Raleigh to host 2022 ALGS Championship

Raleigh, North Carolina has been announced as the host city of the 2022 Apex Legends Global Series Championship. The event is due to take place in July and has a prize pool of $2,000,000.

The top 40 Apex Legends teams will travel to the city for a chance to take home the game’s biggest esport title. It is the latest esports event to be held in the city, which is quickly becoming a hub for competitive gaming.

PNC Arena hosts ALGS Championship

The ALGS Championship will be held at Raleigh’s PNC Arena between July 7 and July 10. PNC Arena can hold up to 21,000 fans and is currently home to the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League and the men’s basketball team of North Carolina State University.

The 2022 ALGS Championship will be the first major international championship on the ALGS circuit. The 2021 Championships were restricted by region, crowning champions in North America, Europe & the Middle East, South America, Asia & the Pacific North, and Asia & the Pacific South.

The 40 teams will play a round-robin group stage in four groups of ten, the results of which will seed all teams into a bracket stage. The bracket stage will reduce the field from 40 to 20, and the remaining teams will then battle it out using the standard Apex Legends match point format.

Raleigh grows its esports footprint

Raleigh has quickly gained a name for itself as a go-to location for esports events. In May, the city hosted the Six Major Raleigh, the first major international tournament of the Rainbow Six Siege season. In December 2021, the city played host to the inaugural event of the newly-formed Halo Championship Series.

However, the ALGS Championship will be one of the first esports events to be held at PNC Arena. Historically, esports organizers have opted for the most centrally-located Raleigh Convention Center. It can be a tough decision for organizers – PNC Arena may have a larger capacity, but is also home to two sports teams who likely get scheduling priority in the building.

If the ALGS Championship is a success though, it may show sporting arena operators the upside of hosting esports events, while also opening a potentially new avenue for organizers. This is already being seen in other esports, with the 2022 League of Legends World Championships Grand Final scheduled to be held at the Chase Center in San Francisco. The arena is home to the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association.

With the 40 teams set, fans have just over a month to wait until Raleigh welcomes the world of Apex Legends.

Header: Alexisrael, Electronic Arts