ESL co-organized PUBG’s first invitational tournament with Bluehole.
The Gamescom PUBG Invitational was presented by Bluehole and ESL, making ESL the organization that partnered with PUBG’s developer and publisher for the landmark event. ESL, short for Electronic Sports League, brought extensive experience in staging, broadcasting, and operating competitive gaming tournaments.
Held at Gamescom in Cologne from August 23 to August 26, 2017, the invitational was PUBG’s first major LAN event. It featured 80 players, influencers, and Gamescom attendees across solo, duo, first-person duo, and squad competitions. The event offered a $350,000 prize pool and was designed to test how PUBG could function as a spectator esport.
Bluehole supplied the game and helped shape the event, while ESL handled much of the tournament organization and presentation. This distinction matters because later PUBG competitions involved many different organizers, including regional leagues and tournament operators. PGL, FACEIT, and MLG are all established esports names, but they did not co-organize this first Gamescom invitational with Bluehole.