From September 20th-23rd Sky Sports will broadcast the FACEIT CS:GO Major, the most prestigious esports tournament to take place in the UK, which saw record breaking viewership of over 20m hours watched during the Challengers Stage.

FACEIT is excited to announce a partnership with Sky Sports to broadcast the final matches from the UK’s first CS:GO Major. Top teams from around the world will compete for a share of the US$1,000,000 prize pool in the biggest esports event to take place in the UK to date. The partnership marks the first time Sky Sports has ever broadcast competitive CS:GO, and reflects the profile of the prestigious FACEIT London Major.

Sky will air multiple programmes offering viewers riveting access to the tournament. Content will include an exclusive one hour documentary outlining the road to the Major and the live broadcast of the finals on skysports.com, and Sky Sports’ YouTube and Facebook channels, from the 20th to 23rd September.  A “highlights” programme capturing the most exciting plays from the finals will also air after the event at 11pm on Sky Two.

The partnership comes after the Minors and Challengers stages of the tournament which both saw unprecedented viewing figures on Twitch and YouTube. The Europe Minors alone saw 4.3M hours watched, peak 147k concurrent views and 82k average viewers, excluding Chinese viewership. Average viewers and hours watched were more than triple that of the last two EU Minors. The recent Challengers Stage also saw record breaking viewership, with over 20M hours watched and 500k peak concurrent views. The sold out finals take place at the SSE Arena, Wembley and will welcome 10,000 spectators to the arena for each of the tournament’s four days of playoffs and the grand final.

“Bringing the FACEIT London Major to an entirely new audience is extremely exciting for us,” said Michele Attisani, CBO & Co-Founder of FACEIT. “We have been working closely with the team at Sky to ensure all of their content is both accessible and entertaining. It’s essential we strike that balance between offering enough CS:GO information to ensure viewers understand what’s going on, whilst maintaining the entertainment value that keeps fans absorbed.”

Georgie Faulkner, Sky Sports’ Head of Multi Sports, said: “FACEIT Major is one of the world’s biggest esports events, and we’re delighted to be able to bring the London finals to a whole new audience. We’re no stranger to world of esports, but this is the first time we have broadcast competitive CS:GO and we can’t wait to get started. With a sold-out SEE Wembley Arena, and some of the biggest names in the game, we’re sure our viewers will love it.”

You can watch the live broadcast from SkySports.com, or Sky Sports’ YouTube and Facebook channels.

For more information on the FACEIT London Major, visit www.faceitmajor.com or follow FACEIT on Twitter at www.twitter.com/faceit.

We’re excited to announce an exciting new experience for viewers of the FACEIT London Major, with the release of the Twitch.tv FACEIT Major Premium Pass!

UPDATE: For the Legends Stage, you can now buy the Twitch Premium Pass for $4.99, or use your Twitch Prime subscription!

This is the first ever event pass for a CS:GO event, offering a brand new interactive experience for Twitch viewers. Our Twitch account, which has been streaming the Minors and Challengers stages of the Major officially became the fastest growing account earlier this month according to statistics gathered by TwitchMetrics.

Starting today, fans will be treated to exclusive features and special access via a one-time $4.99 or Twitch Prime subscription to the FACEIT London Major Twitch channel, which will include:

• 11 feeds, allowing you to choose whether to spectate a particular player or stick to our official observer feed, all within Twitch
• Interactive stats and HUD, allowing you to change crosshair, map size, toggle the scoreboard, and more!
• Two weeks of FACEIT Premium
• Exclusive chat emojis
• Premium-only chat channels
• Exclusive VOD content released throughout the Major, including:
  • Exclusive behind-the-scenes Legends player interviews
  • Major time machine 8 films, produced by Sodiac
  • The return of Sounds of CS:GO

Click to toggle stats, control the HUD!

The Premium Pass will be active during the Legends and Champions Stages of the FACEIT London Major, running until the 23rd September and unlocking special access to the tournament and exclusive features. In addition, the pass reflects Twitch’s ongoing efforts to increase the interactivity of esports. Twitch has already made spectating a live, interactive, shared form of entertainment with features such as Extensions, Cheering, Drops, and exclusive offers via Twitch Prime, with passes adding another layer to the social experience.

Toggle the scoreboard.

Premium Pass subscribers can access interactive viewer stats, scoreboards, settings and minimap to really go beyond the normal Twitch viewership experience. Subscribers can even have multiple Player POVs up at the same time, to see the action unfold from every angle.

Change crosshair, minimap size, and more!

FACEIT are also excited to announce that fans can now link their FACEIT.com accounts to their Twitch accounts to win FACEIT Points drops throughout the Major by clicking the extension below the FACEIT TV Twitch channel.

Once you have become a subscriber, you will be able to access your Premium features on either the Observer channel, or any of the FACEIT Premium Pass channels.

To become a Premium Pass subscriber, subscribe to FACEIT TV, or any of the FACEIT Premium Pass channels, and you will be able to access the content across all 11 channels.

Connect your FACEIT account to your ticket to unlock souvenir drops and FACEIT account badge!

Once you arrive at the SSE Arena, Wembley, you will be given an RFID-enabled wristband upon displaying a valid event ticket. To ensure all attendees have the best event experience, there are some important key steps we require attendees to take prior to arrival.

Receiving in-game souvenir drops and FACEIT Points for attending the FACEIT Major 

There are two key steps you must do, to receive in-game Valve souvenir and FACEIT Points drops.

Step 1:

This process will be managed via the FACEIT platform, where the majority of users will have already connected their Steam account. If you don’t already have a FACEIT account, please sign up here. Once you have your FACEIT account, please ensure your FACEIT account is linked to the Steam account you wish to receive drops on. 

Now that you’ve signed into your FACEIT account, head over to our ticket partner, The Ticket Fairy, and sign into the account you purchased your tickets with. Navigate to “Orders”, and locate your FACEIT London Major tickets.

Begin the process of linking the ticket you purchased to your FACEIT account, by selecting the “Connect FACEIT Account” button on the ticket. 

Step 2:

Once “Connect FACEIT Account” is selected, a FACEIT login window will open. If you are already signed into your FACEIT account, the window will automatically close, and your Major ticket will now be linked. If you aren’t signed into your FACEIT account when you click the button, please follow the steps in the new window.

Once you have completed this step, your FACEIT Major ticket will be linked to your FACEIT account, and the message “Connected to XXXXX” will be displayed to confirm this.

What do I do if I’ve booked tickets for my friends?

If you’ve purchased a ticket for a friend, there is a system in place allowing them to connect their FACEIT account to the ticket. Simply share the “purchased for a friend?” link associated with the ticket to your friend, and they will be able to proceed with the linking process.

What do I do if I’ve bought multiple ticket types for myself e.g. GA and Premium tickets for multiple days?

You will be able to link your FACEIT account to multiple tickets. Please connect your account to all applicable tickets, and each will be active when you arrive at the arena.

What if I bought my tickets from another site e.g. AXS?

If you bought your tickets before 24/8, your ticket information will be available on The Ticket Fairy. If you purchased after that, your tickets will be available 24-48 hours after purchase.

Getting your FACEIT Profile Badge

When you have connected your FACEIT account to your ticket, you will receive a unique badge for your FACEIT profile, that shows that you attended the FACEIT London Major 2018. This badge is permanent, and only available to those who connected their account to their ticket before the FACEIT London Major:

Event timings

COLLECTING YOUR WRISTBAND  

Upon arrival at The SSE Arena, Wembley, attendees are required to head to the marked wristband collection tents to collect an RFID wristband. Here you will exchange your paper or email QR code ticket for a wristband. The wristband collection tents are located in Arena Square, outside the Arena’s front entrance. This wristband is your entry pass, and without it, you won’t be able to enter the event. Please retain your wristband at the end of each day, as you will only be issued one wristband for the entire event. Additional lost or broken wristbands can be replaced at a cost of £5 per wristband. Lost or broken wristbands will be deactivated when you collect a new one, so you won’t lose your digital ticket.

VIP and Premium ticket holders will have exclusive wristband collection zones and private entrances on the South side of the arena. General Admission ticket holders will need to queue for the General Admission wristband collection zone, and entrance on the North side of the arena.

Linking FACEIT account to Steam

If you have already played CS:GO through the FACEIT platform, your account should already be linked. If you are signing up for a brand new FACEIT account, you will need to go through the linking process by adding a Steam game (e.g. CS:GO) to your FACEIT account as part of the signup process. For more information on FACEIT accounts and linking your Steam account, please visit our support page.

Having trouble?

Please email [email protected] if you are still in need of support.

Good luck and see you at the arena!

The FACEIT London Major is here! We’ve put together a comprehensive guide on how to catch all the action over the next three weeks…

When is the FACEIT Major?

Challengers Stage

5th – 9th September: 10AM BST / 11AM CEST / 5AM EST

Legends Stage

12th – 16th September: 10AM BST / 11AM CEST / 5AM EST

Champions Stage

20th – 23rd SeptTember

Where can I watch live?

The best way to watch the FACEIT Major is via watch.faceitmajor.com where you can get exclusive giveaways, viewer prizes, Quests and more.

The FACEIT Major will also be streamed live in English on YouTube, Twitch, Steam.tv, and via CS:GO’s in-game player. There are also a number of partnered broadcasts in other languages.

Broadcast partners

We’ve partnered with a number of broadcasters to bring the FACEIT London Major in a wide variety of languages.

Where is the FACEIT Major?

The FACEIT Major is being held in London, England. The Challengers and Legends stages are at Twickenham Stadium, broadcast only.

The Champions stage is being held at the SSE Arena, Wembley. If you’d like to attend in person, weekend tickets are sold out, but a limited number of day tickets are still available. You can also place yourself on The Ticket Fairy’s waiting list system to be notified when weekend, Premium, or VIP tickets go on sale.

FACEIT Major Pick’Em

Load up CS:GO and participate in the Pick’Em Challenge! Purchase FACEIT Major stickers, and predict who will make it through each stage of the Major!

How do I receive drops for watching the FACEIT Major?

Throughout the FACEIT Major, viewers can receive both FACEIT Points and Valve CS:GO drops for watching live.

Viewers can receive FACEIT Points by watching on YouTube Gaming. All you have to do is link your FACEIT account to your YouTube Gaming account by following the steps in this handy guide, and tune in between 5th – 23rd September.

To receive CS:GO in-game drops, viewers can watch via GOTV or via a linked Twitch account. For more details, view Valve’s blog.

Unable to watch live?

Follow us on Twitter for highlights, match scores, and exciting FACEIT Major content. Additionally, our YouTube channel will be uploading highlights and full VOD’s of all matches.

Access behind the scenes content

Our Instagram is your VIP backstage pass to the FACEIT Minor. Player reactions, backstage tours, and more will be exclusively featured on our Instagram page. Secure your backstage pass with a follow!