Last year champions back to defend their crown in ESL One Cologne 2019

ESL One Cologne 2019 will kick off on July 2 and will culminate with the playoffs at the LANXESS Arena, from July 5-7, with the winning side taking home the bulk of the tournament’s $300,000 prize pool.

Natus Vincere, who are currently ranked third in the world, will take the first invite slot, The Ukrainian giants will return to Cologne as defending champions after winning last year’s event by beating local heroes BIG 3-1

The remaining four sides will come from regional online qualifiers, held in Europe, North America and Asia, with 11 teams left to reveal by ESL