ESL Pro League Season 24 to be held in Katowice from October 3-11

Counter-Strike’s premier league circuit is heading back to one of esports’ spiritual homes. ESL Pro League Season 24 will take place in Katowice, Poland, from October 3 to October 11, bringing 16 teams together for a $1 million prize pool.

The tournament marks a notable shift from previous seasons, trimming the field from 24 teams down to 16.

Format, venue, and the million-dollar split

The group stage runs from October 3 through October 7, using a Swiss-system format with best-of-3 matches. After the group stage wraps, there’s a brief reset day before playoffs and finals take over the Spodek Arena from October 9 to October 11.

The prize pool structure is worth a closer look. Of the $1 million total, $300,000 goes directly to players while $700,000 is allocated to the clubs themselves.

Every match across both the group stage and the playoff bracket will be played on LAN. All 16 teams will be competing under the same roof, on the same network.

Who’s playing and how they get there

No teams have been officially confirmed for the event as of yet. Qualification pathways are still actively in play, running through the ESL Challenger League and the Valve Regional Standings system.

The tournament holds Tier 1 Wildcard status from Valve, which matters for teams chasing Major qualification points. Performance at ESL Pro League Season 24 will feed directly into the broader competitive ecosystem that determines who gets invited to Valve’s own marquee events.

Season 23 wrapped up in Stockholm with Natus Vincere taking the trophy.

Why Katowice still matters

Katowice has hosted major Counter-Strike events since 2014. Tickets went on sale back in April, with pre-sale access linked to attendance at previous IEM events.

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