ESL outlines IEM Cologne content and fan upgrades

In a Reddit post, Marc “Nix0n” Winther Kristensen, ESL’s Director Esports for Counter-Strike, shared parts of the organizer’s content and fan-experience plan for the upcoming IEM Cologne Major.

Kristensen wrote that ESL produced “three deep-dive player profiles on the stars of the tournament” that will be released during the Major. The post also describes a documentary about what ESL calls “the greatest series in CS history,” the IEM Cologne 2022 grand final between Natus Vincere and FaZe. A 10-minute trailer compiling the season’s top narratives is scheduled to appear on Monday.

The content is timed to run alongside the in-arena competition at the IEM Cologne Major in Cologne, Germany. The profiles and documentary are meant to give viewers background on players and key moments from the competitive season.

On the fan-experience side, the organizer plans to distribute LED wristbands to attendees and to make it easier for fans to secure event merchandise. Kristensen’s post also referenced additional upgrades intended to improve the live experience but did not list them in full.

The announcements were drawn from ESL planning notes shared in the Reddit post. No full broadcast schedule was provided beyond the Monday release of the season trailer.

ESL organizes the Intel Extreme Masters series and stages the IEM Cologne Major and its related media and fan activities. The documentary will revisit the 2022 Natus Vincere–FaZe final, the profiles will focus on prominent competitors at the Major, and the trailer will package several of the season’s storylines into a short overview.