The first Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major of 2020, ESL Rio, has been delayed from May until the end of November – though it will be taking place on LAN in Brazil.
With the current health pandemic sweeping across the globe, esports and other sporting events have either been postponed or moved online in order to maintain the health and safety of those involved.
As there appears to be no end in sight for the postponements, many Counter-Strike fans have questioned whether or not the ESL Rio Major would be taking place behind closed doors, online, or outright canceled altogether.
ESL has now confirmed that the first major of the CS:GO calendar is being rescheduled until November, meaning that the event will keep its Major status and fill in the spot where the second Major of the year should have been.
The Champions Stage of the event will still take place in the Jeunesse Arena in Rio, moving to the dates of November 19-22 instead of May 21-24. With the Major taking the place of the second Major, Valve has also doubled the prize pool, meaning that there will be $2,000,000 on offer rather than the usual $1,000,000.
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This prize pool change means that the winning squad is likely to take home $1,000,000 instead of the usual $500,000 – so we could see some huge changes in the highest earners table.
The rescheduled event will also still count towards the Intel Grand Slam – meaning that should events be held between now and November, we could see an Intel Grand Slam champion crowned at the Rio Major.
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Teams from across the globe have already played for their qualifying spots in their respective regions – with the European, Americas, Asian, and CIS minor spots being claimed with a number of familiar faces like Fnatic, Team Dignitas, Cloud9, TYLOO, and Renegades.
Though, it is unclear what this news will mean for the Minor as ESL hasn’t confirmed if they will be delayed or not.
