Pro League CS:GO to Cover Travel and Accommodations for Team Managers

NEW YORK CITY (July 12, 2017) – WESA today announced a key initiative to further professionalize esports tournaments and enhance the player experience at offline events. Starting with the upcoming Season 6 of Pro League CS:GO, organized by ESL, the league will now cover the travel and accommodations for seven Members of those organizations that elect to travel their team manager.

“Today’s announcement is an important step for the continued support of professional esports players,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Chairman and Commissioner, WESA. “Player support and development will always be a primary focus of what we do, and today’s initiative aligns with that vision. The teams came to us with this proposal and worked with WESA and Pro League to reach a solution that we believe works for all stakeholders. We look forward to continue working with ESL, our Member organizations and players to ensure that the future of esports remains on its current trajectory of growth.”

This initiative will help better connect the players to the tournament organizers – from the initial point of contact of setting travel schedules to helping to coordinate all on-site activities and responsibilities – throughout the entire offline event. The added support of the teams’ own managers will allow players to better focus their attention and energy on their performance, rather than many of the other details and distractions that come with participating in offline events.

In return for covering these added expenses, team managers will take responsibility for a number of on-site activities and coordination on behalf of their organizations. These include coordinating and managing all aspects of player travel, signing sessions, media appearances, practice schedules, sponsor activations and other player-related activities and obligations.

“On behalf of all of the team Members of WESA, we welcome this new policy and are confident that it will greatly enhance our players’ on-site experiences,” said Carlos “Ocelote” Rodriguez, Owner, G2 Esports. “We will encourage all other tournament organizers to follow suit and enact this policy across the board, as we share WESA’s vision that the players’ experiences should be of the utmost priority, and having their own manager present on-site will better the chances that the team performs at its peak potential.”

The updated policy will immediately go into effect for Pro League CS:GO and will also be implemented for all ESL CS:GO tournaments beginning in January 2018.

About WESA

WESA was founded in May 2016 and counts as its Members eleven of the world’s most popular esports teams (EnVyUS, FaZe Clan, Fnatic, G2 Esports, mousesports, Natus Vincere, Ninjas in Pyjamas, OpTic Gaming, Renegades, SK Gaming and Virtus.pro) together with ESL, the world’s largest esports company. This elite group shares a collective vision to continue to professionalize esports by introducing elements of player representation, standardized regulations and revenue sharing for teams. Based on traditional sports association models, WESA also aims to create predictable schedules for fans, players, organizers and broadcasters by engaging all appropriate stakeholders. Pro League for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is the first professional esports competition that is played under WESA regulations.