Australias CS winter to end with $250k festivaland it should be one of CS2s first spectacles

At long last, tier one Counter-Strike is returning to Australia with the fourth iteration of Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) Sydney set for Oct. 16 to 22—and it very well could be one of CS2’s first big tournaments.

Aussie Counter-Strike fans have been content with two editions of ESL Challenger at DreamHack Melbourne, but the hunger for a return to a larger-scale tournament was never fully satisfied. It has been four years since Team Liquid took the crown at Qudos Bank Arena, with thousands champing at the bit to catch their favorites live again.