue competing in national leagues. For the teams in Poland and Germany, the EFG also makes it clear that they will still have the chance to participate in the IEM Katowice and IEM Cologne respectively.

At least for Germany, a concrete solution is already emerging. The ESL and its partner Freaks 4U have issued parallel statements. The ESL writes: "We have already taken the first steps to support the local scene and ensure that there will continue to be opportunities to qualify for our global tournaments in German-speaking countries. We would also like to thank Freaks 4U Gaming for their successful cooperation over the past few years, during which they have continued to run the ESL Championship, and we are sure that the German-speaking region will continue to be well catered for in the future".

"While we regret the closure of the ESLM, we remain committed to driving e-sports in Germany forward. With leagues and tournaments that are of great importance to the participants and at the same time bring fans and the community together with their favourite players and teams. This goal remains unchanged for us", adds Freaks 4U: "Therefore, we are planning an intensive exchange with players, teams, talents, the ESBD and the community in the near future. Together we want to find out how and when we can set up a follow-up product that meets the high expectations of the community and our own".

He said that they were pleased with EFG's openness to include a potential successor in the ESL ecosystem in order to preserve the important building block of the ESL Championship, the stepping stone to top international sport. "We will keep you updated on the development of a potential successor and look forward to the ideas and exchange that will come out of the dialogue", Freaks 4U said.