The Pro Tour is back, marking the return of competitive Magic: The Gathering to a layout similar to the pre-esports push by Wizards of the Coast that started with the release of Magic Arena.
Calling back to the prestige branding, there are three Pro Tours scheduled for 2023 with qualifying events starting with the New Capenna Championship on May 20 to 22. This will also include Regional Championship qualifying tournaments and Regional Championship tournaments that feed directly into Pro Tour invites.
But when does the Pro Tour start? Wizards of the Coast hasn’t announced a date yet but said the first Pro Tour will happen early in 2023. Each Pro Tour will be played on tabletop with around 300 players and a $500,000 prize pool for each tournament.
Every Pro Tour will be a split-format tournament with a Booster Draft followed by Constructed rounds. The first Pro Tour of the year will play Pioneer in its Constructed format. The following events will feature Standard then Modern.
All players who go 9-6 or better at the New Capenna Championship will earn an invitation to the first Pro Tour. All 32 players who qualify for this year’s World Championships will earn an invitation to the first Pro Tour, with the top-four finishers winning invitations to all three.
Outside of those avenues, performing well at Regional Championships is a primary method of making it into a Pro Tour. There are 11 regions, each with dedicated organizers that will hold events.
Digital players will remain in the dark for a little longer when it comes to their competitive future. Wizards of the Coast has not announced how Magic Arena and Magic Online players will be able to qualify for the Pro Tour. The eight players in the upcoming Magic Online Champions Showcase will be automatically invited to the first Pro Tour.
No information regarding Magic Arena qualification is available at this time.
