Hey everyone,

Earlier this month, we introduced the National PUBG League (NPL), North America’s pro league for PUBG Esports. As we move closer to Phase 1, we wanted to outline the overall structure of the league and how the season will play out. Each professional season consists of 3 phases leading up to a Global Championship. These phases are 8 weeks long and feature matches from both the NPL and an NPL Contenders tier.

NPL vs. NPLC

The 2019 competitive season teams are broken down into two main tiers, the NPL which features the top 16 teams in the league, and the NPL Contenders tier, which houses the 16 teams challenging for a position in the NPL.

NPL matches will take place over the course of 5 weeks of each phase, with matches broadcast twice a week from OGN studios for a per-phase prize pool of $200,000. NPLC matches happen online once per week during 4 weeks of each phase, with the top teams able to fight for promotion into the NPL. More on that in the Relegation and Promotion section!

In the middle of each phase, all teams from the NPL and NPLC will duke it out in a special 1-weekend-only rumble called NPL Royale at OGN studios. This exhibition tournament has no standing on the overall season, but allows all teams to battle it out for a separate prize pool while gauging all the individual teams in the competition.

Preseason Online Qualifier

The first step in the NPL 2019 season is determining which teams will compete. Teams who wish to participate in the Online Qualifier for the preseason tournament will have to complete registration by December 7th. As a reminder, the official NPL rules state that all team members must be 18 years of age by February 1st, 2019 in order to participate in the preseason.

The Online Qualifier will be held from December 11th to December 16th on Battlefy and the top 24 teams will be invited to participate in the preseason tournament. If you wish to sign your team up to participate, you can do so here.

2019 Preseason

The action begins on January 7th with the first preseason matches to determine which teams will join each tier of competition. 32 total teams will be chosen through invitation and online qualifiers to face off live from OGN Studios for a prize pool of $100,000. More importantly, the top 16 teams will advance to the NPL where they will battle it out throughout Phase 1 of the season. The remaining 16 teams will be placed into the NPL Contenders tier, which will have opportunities for promotion into the NPL throughout the season.

Relegation and Promotion

At the end of each phase, the bottom 6 teams will have to fight for survival against the top 10 teams in the Contenders league to hold onto their spot in the NPL. Once the dust settles, the surviving 6 teams move into the NPL and the next phase of the season begins. This constant check and balance ensures that the best of the best are always representing the NPL and that teams who train hard won’t have to wait until a completely new season to show they can play with the big dogs.

Pre-season Game Settings

Official game settings for the NPL are still being finalized, but for preseason we’ll be adopting the same settings being used in the PUBG Europe League qualifiers. Once official 2019 universal ruleset is finalized, we’ll be sure to share them out.

All the heart-pumping NPL action is about to get underway, so be sure to sign your teams up to participate and stay tuned for future announcements. We’ll see you on the battlegrounds!

–The PUBG Esports Team