Weekly esports guide (19 - 26 April): VCT SEA Stage 2 Challengers Finals approaching
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The Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) SEA Stage 2 Challengers Finals — scheduled from 29 April to 2 May — is approaching, where 10 Southeast Asian Valorant teams will be fighting for the chance to represent the region in VCT Masters Reykjavik, the first-ever Valorant tournament to feature live international competition.
Do note that the status of some events may have changed after publishing because of the coronavirus.
2021 Dota Pro Circuit Season 2
Date: 13 April - 23 May
Venue: Online
After its 2020 season was cancelled by the coronavirus pandemic, the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) has returned in 2021 with a new regional league system. Under the new system, the DPC will be split into six regional leagues in North America, South America, Europe, the CIS, China, and Southeast Asia, with each league having 16 participating teams split equally in an Upper and Lower Division.
Aside from introducing the regional league system, the new DPC format will also split the circuit into two seasons, with each concluding with a Major event featuring the best teams from each region, all leading up to The International 10 in August.
Following the conclusion of the ONE Esports Singapore Major, where Chinese team Invictus Gaming emerged as champions, the DPC is set to begin its second season on 13 April and will run until 23 May. The season will then be followed by the second Major event of the circuit, which is scheduled from 2-13 June.
League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational 2021
Date: 6 - 23 May
Venue: Reykjavík, Iceland
The League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) returns for its sixth edition after it was cancelled last year by the coronavirus pandemic. This year's MSI will be the first of two back-to-back tournaments hosted by Riot Games in the Laugardalshöll indoor sporting arena in Reykjavík, Iceland.
As with previous iterations of the event, the MSI will gather the top teams from the 12 LoL esports regional leagues across the world. The MSI will kick off on 6 May and will crown a new MSI champion in the grand finals on 23 May.
VCT Masters Reykjavík
Date: 24 - 30 May
Venue: Reykjavík, Iceland
Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Masters Reykjavík will be the first Valorant esports event to feature live international competition, as it will gather 10 of the best Valorant teams from around the world to fight for a spot at the Valorant Champions tournament in December.
VCT Masters Reykjavík will be the second of two back-to-back tournaments hosted by Riot Games in the Laugardalshöll indoor sporting arena in Reykjavík, Iceland, kicking off a day after the conclusion of LoL MSI 2021. The tournament itself will conclude on 30 May.
VCT SEA Stage 2 Challengers Finals
Date: 29 April - 2 May
Venue: Online
The VCT SEA Stage 2 Challengers Finals features 10 Southeast Asian Valorant teams fighting from 29 April to 2 May for the chance to represent the region in VCT Masters Reykjavik in May. The tournament features two teams each from the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam as well as one team each from Malaysia/Singapore as well as Hong Kong/Taiwan.
While the participating teams will be fighting to get a bigger share of the sizable prize money and VCT point pool, their eyes are surely set on winning the tournament and punching their ticket to Iceland.
FSL Valorant Circuit
Date: March - October
Venue: Online
Watch live: https://yhoo.it/FSLxYahoo
FSL, the premier female competitive gaming circuit in Asia, will be hosting the 2021 FSL Valorant Circuit with approval from Riot Games and support from Intel. The circuit will run for eight months from March to October and feature a total prize pool of SGD$12,000. The FSL Valorant Circuit will be split into four stages: FSL Open, FSL Open Overtime, FSL Wildcard, and FSL Elite.
The first stage of the circuit, the FSL Open, will be held monthly from March to August, with each iteration featuring a maximum of 40 teams competing for a cut of the SG$1,000 prize pool. Teams will earn points by participating in each FSL Open and will be placed on the FSL Open Leaderboard, with the two top-ranked teams qualifying for FSL Elite.
The third to 19th-placed teams on the leaderboard will then play in the circuit's second stage, FSL Open: Overtime, in September. The winning team will take the third spot in FSL Elite.
FSL Wildcard will follow in early October, where teams that are either new to the circuit or have not yet qualified for FSL Elite will get one last shot at advancing into the final stage. FSL Wildcard will feature a SG$1,000 prize pool and a maximum of 40 participating teams, with the winners claiming the fourth and final spot in FSL Elite.
FSL Elite will be the final stage of the 2021 FSL Valorant Circuit. The four qualified teams from the previous stages will compete in an offline tournament in Singapore from 23-24 October, with US$5,000 in prize money up for grabs.
LEC Spring 2021
Date: 22 January - 11 May
Venue: Berlin, Germany
LoL’s competitive circuit in Europe is the game’s third major esports league to commence its 2021 season. The LEC’s Spring Split will begin on 22 January and will run until 14 March. The competition will begin with a double round robin group stage to determine the six teams out of the 10 in the league will make it to the playoffs.
LEC Spring 2021 will have a EU€200,000 (over US$240,000) prize pool, with the winner of the split taking the lion’s share of EU€80,000 (over US$96,000) as well as a spot in this year’s Mid Season Invitational.
League of Legends: Wild Rift 2021 SEA Icon Series: Summer Season
Date: 3 April - TBD
Venue: Online
League of Legends: Wild Rift esports will officially kick off with the 2021 SEA Icon Series: Summer Season, which starts on 3 April following the conclusion of the five weekend-long preseason event.
The Wild Rift SEA Icon Series will be the first tournament produced by Riot Games Southeast Asia in partnership with regional partners, and the publisher says it "will be an important foundational step" to strengthening the legacy of Southeast Asian players and teams in the mobile esports scene.
The Summer Season features eight week-long tournaments in the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore, with competition culminating at the Summer Super Cup where the champions for each country will be crowned. Registration for the qualifiers for each country will open this month, with the qualifiers themselves set to begin next month.
2021 Free Fire World Series Singapore
Date: 22, 29 May
Venue: Singapore
The 2021 Free Fire World Series (FFWS) will be held in Singapore in May and feature a US$2 million prize pool, the largest-ever in the history of the mobile battle royale.
The event will gather 22 of the best Free Fire teams from across 14 countries and regions, namely: Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, Taiwan, Singapore, Bangladesh, Europe, Pakistan, Brazil, Latin America, Russia and the CIS, Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines (MCP), and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
12 teams will start the tournament from the Play-Ins on 22 May while 10 others have been directly seeded to the Finals stage on 29 May.
ESL Mobile 2021
Date: 12 April - 23 July
Venue: Online
ESL has expanded its mobile esports ecosystem this year to include the Asia-Pacific region alongside North America as well as Europe and the Middle-East and North Africa. ESL will host two full seasons of action in 2021 with the ESL Mobile Spring 2021 season kicking off in April. Each season will consist of two competitive tiers, ESL Mobile Open and the all-new ESL Mobile Challenge.
ESL Mobile will feature competitions in Asphalt 9: Legends, Brawl Stars, Clash of Clans, Clash Royale, PUBG Mobile and League of Legends: Wild Rift, and Legends of Runeterra as well as a total prize pool of US$650,000.
E1 Championship Season 1
Date: 7 April - 2 June
Venue: Online
E1 Championship Season One, Asia Pacific's premier sim racing championship, flags off in RaceRoom at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, featuring 28 of the best sim-racers from around the region competing for a share of US$15,000. The circuit will be streamed live on eGG Network’s TV channel available in eight countries, or on E1 Championship’s Facebook livestream every Wednesday from 7 Apr - 2 June at 9PM (GMT+8).
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