To the full announcement

With a clean slate, a new season begins with Intel Grand Slam V kicking off at IEM Rio. The event is taking place April 17-23 in the Brazilian coastal city, with teams competing in Jeunesse Arena in front of a live audience on April 21-23.

With the looming release of Counter-Strike 2, once released and implemented into the ESL Pro Tour ecosystem, any eligible event wins in CS:GO will count towards the Intel Grand Slam and as such a team can complete their run with wins in both CS:GO and CS2.

The Intel Grand Slam V can be completed by the first team to win three ESL Pro Tour Masters tournaments and one Championship tournament (IEM Katowice, IEM Cologne or ESL-operated CS Majors) inside a span of ten consecutive events. 

• The list of eligible EPT Masters events & EPT Championship events are listed available on the Intel Grand Slam homepage.
• Results from the Intel Grand Slam IV are not counted towards Intel Grand Slam V.
• Teams are allowed to swap players between tournaments, but a core of the same three players have to win four finals together in order to be eligible for the Intel Grand Slam.
• If a player has left his or her team and competed in an IGS event for another team, he or she becomes ineligible for any IGS prize money if his or her old team would win.
• If a team that is about to complete the IGS is defeated in the final of their potential 4th win, their opponents receive the $100,000 “giant killer bonus”. The one exception to the rule is if a team denying the completion of the Intel Grand Slam completes it in the same final.
• There is no limit to how many giant killer bonuses are paid out in a single Intel Grand Slam campaign.

More information about the Intel Grand Slam history and its previous winners is available here. Who do you think will be able to claim the 5th edition of Intel Grand Slam?

• ESL Pro League S15
• IEM Katowice 2022
• IEM Cologne 2022
• ESL Pro League S17 

The Intel Grand Slam puts FaZe Clan among the best to ever compete, joining previous winners Astralis, Team Liquid & Natus Vincere in this exclusive club. The players have also cemented their legacy within Counter-Strike in such a pivotal moment of the game ecosystem. With a fantastic run throughout 2022, winning two ESL Pro Tour Championships in IEM Katowice and IEM Cologne, FaZe Clan capped it off with a dominating performance in ESL Pro League Season 17. Led by a string of young players with immense experience and two veteran leaders, the squad was a constant threat throughout the year.

Canadian Player Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken became the first ever two-time Intel Grand Slam winner, having also won it with Team Liquid, shared his thoughts on its importance before the ESL Pro League Season 17 Grand Final: “I feel we are so close to the Intel Grand Slam and we won’t let anything slip…right now, it’s my main hunger and motivation. I have a chance to make history in this game and I won’t let it go” and after the achievement “That was the goal before this event, I changed my mindset to put the Intel Grand Slam before anything. It’s a very relieving feeling to know that my hard work and my team’s hard work paid off”.

An emotional Robin “ropz” Kool shared his thoughts after the win: “It’s the craziest win I’ve ever had in my career, first time I’ve ever cried after a tournament because this is so beautiful”.

With the Intel Grand Slam IV claimed by FaZe Clan, all current teams with titles in the race have been reset. Information about Intel Grand Slam V, will be available soon.  

Find the full announcement on the ESL Pro Tour website

• IEM Katowice ‘20 (3-0 vs G2 Esports)
• DreamHack Masters Spring ‘21 (3-0 Gambit Esports)
• IEM Cologne ‘21 (3-0 vs G2 Esports)
• ESL Pro League Season 14 (3-2 vs Team Vitality)

NAVI have now joined the elite group of Astralis (IGS I winners, 2018) and Team Liquid (IGS II winners, 2019). They are the first team to complete the incredible run with wins in both ESL Pro Tour Championship competitions IEM Katowice and IEM Cologne. Led by star player Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev, the team put in phenomenal performances in some of the toughest competitions and earned their title as Intel Grand Slam III champions. 

‘It was a fantastic tournament with one of the most spectacular finals in CS:GO history. Thank you to all participants, the teams and the fans who made this incredible event full of emotions.

Completing the Intel Grand Slam and inscribing your name in esports history is an unforgettable feeling that is difficult to put into words. Every player gave his best and was an important key to this victory. We are proud of the NAVI Academy! It uncovers and pushes bright stars like b1t on the tier-1 CS:GO scene.

Now we need to keep our shape up for the Major tournaments in fall. There is still work ahead of us and always space to improve. Stay tuned!“

Quote from Natus Vincere

‘We are looking forward to seeing the next race get underway at IEM Winter, where there will be more teams wanting to join the elite group of winners and get their hands on IV of the Intel Grand Slam.’

With the Intel Grand Slam III claimed by Natus Vincere at ESL Pro League, all current teams with titles in the race have been reset. This means for Intel Grand Slam IV, we are looking to simplify our journey on how to achieve this tremendous achievement.

The Intel Grand Slam IV can be completed by the first team to win three ESL Pro Tour Masters tournaments and one Championship tournament (Katowice, Cologne or ESL-operated CS:GO Majors) inside a span of ten consecutive events.

• The list of eligible EPT Masters events & EPT Championship events are listed available on the Intel Grand Slam homepage.
• Results from the Intel Grand Slam III are not counted towards Intel Grand Slam IV.
• Teams are allowed to swap players between tournaments, but a core of the same three players have to win four finals together in order to be eligible for the Intel Grand Slam.
• If a player has left his or her team and competed in an IGS event for another team, he or she becomes ineligible for any IGS prize money if his or her old team would win.
• If a team that is about to complete the IGS is defeated in the final of their potential 4th win, their opponents receive the $100,000 “giant killer bonus”.  The one exception to the rule is if a team denying the completion of the Intel Grand Slam completes it in the same final.
• There is no limit to how many giant killer bonuses are paid out in a single Intel Grand Slam campaign.

The way to obtain the Intel Grand Slam prize has become a much clearer process. Previously it was possible to obtain the Intel Grand Slam in two methods, either winning 3 EPT Masters + 1 EPT Championship, or alternatively winning 6 EPT Masters events within a span of 10 consecutive tournaments. The singular format is a cleaner process and easier to follow and understand for the audience.

With the completion of one race, a new one begins. All current teams with IGS titles have been reset and a simplified rule set has been implemented to depict how a team may win the Intel Grand Slam IV. The full list of rules can be found here.