Photo courtesy of ESL
Team Secret confirmed as the first direct invite to ESL One Katowice 2019.
Last month during ESL One Hamburg 2018, organizers announced their return to Katowice with the big event expected to be held towards the end of February. It was only a few days later that Team Secret claimed the championship title in an extraordinary five-game grand final against ViCi Gaming. The crowds and fans went wild and flooded social media with praise for ESL One's event, adding much hype and anticipation for what ESL One Katowice 2019 could be.
Now, it has been confirmed that Team Secret will be on hand to defend their title at ESL One Katowice 2019. The setting is even more special as it means that young rising super-star Micha? "Nisha" Jankowski will be able to compete in his homeland and hopefully in front of the local fans in the playoffs.
Eight teams will receive direct invitations to the group stage while the remaining four spots will be up for grabs through regional open qualifiers in Europe, North America, China, and Southeast Asia. The open qualifiers kicked off this last weekend with a few teams such as compLexity Gaming, Team Spirit and Team Empire claiming slots in the closed qualifiers. The regional team invites have not yet been announced and are expected to take place next week.
February 19-24th, 12 of the world’s best Dota 2 teams will be competing for a $300,000 prize pool. The group stage is set to take place from February 19-21, followed by the main event in the Spodek Arena from February 22-24. Once again, the ESL tournament will not be part of the DPC events for the new season.
