Game publisher Electronic Arts (EA) has announced that the Apex Legends Global Series (ALGS) Championship will be held at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina from July 7th-10th.
The tournament will be the first ALGS to feature a live audience. The event sees 40 teams from five different regions compete for its $2m (~£1.60m) prize pool.
Apex Legends has become one of EA’s most prized esports assets with the ALGS Split 2 Playoffs — held on April 29th in Sweden — breaking viewership records from all previous EA esports events, including titles like FIFA.
According to the company, the Stockholm event had an average minute audience (AMA) of over 539,000 on May 1st. Additionally, over 10.3m hours of live content were consumed by the audience during the whole tournament.
Lenovo Legion, chair manufacturer Herman Miller and Monster Energy will be sponsoring the ALGS. Interestingly, Lenovo is also a sponsor of the NHL team Carolina Hurricanes, which operates the PNC Arena.
Don Waddell, PNC Arena and Carolina Hurricanes President, commented: “We proudly present a variety of sports and entertainment events at PNC Arena, and we are looking forward to hosting our first-ever major esports competition. The ALGS Championship will allow us the opportunity to further solidify Greater Raleigh and PNC Arena as a global esports and entertainment destination.”
Tickets for the ALGS Year 2 Championship are already available for purchase. EA also promises ‘an interactive entertainment experience’ for those watching the tournament online. Esports events organiser PGL is involved in the production of the event.
John Nelson, Senior Director and Commissioner, Apex Legends Esports at EA, also spoke about the event: “Bringing ALGS to the PNC Arena is a major milestone for the Apex brand and indicative of the title’s continued growth in the competitive scene.”
