ESL has revealed the seeding of the teams in the playoffs based on the results of the ESL Pro League Season 15 group stage when we saw Natus Vincere win Group D, leave Heroic in second place, and Astralis take the last slot.
The following opponents will compete in the Round of 12, which will take place on April 5-6 in the Single Elimination bracket: Entropiq – Astralis, Heroic – Liquid, Fnatic – ENCE, FaZe – Players.
The group stage was full of shocks, including FURIA’s first-place finish in Group B and Movistar Riders’ dramatic upset campaign in Group C, while fan favorites like G2 and Vitality were left out. Due to seeding regulations in place for the playoffs, the string of upsets, which also saw FaZe and Players fail to live up to their role as big favorites and finish first in their respective groups, has resulted in a bottom-heavy bracket.
Also read: Entropiq eliminate G2 from EPL S15 and secure Top three!
Most importantly, such regulations ensure that first and second-placed teams from the same group cannot meet until the grand final, while first and third-placed teams cannot meet until the semi-finals. The battle between the world’s No. 2 and No. 3 teams, according to HLTV.org’s rating as of March 28, FaZe and Players, is clearly the highlight of the round of 12, with current No. 1 team Natus Vincere awaiting the winner in the following round.
The first-placed teams in each group, NIP, Movistar Riders, FURIA, and NAVI, will begin their playoff campaigns in the quarterfinals. Their matches will take place on April 7-8.
ESL Pro League Season 15 semifinals will take place on April 9, followed by the grand final on April 10. From a total prize fund of $823,000, the winners will get $175,000 each.
All of the first-round encounters, as well as the playoff bracket, are listed here:
Round of 12 (Today-Wednesday)
- Fnatic vs. ENCE – April 5, 2022 – 16:30 UTC+3
- FaZe vs. Players (Gambit Esports) – April 5, 2022 – 20:00 UTC+3
- Entropiq vs. Astralis – April 6, 2022 – 16:30 UTC+3
- Heroic vs. Liquid – April 6, 2022 – 20:00 UTC+3
Quarter-finals (Thursday-Friday)
- NIP vs. Heroic/Liquid winner – April 7, 2022 – 16:30 UTC+3
- Movistar Riders vs. Fnatic/ENCE winner – April 7, 2022 – 20:00 UTC+3
- FURIA vs. Entropiq/Astralis winner – April 8, 2022 – 16:30 UTC+3
- Natus Vincere vs. FaZe/Players winner – April 8, 2022 – 20:00 UTC+3
Visit HLTV.org’s tournament page for a complete schedule.
