ESL released an official statement regarding team participation in PGL Astana and IEM Dallas, clarifying the consequences of such a decision for the teams themselves and the Dallas tournament schedule. The organizer noted that the situation poses "huge risks" for the teams, but nonetheless, they will have the opportunity to compete in both championships.

Tournament Schedule and Its Issue

The conflicting schedule arose because PGL Astana ends just a day before the start of IEM Dallas. This means that teams reaching the top 4 in the Kazakhstan tournament can only arrive in Dallas on May 19th at 12:45 local time. They will miss mandatory media activities and risk not making it to the start of their matches.

Initially, ESL stated that participation in both tournaments was impossible, but later revised its position, taking into account the logistics plans presented by the clubs. Nevertheless, teams choosing both tournaments are subject to penalties and strict scheduling rules.

Consequences for Teams

Currently, G2, Eternal Fire, The MongolZ, GamerLegion, and FURIA plan to play in both tournaments. They will face several issues:

• For missing media obligations, ESL will impose a $4000 fine and withhold 5% of prize money.
• If a team is more than 15 minutes late for a match, they will forfeit the first map, and if the delay exceeds 30 minutes, the entire series.
• Team seeding for IEM Dallas will take place on May 6th, but the match schedule will be formed only on May 16th, after the PGL Astana quarterfinals.
• Those who reach the top 4 in Astana will receive late slots on the first game day of IEM Dallas.

ESL also acknowledged that some teams might have declined invitations based on the initial information about the impossibility of participating in both events.

This incident raises questions about coordination between leading tournament organizers. ESL emphasized that such overlaps should be avoided in the future and that organizers should work together to optimize scheduling. While ESL admits that the current situation is "far from ideal," the company has compromised to support the "transition to an open ecosystem."