One of the largest esports tournament organizers in the world, ESL, unveiled its new #GGFORALL initiative today. This initiative is meant to provide stability and support to the women’s CS:GO scene, with online regional leagues leading to an offline LAN final, as well as a new women’s council and talent development program.
The primary foundation of the #GGFORALL initiative is the 2022 CS:GO Women’s Circuit. This circuit features $500,000 in prize money, online regional leagues for both European and North American teams, and two Global League Finals at DreamHack Dallas and DreamHack Winter (in early June and late November).
Additional competition for women’s teams will be added too, in various standalone events like DreamHack Valencia in July, and smaller online competitions in women-only ESEA Cash Cups.
The future direction of women’s CS:GO will be directed in part by a new women’s player council, which will be made up of players who will provide “more consolidated feedback” to ESL and other organizers about the growth of the scene. ESL says one of its major discussion points will be how the winners of the women’s circuit will be integrated into the ESL Pro Tour.
The #GGFORALL initiative is reminiscent of the Game Changers program started and run by Riot Games to grow and sustain the women’s VALORANT scene. In a similar vein, ESL has set a goal to provide not just more infrastructure, but an environment without toxicity or harassment that promotes growth. With that, the new initiative will also include a talent development program to find and grow the next wave of women casters and on-screen talent.
The first split of NA and EU women’s circuit league play is set to begin in March and run until May, leading to the first league final at DreamHack Dallas in early June.
