Intel Extreme Masters Cologne Breaks Record With 2.1 Million Viewers
Intel Extreme Masters Cologne draws record-breaking audience
New ESL record of 300,000 concurrent English broadcast viewers for a single match – Over 2,100,000 unique viewers throughout – More than 300% growth from previous year
Cologne, 26.11.13 ESLs flagship pro gaming product, Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) broke its previous viewership records this past weekend during the IEM Cologne event. Global stream numbers peaked at over 338,000 concurrent viewers breaking all previous records held by the elite pro gaming tour. The weekends viewership marked a 300% growth from the previous year, with unique viewership exceeding 2,100,000 on the English language stream despite two other major eSports events being held in parallel to the international showdown held in Cologne, Germanys ESL TV Studios.
With a combined prize pool of US$80,000 on the line, millions tuned in to watch as Gambit Gaming warmed up to take their fifth Intel Extreme Masters title in just six appearances. Reunited with League Championship Series favourite Edward Edward Abgaryan, it seemed the Russian powerhouse were unstoppable as they defeated Fnatic and reclaimed the title without having dropped a single game in the competition.
Elsewhere, in the amateur tournament, two newly restructured teams, Copenhagen Wolves and Ninjas in Pyjamas battled it out for the trophy. Ahead of the competition, Copenhagen Wolves saw their support player from last seasons League Championship Series join the Ninjas in Pyjamas as head coach. With tensions running high and everything on the line, there was much to play for as Copenhagen Wolves set their eyes on the prize and took home the tournament.
The next Intel Extreme masters stop will be in Singapore, where it boasts a combined US$95,000 prize purse for League of Legends and StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm competitors at both professional and amateur levels. From there, only one stop in Sao Paulo, Brazil stands between the competitors and the World Championships in Katowice’s (Poland) Spodek stadium where US$250,000 are up for grabs.
For more information on both previous and upcoming tournaments, please visit the tournament’s official webpage: http://intelextrememasters.
com/
Electronic Sports League
Electronic Sports League and the company behind, Turtle Entertainment, is the leading gaming company in the field of competitive gaming and electronic sports. Founded in the year 2000 the company is currently offering eSports competitions in more than 46 countries including Brazil and China. Core of Turtle’s services is it’s online portal called Electronic Sports League (ESL) which became a highly popular destination site for competitive computer gamers around the world. The portal reaches up to ten million visits a month (IVW) generated by more than four million registered users. Turtle Entertainment offers its competitions worldwide using these specific brands: Electronic Sports League (ESL), ESL Pro Series, Intel Extreme Masters, ESL Major Series, ESL TV, Consoles Sports League. Turtle Entertainment broadcasts ESL events via ESL TV, ESL’s web-TV service, since 2007. The headquarter has more than 115 employees and is located in Cologne, Germany. Turtle Entertainment owns the majority of the Chinese eSports league PGL (Pro Gamer League) since 2007 and is locally active with subsidiaries or franchises in over 17 countries. Further information is available at www.turtle-entertainment.comIntel Extreme Masters
Intel Extreme Masters is the ESL’s elite global pro gaming tour since 2006 with over 3,5 million USD given out in prize money in seven seasons. StarCraft II and League of Legends superstars from Europe, Asia and America compete at the world’s largest technological trade shows for their share of a lucrative prize purse. ESL TV, ESL’s web-TV service, presents the best games of the season live and reports directly from the offline events via Twitch TV, reaching over 20 million unique viewers each season. Intel Extreme Masters sponsors include Intel, BenQ, Kingston (HyperX) and RaidCall. Further information available at:www.intelextrememasters.com