ESL Pro League Season 17 Group Stage Draw Results Presented

Tournament operator ESL has released the results of the group stage draw for its next championship, ESL Pro League Season 17. All 32 teams have been divided into four groups, each of which will offer an updated format and several chances for participants. Recall that at the end of last year, the organizers announced changes in the structure of the championship, endowing it with a large number of important matches that affect the tournament prospects.

Given the updated scheme and the increase in the number of participants, the organizers had to face several favorites who will fight for 16 spots in the playoffs of the tournament.

Group A:

• Outsiders, G2 Esports, fnatic, Cloud9, IHC Esports, MIBR, Eternal Fire and Evil Geniuses

Group B:

• Movistar Riders, Heroic, BIG, SAW, MOUZ, Imperial Esports, FURIA and Complexity Gaming
  

Group C:

• FaZe Clan, Team Vitality, Ninjas in Pajamas, OG, Grayhound Gaming, Rooster, 00NATION and paiN Gaming
  

Group D:

• Natus Vincere, Team Liquid, Team Spirit, Astralis, forZe, ATK, ENCE and Rare Atom

General structure of ESL Pro League Season 17

Upper bracket: Eight teams start from the quarter-finals stage, from where the losers are relegated to the lower bracket. The losers of the starting matches get into the first round of the lower bracket, the losers in the 1/2 final stage - into the second round of the lower bracket. In turn, the finalists guarantee a place in the playoffs (the winner of the group goes to the quarterfinals, while the loser of the final match goes to the second round of the playoffs).

Lower Bracket: The four losing teams in the opening matches of the Upper Bracket start their journey from the first round, from where the winners advance to the second round, and the losers fall into the "Last Chance" bracket. Then the winners play with those who have taken off from the 1/2 finals of the upper bracket for the right to reach the final. The winners of the 1/2 finals of the lower bracket play the final, the winner of which advances to the first round of the playoffs with the top seed. In turn, the loser falls into the semi-finals of the "Last Chance" bracket.

Last Chance Bracket: Participants eliminated from the first round of the lower bracket play a drop match for 8th place in the group. The winner advances to the next round, where they play the losing lower bracket finalist. At the same time, the losing participants of the 1/2 finals of the lower bracket play among themselves for a place in the final of the "Last Chance" bracket. The winners of these matches advance to the final, where they play for a slot in the first round of the bottom seeded playoffs. In turn, the losing participants are eliminated from the championship.

Playoffs: The winners of their respective groups will still start from the quarter-final stage, while the runners-up will advance to the second round of the playoffs. In turn, the winners of the lower bracket and the "Last Chance" stage will start from the first round of the playoffs. Here, the participants will form a familiar grid with a single exception. All matches except for the Grand Final (BO5) will be played in BO3 format.

ESL Pro League Season 17 will take place from February 22 to March 26 in Malta. As part of the championship, 32 teams from the CIS, Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia and Oceania will compete for a total prize pool of $850,000, as well as a slot for the winner at IEM Cologne 2023.