DreamHack Atlanta opens, combining Call of Duty League Major III and IEM Atlanta

DreamHack opened its Atlanta festival on Friday with two top-tier esports events under the same roof: Call of Duty League Major III and Intel Extreme Masters Atlanta. The three-day event runs May 15-17 at the Georgia World Congress Center, according to DreamHack and the Call of Duty League. DreamHack’s event pages describe Atlanta as the first stop for IEM in the city, while the Call of Duty League bills Major III as a Pro-Am format tied to the festival. The combined headline prize figure advertised across those two competitions is $1.365 million, based on official event pages. IEM Atlanta lists total winnings of $1 million, split between $300,000 in prize money and $700,000 in club rewards, and CDL Major III lists a $365,000 purse. That total is below the preliminary $1.4 million figure cited in promotional material, but it is the number visible on the official tournament pages reviewed Friday. (dreamhack.com) ### How are the two marquee tournaments set up in Atlanta? IEM Atlanta is a 16-team Counter-Strike event that began tournament play on May 11 and moves into its arena stage during the DreamHack weekend. DreamHack says the field is split into two eight-team double-elimination groups, with six teams advancing to a single-elimination playoff bracket. Quarterfinals are scheduled for Friday, semifinals for Saturday, and the third-place decider and grand final for Sunday. (dreamhack.com) CDL Major III is a 16-team Call of Duty event built as a Pro-Am. DreamHack says all 12 franchise teams are joined by four Challengers rosters, with the field divided into four groups of four before an eight-team double-elimination bracket. The Call of Duty League schedule shows group play beginning Friday morning in Atlanta, with bracket matches and the grand final set through Sunday. (dreamhack.com) ### Which teams are in the field this weekend? Team Vitality, Natus Vincere, FaZe Clan and Team Liquid are among the teams listed on DreamHack’s IEM Atlanta page. The same page also lists NRG, Astralis, GamerLegion, M80, paiN Gaming, BetBoom Team, BC Game Esports, Legacy, FUT Esports, B8, sinners and Passion UA in the 16-team field. OpTic Texas, Toronto KOI, LA Thieves and Cloud9 New York are among the 12 franchise teams listed for CDL Major III. (dreamhack.com) DreamHack’s page also names ROC Esports, P7 Notorious, Huntsmen and OMIT as the four Challengers entries completing the 16-team bracket. The official league schedule showed Friday opening matches including OMIT against OpTic Texas, Vancouver Surge against G2 Minnesota, Huntsmen against Toronto KOI and Miami Heretics against Carolina Royal Ravens. (dreamhack.com) ### What else is happening beyond the two main esports events? DreamHack’s Atlanta site describes the festival as more than an arena-only show, with cosplay, creators, artist alley, exhibitor booths and other gaming activations spread across the weekend. The event guide says the festival is being held in Hall C of the Georgia World Congress Center at 285 Andrew Young International Blvd. NW. (dreamhack.com) A separate DreamHack page says the Call of Duty: Warzone Resurgence Series is also being staged in Atlanta with a $100,000 prize pool and qualification slots to the Esports World Cup championship. DreamHack also lists Road to EWC qualifiers in games including Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves and Chess. ### What should viewers and attendees watch for next? (dreamhack.com) Sunday, May 17 is the main closing day for both headline brackets. DreamHack’s posted schedule lists the IEM Atlanta third-place decider at 10:45 a.m. and the grand final at 2:15 p.m., while the CDL schedule shows lower-bracket matches, the winners final, lower final and the CDL Major III grand final running through the afternoon in Atlanta. (dreamhack.com 1) (dreamhack.com 2)