Warming up for the ESL Pro League Finals, which are due to kick off next week in the city of Odense, HLTV caught up with some of the key individuals who brought such an event to the home of H. C. Andersen.

Heavily invested in the field of technology, including a growing robotics sector, the city of Odense found in ESL the perfect company to promote itself as an event city driven by the experience economy, and at the same time attract a demographic that would eventually be attracted to move to the city to work in its growing technology sector.

The Arena Fyn will host the Pro League Finals in front of thousands of fans

One of the key aspects of the deal was the opportunity to have ESL host events in the city on a regular basis. As Ronnie Hansen, a consultant to the city of Odense, puts it, they did not want a "grasshopper" event— one that comes once and takes the money with it.

The contract signed between ESL and Odense is, therefore, a three-year deal which will start with this upcoming Pro League but is not limited to it in the future, meaning other ESL brands could land in the city to host events with similar prize pools.

Check out the video, in which Odense's Mayor, Peter Rahbaek Juel, Councilwoman Jane Jegind, and consultant Ronnie Hansen talk about the city that will host the upcoming ESL Pro League Finals.