Shanghai, New York City, Singapore, Sao Paulo and Katowice – here are the five cities that will be visited by the Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) tour during the eighth season of this international eSports tournament. The event in Katowice was also announced the last stop being the same the World Championship final of the IEM.
“The turnout of the fans last year and the unforgettable atmosphere they have created gave us absolutely no choice but to move the finals event from Germany to Poland” – said Michał Blicharz, director of Pro Gaming at Turtle Entertainment. The final of the Intel Extreme Masters will take place at the extraordinary “Spodek” sports arena between 14th and 16th of March 2014.
“Spodek” was previously used by the IEM for three days in January 2013, attracting 50 000 visiting fans and over 5 million unique viewers on ESL TV’s online streams, making it the most successful European eSports event in history. “I have never seen an event as amazing as the Intel Extreme Masters event that took place in “Spodek” last January and I can only imagine what it will look like when we stage the World Championship here” – Michał Blicharz added.
The event will mark the first time that the Intel Extreme Masters World Championship is not held at the CeBIT trade show in Hannover (Germany), where the tournament occupied an entire exhibition hall.
Gaming superstars from around the world will compete for a total prize purse of USD 250 000 in League of Legends and StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm.
As with the previous event, the Intel Extreme Masters World Championship will take place thanks to a partnership with the City of Katowice. “We are proud to be hosting such a prestigious and globally influential gaming event like the Intel Extreme Masters in our City” – commented Piotr Uszok, Katowice mayor. “The event has become a part of our City’s strategy because gaming is a major part of youth culture today.”
“I have been involved with this global tour for seven years now and in that time I had not seen anything like the event we had in Katowice” said George Woo, Intel’s IEM Marketing Manager. “Poland is very passionate for gaming and “Spodek” is the perfect venue for what we are trying to achieve together.”
Next to experiencing eSports competition at the highest level, visitors can interact with the newest games and gaming technology at various partner areas, including the Intel showcase, BenQ and Kingston HyperX.
See the photos of the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice tournament taking place in January 2013 >>>