"ESL, the world's largest esports company, today announced the launch of ESL Mobile Open with founding sponsor AT&T, a first-of-its-kind mobile esports league that will allow amateur gamers in the US to compete at stadium events on the same stage as professional esports athletes. The year-round league, which is owned and operated by ESL, will feature the most popular mobile game titles across three seasons per year, with the first season kicking off on March 18 and 19. During the inaugural season of ESL Mobile Open, casual gamers will be able to compete in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE (PUBG MOBILE), Clash of Clans and Asphalt 9: Legends. For PUBG MOBILE and Clash of Clans, online gameplay in grassroots tournaments will take place on ESL Play, ESL's online tournament platform that has more than 8 million users, while qualifiers for Asphalt 9: Legends will be held via a tournament directly within the game. The finals for Season One of ESL Mobile Open will take place onsite at DreamHack Dallas and will be streamed on YouTube and Twitch. ""We believe that mobile will provide the opportunity to bring the next generation of esports enthusiasts into the fold. A first in the industry, ESL Mobile Open was developed to provide anyone with a phone access to compete at the highest levels with both established and emerging mobile esports titles,"" said Yvette Martinez-Rea, CEO at ESL Gaming North America. ""AT&T is a natural for this program with their commitment to innovation in esports and gaming and by promoting broad access for players of all types and levels."" While the structure of each season will remain consistent, the year-round league is designed to sync with the seasonality of game titles. ESL Mobile Open will consist of three seasons, spring, summer and winter, with mobile games rotating seasonally. There is an opportunity to rotate one new mobile title each season to ensure ESL Mobile Open continues to reach the most-engaged communities. The top competitors in each game title will then have the opportunity to not only claim a portion of a yearly $330,000 prize pool but also will have the chance to compete in massive stadium events throughout the year. At the end of each season, finals for ESL Mobile Open will be held on stage at various ESL One and DreamHack mega events and will be livestreamed online. ""This is a perfect example of why we chose to work with ESL starting last year – they're leaders in advancing the technology for esports players at all levels, in addition to delivering great tournament play for fans anywhere,"" says Shiz Suzuki, assistant vice president of Sponsorships & Experiential Marketing for AT&T Communications. ""Our sponsorship investments help us grow customer relationships by connecting with their passion for esports, and we're looking forward to working with ESL to bring online mobile gameplay to our customers and any amateur gamers that want to get onboard with this new league."" ESL Mobile Open is a product of ESL and AT&T's long-standing relationship as leaders in growing and innovating the mobile esports space. Since AT&T was announced as ESL North America's official telecommunications and mobile gaming partner at SHAPE in June 2018, AT&T has worked to provide richer and more meaningful experiences to esports fans through various sponsorships and onsite activations at ESL's North American tournaments, such as IEM Chicago and ESL One New York. With ESL Mobile Open, ESL and AT&T are taking their work in mobile esports to the next level through an entirely new type of gaming experience that appeals to everyone with a phone and encompasses every type of gamer from pick-up-and-play to social."
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