The German team Sprout won the ESL Meisterschaft Spring and thanks to this they qualified for the group stage of the IEM Cologne championship. Sprout also secured a spot in the playoffs of the ESL National Championship Global tournament later this month.
In the ESL Meisterschaft Spring finals, Sprout defeated Unicorns of Love in a three-card match. They were first defeated on their opponents' chosen map, Inferno, but then went on to a convincing 16 – 5 victory on Dust2 to leave Nuke with a score of 16 – 11. Prior to that, Sprout defeated NLG in the championship semifinals without allowing them to gain an advantage on any map.
With a win in the German National Championship, Sprout will qualify for the ESL National Championship Global playoffs, where they will face the winners of other countries' National Championships, including UK's Endpoint, France's LDLC and Spain's Movistar Riders.
The IEM Cologne group stage will take place on July 6 – July 7 in Cologne, Germany. Sixteen competitors will battle for eight spots in the final stage. Sprout's competitors will include Complexity, Spirit, NIP and other top European teams.