The tournament is open to any LoL teams comprised of CIS citizens

Feb 4, 2014 15:24 GMT  ·  By

The ESL, in collaboration with Riot Games, announced the ESL Pro Series CIS tournament, where the best eight teams from the region will be picked to compete for $17k / €12.5k in prizes.

The best eight teams will be selected through two online qualifiers, and the season will culminate with the grand finals, where the prizes will be awarded.

"A few months ago Turtle Entertainment opened its Russian office and the time has come to further the development of the CIS eSports scene with the ESL Pro Series.

"We are very excited that, together with Riot Games, we can offer the League of Legends community the possibility to play into a professional environment and take a share of the $17k / €12.5k prize pool," Community Director at Turtle CIS Marius Radu stated.

The ESL Pro Series CIS will start on March 5, and the second Online Qualifier will take place on March 8, determining the last four teams to participate in the ESL Pro Series Season 1.

Both qualifiers are completely open to any League of Legends team comprised CIS citizens. The ESL Pro Series Season 1 will last approximately two months and will be divided in two halves.

The A-Series tournaments will also debut, as part of the ESL competitive ecosystem. As such, the A-Series Premier Division and the A-Series Open Division will be the only way players can make it into the ESL Pro Series.

"The unique system we decide to use will keep the level of competition high during the entire season and only the best teams will prevail. At the same time however, everyone will have the possibility to make their way into professional play through the A-Series tournaments," Marius Radu concluded.