ESL will hold its first-ever Fortnite tournament at IEM Katowice 2019

Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2019, ESL's "flagship event," will host a two-weekend Fortnite tournament that will have 200 of the world's top players and influencers doing battle for a combined prize pool of $600,000.

“Fortnite is a global game, and there are amazing, passionate players all around the globe,” Epic Games esports manager Rob Hodson said. “Partnering with ESL in Katowice gives us the chance to showcase some of these incredible international competitors.”

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The first weekend of competition, running February 23-24, will feature the top 100 Polish players and influencers—Katowice is in Poland, remember—vying for a slice of a $100,000 prize pool. The $500,000 International Edition will take place the following weekend, March 1-3. Both events will be streamed live for the benefit of those who want to watch but aren't going to be in the neighborhood at the appropriate times. Those who are will also have the opportunity to play Fortnite on the scene, and possibly win some prizes, in free-to-play competitions.

These are the duos who have put their names on the sign-up sheet so far:

72hrs - Chap
7ssk7 - Jamside
Bizzle - Dmo
Boyerxd - Crippa
Domentos - Fwexy
Hoopek - Sk1x
Issa - Kamo
Kinstaar - Hunter
Magin - Juganza
Mirwana - Inclyde
Mitr0 - Khuna
Motor - ErycTriceps
Nate Hill - FunkBomb
RazZzero0o - x8
Saf - Zayt
Sak0ner - Skram
Skite - Vato
Taiovsky - Nero
Teeqzy - Mushway
Tfue - Cloak
TheVic - Blaxou
Vivid - Poach
ZexRow - Vinny1x

"Fans from all over the world know our Katowice event and bringing Fortnite as one of the world’s largest games to them feels like a great fit," ESL chief product officer Sebastian Weishaar said.

More "big name" participants and other event details will be announced over the coming weeks. Details about IEM Katowice 2019—which, by the way, is also the home of a $1 million CS:GO Major Championship—is available at intelextrememasters.com.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.