BIG and VP, first invites to Malta’s $150,000 SuperNova event

Quickfire has just announced that it will be hosting a new event called SuperNova CS:GO in Malta. The event will feature eight invited teams and it will have $150,000 on the line.

The SuperNova CS:GO event will start on November 29 and will continue up until December 2. The teams will play offline in the Intercontinental Arena Conference Centre in Saint Julian’s.

StarLadder will be on board to help organize and orchestrate the event and overall production. A number of sponsors have also got on board, including Air Malta and Holiday Inn Express. The CEO of Quickfire’s parent company, Eden Leisure Group, mentioned that he has hopes Malta will become “a top destination in the global esports circuit”.

To begin with, the event will start with a double elimination group stage with two groups. Four of the eight teams will be eliminated. After this, the playoffs will kick off with the semifinals.

© FACEIT Major 2018 | Valve Corporation

So far, only Virtus.Pro and BIG have been confirmed to be participating for the event. Quickfire will unveil the other participating teams over the coming months. The next two teams will be announced September 24. After that, a new name drop for two teams will happen on October 8. The final two teams will be announced on October 15.

Quickfire will also be selling tickets for the event, which means those interested can go to watch the game live. The event has day tickets at $23 and full VIP tickets for the entire event for $175. With sponsors like Holiday Inn Express and Air Malta involved, it’s clear that Malta hopes to boost tourism with this event. It’s an interesting concept, but it’s something that has already been set in concrete with regular sports.

Could locations like Malta boost their tourism by hosting esports events like the Quickfire SuperNova event happening at the end of November?

If it can, that can only mean good things for the esports community as a whole. If this event goes successfully and the tickets for the event get sold, other agencies responsible for tourism in other countries may clock onto the idea and that may mean even more opportunities for events like these in the future. However, that’s only one side of the story. Recently, many top tier teams have dropped out of large events due to conflicting schedules – it’s hard to take part in every event and still have time to practice when so many events are happening worldwide.

We have this issue right now where fans want to watch the top teams compete, but invitational events like SuperNova CS:GO may have to opt for a team roster mostly filled with tier 2 teams instead.

What are your thoughts on the CS:GO SuperNova tournament happening in Malta in November? Do you think this is good news for the esports scene, or do you think the top teams already have enough on their plate?

If you could call the shots for running an event like this, what teams would you pick if considering that the top teams like Astralis and FaZe probably will decline invitations?