US$250,000 will soon be on the line as the world’s best CS:GO players clash in Cologne. At gamescom, big favorites Ninjas in Pyjamas, Fnatic and Virtus.pro will be joined by 13 other teams to make up a total of 16 participants from all over the world. While Europe and Oceania are still in the qualification stage for their regional finals, North America have found their additional representative, who will be joining compLexity in the tournament.

North America: iBUYPOWER on their way to Europe again

Before Katowice, iBUYPOWER were said to be a possible dark horse. Their results beforehand were impressive, and when they won ESEA over the likes of Titan and compLexity, a lot of fans thought they’d end up giving the European teams a good challenge. However, a group that included Dignitas, Fnatic and Reason proved too much for them to take, and they dropped out as fourth place in their group.

Now steel and his mates are back, taking the North American qualifier by storm and earning a ticket for Cologne in striking fashion. Once again they’re the newly crowned ESEA champions after having won over even more European teams and their rival coL. It will be interesting to see what iBUYPOWER are going to bring to the table at Cologne and if they’re able to deliver such a stellar performance a second time.

Europe: Only one more qualifier before the finals

After the first two qualifiers, a lot of big names have already qualified for the European finals. Joining the likes of ESG! (former SK Gaming), Titan, mousesports and others are Natus Vincere, ESC Gaming and two lesser-known teams from Eastern Europe dAT Team and USSR, regulars in ESL’s Go4CSGO cup series. Seeing them clashing with the best teams around in Europe will definitely be something to look forward to!

You also still have last chance to qualify for the European finals. The open qualifier takes place on the 22nd and 23rd of July, and will grant winning teams one of four more spots. If you want to take a shot at being one of the 16 teams at ESL One Cologne, now’s your chance! You can find all the details about the open qualifier and EU finals over at the EU qualifier portal.

Oceania: Will Vox Eminor win the ticket to Cologne?

The first Oceanic qualifier went pretty much as expected, with Australia’s best-known CS:GO team Vox Eminor taking one of the four OCE finals spots. Together with Qlimax, Fallen and Avant Garde, they’re now waiting for the last four teams to be determined by the second qualifier, which takes place on the 19th of July with the finals taking place just one day later.

If you’re a team from the Oceanic region, this is your chance to earn a ticket to the finals or even to ESL One Cologne itself. Check out the details on the second qualifier as well as the OCE finals over at the dedicated portal.

Check out ESL-One.com for further details and stay tuned for our coverage including exclusive team and player interviews. If you’re looking forward to hearing about particular players or teams, let us know by leaving a comment below!