For the fourth time since the inaugural Intel Extreme Masters competition in 2006, the world’s longest-running global esports tournament circuit is headed to Shanghai. From July 27–30, 16 of the world’s best StarCraft II players will battle on the IEM stage at ChinaJoy.
Based on 2017 World Championship Series (WCS) points, four players have already been invited to IEM Shanghai 2017:
- Kim ‘Stats’ Dae Yeob
- Lee ‘INnoVation’ Shin Hyung
- Jun ‘TY’ Tae Yang
- Eo ‘soO’ Yoon So
The remaining 12 players will need to battle their way through online qualifiers in June.
The best-of-three double elimination group stages will kick off on July 27, the first day of ChinaJoy. From there, four players will advance to the best-of-five quarterfinals and semifinals, leading up to the best-of-seven grand finals for the title of IEM Shanghai 2017 champion and the largest share of the $25,000 prize pool and WCS points.
If you’re not sure what the Intel Extreme Masters are, here’s a brief explanation.
Intel Extreme Masters is the longest-running global professional esports tournament circuit in the world. Started in 2006 by Intel and ESL, the competition has now travelled to 28 cities around the globe and conducted tournaments for 11 different competitive gaming titles. Esports fans from more than 180 countries regularly make IEM events record-breakers in terms of stadium attendance and viewership, with the tournament’s inaugural event in Australia this May marking the fifth continent for the global competitive circuit.
To stay up-to-date on the tournament and upcoming qualifiers, follow IEM on Twitter and Facebook and visit the official website: intelextrememasters.com
