ELEAGUE has unveiled the first details about its second season, including a provisional schedule. For its second $1.4 million season, ELEAGUE has trimmed down the number of teams competing in the main tournament from 24 to 16, with the top eight sides from the opening season getting direct entry into the group stage. In both Europe and North America, preliminary qualifiers will be hosted to determine the final eight teams making it to ELEAGUE. All the teams who finished outside the top eight in Season 1 have been invited to the preliminary round, in which they will be joined by the leading teams from open qualifiers. Virtus.pro won the first ELEAGUE season There are also changes to the format of the main competition, which will feature a double-elimination group stage instead of a two-step group stage with a round robin system that determined the seeding in a bracket. The top two teams from each group will then progress to the single-elimination playoffs, which will conclude with the grand final, on December 3. TBS will provide live coverage of ELEAGUE, televising a weekly Friday night showcase throughout the group stage, along with one semi-final match and the title decider.
“We’ve been very pleased with the performance of ELEAGUE and the significant levels of engagement with our content across all platforms in our first season,” said Christina Alejandre, ELEAGUE general manager and vice-president of esports for Turner Sports. “In our second season, we’ve enhanced the schedule to make the stakes even higher from a competitive standpoint, while also creating an opportunity for a more open field. “We believe this new format will keep our audience engaged with our content from the opening week through the grand finals and be more accommodating to team and player schedules.”
Below you can find a provisional schedule for season two: Open Qualifiers
Europe: September 3-5
North America: September 10-12
Preliminary Rounds
Europe: September 7-8
North America: September 14-15
Format: 16 teams per region / single elimination / four teams per region advance to group stage
Group Stages
Group A: October 21-22
Group B: November 4-5
Group C: November 11-12
Group D: November 18-19
Format: four teams per group / double elimination / top two teams per group advance to playoffs
Playoffs
Quarterfinals: November 29-30
Semifinals: December 2
Grand Finals: December 3
Format: eight teams / single elimination
The teams from Season 1 will be distributed between the group stage and the preliminary rounds as follows: