Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals Set To Take Place In Atlantic City

by Pavo Jurkic in Collegiate Esports | Mar, 27th 2019

In the lucrative world of competitive esports, all of our attention goes to the biggest tournaments out there. The Majors, The Internationals, The worlds… We are so happy to indulge in the best teams competing at these top-tier tournaments that we seem to forget about the people still working their way up. Amateur tournaments which are always there to bring an influx of young talents to the top competitive levels. So, let’s fix that by checking out the upcoming Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals which could shape the future for some of these young talents.

As its name suggests, Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals is the business end of a competition that features the best collegiate teams and players from more than 1600 North American campuses. The thing is, instead of classical prize pools, the winners of these esports events (yes, there are several “disciplines” here) will get scholarships. We all know just what a burden huge student loans can be later in life, so giving our young talent a chance to get a head start really means a lot. Not just to the players themselves but to their families as well.

Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals 101

It may not have a place in the spotlight like the tournaments listed earlier, but it’s safe to say Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals tournament bears significant importance. Best of all, there’s a wide variety of available esports to participate it, and it’s been that way from the very start. The full list covers a whopping nine titles including the likes of most popular battle royale games such as Fortnite and Apex Legends.

Here’s a closer look at the full list of games featured on the Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals 2019:

• CS:GO
• League of Legends
• Dota 2
• NBA 2K
• Street Fighter V
• Super Smash Bros Melee
• Super Smash Bros Ultimate
• Apex Legends
• Fortnite

Such a comprehensive portfolio of esports titles has brought in sponsorship deals too. Twitch Student, Jostens, Capcom, 2K Sports, CRDA and GameStop are just some of many sponsors and partners for this tournament.

Needless to say, the 2019 iteration of the Collegiate StarLeague is the biggest one thus far, with more players, teams, and competitions to watch and enjoy. The location and venue have already been announced – Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. As for the date, Collegiate StarLeague Grand Finals will take place on the last weekend of April. From the 26^th to the 28^th  of April, to be more precise.

A Great Chance for Young Esports Talents

If you haven’t figured it out by now, these types of competitions bear great importance for the entire esports industry. They are basically factories for new talents that will, sooner or later, find their way onto the mains stage. In addition to that, these competitions serve as influential platforms that help to bring esports closer to the new generations. They are able to effectively promote esports as a whole, while at the same time giving these young prospects a chance to show off their skills and earn scholarships that’ll enable them to continue pursuing their dreams.

As far as I’m concerned, I wouldn’t mind seeing more of these tournaments taking place throughout the esports competitive calendar. Sure, the likes of League of Legends and Overwatch have their own variations of academy-based competitions, but their offerings are not nearly as significant as Collegiate StarLeague. Yes, it may be much less lucrative and popular than other events, but I’d still like to see CSL flourish in the upcoming years.

If the esports industry continues to grow at such a rapid pace, I’m sure CSL will get the exposure boost it needs to take collegiate esports to the next level!