• Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile Open Grand Final to showcase 5G gaming on Vodafone’s real-time mobile network in Milan
• Participants to compete for a total prize pool of €165,000 plus 5G smartphones and other prizes.

Vodafone and ESL, the world’s largest esports company, today launched the Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile Open – a mobile gaming tournament with the first Grand Final in competitive international eSports to be played live over a 5G network.

The Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile Open will commence on 31 May and run until 29 September 2019, and is open to players from 17 countries where Vodafone is present. The competition features two popular online mobile games: arcade racer Asphalt 9: Legends; and multiplayer battle royale title, PUBG MOBILE .

The international tournament is comprised of a series of online-only qualifiers, plus ESL event qualifiers at ESL One Birmingham in the UK and ESL One Cologne and Gamescom in Germany. Online qualifiers can be played on any compatible Android or iOS mobile device and on any internet connection.

The Grand Finals for both games will be contested live only on Vodafone’s 5G network at Milan Games Week on 28-29 September, providing a major showcase of Vodafone’s high-speed, real-time 5G network for gaming.

There is a total prize fund of €165,000 for all placing Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile One live finalists, including a top prize of €14,000 for the winning Asphalt 9: Legends player and a top prize of €40,000 in total for the victorious PUBG MOBILE team.

Vodafone Group Chief Commercial Officer Ahmed Essam said, “The Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile Open is the perfect opportunity to show millions of gaming fans the potential of Vodafone’s real-time 5G network with low latency and ultra-high speeds enabling players to reach new levels of gaming performance on mobile devices anywhere. As interest and participation in esports continues to grow exponentially, many of the key skills and aspects across gaming are useful and transferable skills in the digital workplace.”

“Together with Vodafone we are bringing some of the top mobile games to a truly competitive esports format, building a bridge between hardcore esports enthusiasts and casual gamers,” said Ralf Reichert, CEO at ESL. “We believe in the rise of mobile esports and are thrilled to work with such an amazing partner as Vodafone on this program as they launch 5G across their markets internationally.”

Players can sign up for online qualifiers via the official website which will also provide more information about the tournament, leader boards, highlights and commentator clips, videos and on-the-ground coverage and schedules for ESL One and gamescom.

The Vodafone 5G ESL Mobile Open builds on Vodafone’s growing involvement in eSports, including the 2018 announcement that Vodafone is a Premium Partner of ESL One and IEM tournaments in Europe and the recent sponsorship of “Vodafone Giants” in Spain and “Mousesports”, the most successful German professional eSports team.