The organizers of the ESL Challenger February tournament have announced the final list of invited teams. The competition was originally scheduled to take place at DreamHack Anaheim, but was moved online due to the unfavorable epidemiological situation. The prize pool for the event, which will take place in February, will amount to $100,000 dollars.
Invitations went to two teams from the top 10 of the world ranking – FURIA and Virtus.pro, as well as Movistar Riders and Dignitas. At the first stage of the tournament, they will meet teams from different regions that have qualified in local events. They are French HEET, North American Complexity, recently signed Extra Salt lineup, as well as representing South America 9z and Australian ORDER.
The decision to hold the event in an online format was made recently due to the worsening situation with the «omicron strain». Teams will have to play online while in Europe, with the tournament format remaining the same. The playoffs will be held Feb. 11-13. The first place team will receive half of the prize money ($50,000) and the other half will be shared by the remaining seven teams.