EPT
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Hello everyone! We have decided at IGN Pro League that Team Arena Challenge was better suited for a league style format instead of a self-contained qualifier and tournament. Now that Team Arena Challenge 3 has concluded, we will be changing the format of our team league to a division-based system and call it the IGN Pro Team League or IPTL.
The new format introduces three divisions: Amateur, Contender (8 teams), and Premier (8 teams). Let's take a look now at each of these three divisions and how they interact.
Premier Division
These 8 teams are the cream of the crop. They are the best teams around the world and are competing for a big chunk of change (prize pool still TBA). The first 8 teams in the Premier Division of IPTL will be seeded in from the top 8 of Team Arena Challenge 3. These 8 teams will be placed into two groups. The top 2 teams from each division will move on to the playoffs, and the bottom teams in each group will be relegated to up and down matches with winners from the Contender Division.
In each group, every team will play every other team in the group.
Group 1 for IPTL Season 1 looks like this:
- Team Liquid
- SlayerS
- MVP
- Evil Geniuses
Group 2 looks like this:
- LG-Incredible Miracle
- StarTale
- Prime
- Team SCV Life
The top 4 teams will go to the playoffs, a single-elimination bracket. The bottom 4 teams move to up and down matches to face the top 4 teams from the Contender Division.
The full (tentative) schedule for IPTL Season 1 Premier Division is under the spoiler!
+ Show Spoiler [IPTL Premier Schedule] +
Premier Division games will be broadcast on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Premier Group A Schedule:
Liquid v EG - September 11
SlayerS v MVP - September 18
Liquid v MVP - September 25
SlayerS v EG - October 2
SlayerS v Liquid - October 9
MVP v EG - October 16
Premier Group B Schedule:
IM v StarTale - September 12
Prime v TSL - September 19
IM v Prime - September 26
StarTale v TSL - October 3
StarTale v Prime - October 10
IM v TSL - October 17
Premier Group A Schedule:
Liquid v EG - September 11
SlayerS v MVP - September 18
Liquid v MVP - September 25
SlayerS v EG - October 2
SlayerS v Liquid - October 9
MVP v EG - October 16
Premier Group B Schedule:
IM v StarTale - September 12
Prime v TSL - September 19
IM v Prime - September 26
StarTale v TSL - October 3
StarTale v Prime - October 10
IM v TSL - October 17
Contender Division
These 8 teams are incredibly good, but not quite at the tip-top of the heap. The first Contender teams will be teams that place 9th-16th in Team Arena Challenge 3. These 8 teams will also play round robin groups, with the top 4 teams receiving a cash prize and moving on to face the 4 weakest teams from Premier in up and down matches. Teams finishing third and fourth in their groups will fall out of Contender Division and must re-qualify through the Amateur Division.
Group 1 for IPTL Season 1 looks like this:
- Acer
- aTn Type
- FXO
- compLexity
Group 2 looks like this:
- NSHoSeo
- Karont3
- Empire
- Dignitas
The full (tentative) schedule for IPTL Season 1 Contender Division is under the spoiler!
+ Show Spoiler [IPTL Contender Schedule] +
Contender Division games will be broadcast on Thursdays and Fridays.
Contender Group A Schedule:
Acer v aTn Type - September 13
coL v FXO - September 20
Acer v FXO - September 27
aTn Type v coL - October 4
FXO v aTn Type - October 11
Acer v coL - October 18
Contender Group B Schedule:
NSHoSeo v Empire - September 14
Karont3 v Dignitas - September 21
NSHoSeo v Dignitas - September 28
Karont3 v Empire - October 5
Empire v Dignitas - October 12
Karont3 v NSHoSeo - October 19
Contender Group A Schedule:
Acer v aTn Type - September 13
coL v FXO - September 20
Acer v FXO - September 27
aTn Type v coL - October 4
FXO v aTn Type - October 11
Acer v coL - October 18
Contender Group B Schedule:
NSHoSeo v Empire - September 14
Karont3 v Dignitas - September 21
NSHoSeo v Dignitas - September 28
Karont3 v Empire - October 5
Empire v Dignitas - October 12
Karont3 v NSHoSeo - October 19
Amateur Division
This is the rest of the field. The 4 teams dropping down from the Contender Division will be seeded into a massive open (not semi-open like TAC, actually open) bracket that will contain all other interested teams. The top 4 teams will enter the Contender Division in the next season.
Teams looking to sign up for the IPTL Amateur Division must meet the following requirements: Must have a manager, a website, and at least 5 reliable players.
Application instructions are inside the spoiler:
+ Show Spoiler [Amateur Application] +
To apply, e-mail Frank Fields (ffields (at) ign (dot) com) with the following information:
Team Name:
Website:
Team Accomplishments:
Manager:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Email Address:
Phone Number:
Assistant Manager:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Phone Number:
Roster:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Team Name:
Website:
Team Accomplishments:
Manager:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Email Address:
Phone Number:
Assistant Manager:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Phone Number:
Roster:
Real Name:
Alias:
In Game Name & Identifier: e.g. RGNMirhi.241
Amateur Division Schedule is behind the spoiler, beginning broadcasting on August 14th!
+ Show Spoiler [Amateur Division Schedule] +
Round 1 - August 12 - August 18
Round 2 - August 19 - August 25
Round 3 - August 26 - September 1
Round 4 - September 2 - September 8
Round 5 - September 9 - September 15
Round 6 - September 16 - September 22
Round 2 - August 19 - August 25
Round 3 - August 26 - September 1
Round 4 - September 2 - September 8
Round 5 - September 9 - September 15
Round 6 - September 16 - September 22
We hope that you'll enjoy this new format and that many teams show us what they're made of in the Amateur Division. Prize pools and additional scheduling (up and downs, playoffs, etc.) are still to be announced. Stay tuned for additional information as the season begins! Please post here with any feedback or questions you may have, and please join us for the Team Arena Challenge 3 Grand Finals on August 11th! Thank you!
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