Intel Extreme Masters Global Challenge comes back to Dubai

A total prize pool of no less than $530,000 makes it one of most lucrative video game tournament series of all time.

Up next on the calendar is the Global Challenge Dubai, where $31,500 of the prize pool will be awarded to the winners of the Counter-Strike 1.6 and QuakeLive tournament. With the support of the creator of the Quake franchise, id Software, this will be the first ever QuakeLive event outside of Dallas, USA, making it a must for the global Quake elite to travel to the Middle East.

"Intel Extreme Masters is the biggest eSports show and competition in the history of online gaming, and we are extremely proud to have the tournament stopping again in Dubai this year,"

said Khaldoun Aboul-Saoud, Markets Development Manager - Intel GCC.

"We will also be showcasing Intel Core i7, our fastest and smartest processors for ultimate performance in extreme games, in action."
The games are played on Alienware systems from Dell's gaming group based on Intel Core processors. Intel and Dell sponsor the global league of eSports champions and brought to Dubai by Turtle Entertainment and in cooperation with the Dubai World Trade Center.

"Alienware presents gaming enthusiasts with high-quality, high-performance products. Intel and Dell Gaming have always worked closely to provide gamers with the highest-performing equipment possible," said Brad Whatmough, head of Consumer marketing Dell Middle East, commented.

"The Extreme Gaming Tour gives users a chance to experience first-hand the raw performance of Alienware systems powered by Intel newest and fastest processors."

Among the teams participating in the Counter-Strike 1.6 tournament are some of the most accomplished teams of the past years with mousesports, Winner of the World Championship 2008, fnatic, winner of the World Championship 2009 and SK, winner of the last Global Challenge that took place in early September 2009 in Chengdu.

Numerous other teams, ranging from WeMadeFox of Korea to Virtus.Pro of Russia will make sure the big dogs certainly get a run for their money. The tournament will culminate for the first time on Monday (Oct. 19th) afternoon at 5pm, when the QuakeLive final match takes place, deciding who will take home a $3,000 check and a spot in the World Championship.

On Thursday (Oct. 22nd) it will be crunch time for the two remaining Counter-Strike 1.6 teams, when the final match comes around with a fat $10,000 at stake. Make sure to tune in to ESL TV, you don't want to miss this!

But not only international superstars will fill the field of participants. Through a qualifier starting Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009, two local teams will have the chance to make their way into the Global Challenge and battle it out with the powerhouses. Local QuakeLive players will be taken care of as well, as the Global Challenge Dubai comes along with a free-to-enter QuakeLive Pro/Am Challenge on the final two days of Gitex Shopper, where great gaming gear bundles courtesy of Roccat, the official provider of PC peripherals for the Intel Extreme Masters, will be given to the winners.

"Dubai is one of the world's most prestigious locations and we are very proud to bring the Intel Extreme Masters back here in our fourth season. We chose this venue to stage the first ever QuakeLive LAN event outside the U.S. specifically because of the success of last year's Global Challenge in Dubai,"

says Michal Blicharz, Senior Product Manager at ESL.

The Intel Extreme Masters feature a European, Asian and American Championship that start off with an online season comprised of the best gamers the region has to offer. This online season leads up to the Continental Championships, where the winners of the online season go head-to-head for a big check and the honor to represent their continent in epic battle that is the World Championship. At this final event, taking place in March 2010 at the CeBIT expo in Hannover, Germany, $170,000 will be awarded to the world's best Counter-Strike, World of Warcraft and Quake Live players.

But these Championships are not the only way for your shot at the massive prize pot: Winners of the Global Challenge Dubai will not only be given the lion's share of the $31,500 Dubai prize pool, but an autoberth directly for the world final, making it no surprise that the world's gaming elite is headed for Dubai this weekend.