ESL ANZ Champs Expand To Include Magic: The Gathering Arena
The ESL Australia and New Zealand Championships (ESL ANZ Champs) have now been expanded to include the card-based esports title Magic: The Gathering Arena (MTGA).
Announced by the digital game’s developers, Wizards of the Coast, the press release stated that the first two seasons of the MTGA ESL Champs had been confirmed, with the first of these starting on the 7th August 2021. It will join other esports events hosted by ESL, one of the biggest esports organizations, around the world.
The tournament will consist of four Open Qualifier events, followed a day later by the top 8 players in each event competing in the second stage of the qualifier, aiming to earn themselves enough points to qualify for the Champion Stage, which takes place on 26th September.
It promises to be one of the most exciting new gaming tournaments for Australian and New Zealand esports fans this year.
Dates for The Tournament
The dates for the four Qualifying events and the Champion Stage are outlined below:
- Event 1 – Open Qualifier – 7th August
- Event 1 – Top 8 Playoff – 8th August
- Event 2 – Open Qualifier – 21st August
- Event 2 – Top 8 Playoff – 22nd August
- Event 3 – Open Qualifier – 4th September
- Event 3 – Top 8 Playoff – 5th September
- Event 4 – Open Qualifier – 18th September
- Event 4 – Top 8 Playoff – 19th September
- Champion Stage – 26th September
Each of the four events will have up to seven rounds of a Swiss-style qualifying tournament on Saturday, after which the top 8 players based on their performances on that day, will progress through to Sunday’s Top 8 Playoff.
Players will earn points from their performances at each of the Qualifiers and the top scoring players across all four qualifying events will earn themselves a chance to compete in the Champions Stage.
All the Top 8 Playoff events and the Champion Stage will be shown on ESL Australia’s Twitch Channel as well as the Official Magic Twitch channel, enabling fans to watch esports online.
Prizes on Offer
The winner of the tournament will receive a top prize of $800 in Australian Dollars, 5,000 Gems plus a Booster Box a Collector Box, and one Uncut Sheet of cards.
The top 32 players in the tournament will earn prizes, although only the top eight players will earn cash prizes of between $100 and $800, plus 5,000 Gems and either a Collectors Booster Box or a standard Booster Box.
Prizes can consist of cash, in-game prizes, and/or physical prizes.
For those tuning in to watch, the chance to enjoy a wager on some of the best esports betting sites for Australian and New Zealand customers is a good way to enhance any of the many esports tournaments available to gamers in Oceania each year.
New to Magic: The Gathering Arena?
If you are new to Magic: The Gathering Arena and want to know more about the game, then the good news is that on the weekend of the 1st August, ESL will host an ‘education cup’ which will explain how players can compete on the ESL play platform, as well explaining more about the nuances of the game.
The game is a digital collectable card game and is free to play.
Applications to compete in the qualifiers are available on the ESL play platform.
The game was released in Windows systems in 2019 with a MacOS version following in June 2020. The mobile version of the game for iOS and Android handheld devices were released on March 24th this year.
Remember to check out your favourite esport betting site for details of which players are the favourites to win the inaugural tournament.
Since: August 10, 2015
