KANSAS CITY, MO (March 4, 2020) – High School Esports League (HSEL), the largest and longest-running competitive gaming organization serving high school students and teachers, today announced key dates for their upcoming and active nationwide seasonal gaming tournaments — the HSEL Spring Major and the Winter Open Playoffs — where high school esports clubs will compete for a combined prize pool of $65,000 USD in college scholarship funds.
The HSEL Spring Major is an eight-week gaming tournament for North American high school esports clubs that are partnered with HSEL. Set to begin on March 23, 2020, this varsity-level esports competition pits students against their peers in twelve popular multiplayer online video games, with champions across all titles winning up to a $1,000 USD scholarship prize. Top participants will also receive a three-month XBOX Game Pass Ultimate subscription valued at $44.99 USD; every week, a winning team will also win a $250 USD gift certificate from a sponsoring restaurant. The playoffs for the HSEL Spring Major take place in May.
The list of HSEL Spring Major esports titles includes Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, FIFA 20, Fortnite, Hearthstone, Minecraft, Overwatch, Rainbow Six: Siege, Rocket League, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Super Smash Bros: Ultimate, Madden 20, and NBA 2K20.
Registration to the HSEL Spring Major is just $37 USD per student and closes on March 13, 2020. Students, teachers/advisors, and existing esports clubs can register their teams at https://www.highschoolesportsleague.com/spring-major-2020.
The HSEL Winter Open, which began on January 20, 2020, and was open to all North American high school students and free-agent teams (from an HSEL-partnered high school or otherwise), enters into its Semi-Finals and Grand Finals starting March 14, 2020. A $500 USD scholarship prize and a three-month XBOX Game Pass Ultimate subscription await finalists and top competitors of the Winter Open.
Premier esports talent will host the HSEL Winter Open Playoffs live on twitch.tv/VarsityNetwork starting Tuesday, March 17, 2020, at 6:00 pm CST.
The full HSEL Winter Open schedule is as follows:
Semi-Finals
Saturday, March 14, 2020 – 2:00 pm CST:Overwatch | NBA 2K20
Saturday, March 14, 2020 – 4:00 pm CST:Rainbow Six Siege
Saturday, March 14, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST: Minecraft: Survival Games
Saturday, March 14, 2020 – 8:00 pm CST: Fortnite | Madden 20
Sunday, March 15, 2019 – 12:00 pm CST:Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Gunfight | FIFA 20
Sunday, March 15, 2019 – 2:00 pm CST:Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Rocket League
Sunday, March 15, 2019 – 4:00 pm CST:Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Sunday, March 15, 2019 – 7:00 pm CST: Hearthstone
Grand Finals
Monday, March 16, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST:NBA 2K20 | Madden 20
Tuesday, March 17, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST: Rainbow Six Siege* | Minecraft: Survival Games
Wednesday, March 18, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST:Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Rocket League*
Thursday, March 19, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive* | Hearthstone
Friday, March 20, 2020 – 6:00 pm CST: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Gunfight | Fortnite | FIFA 20 | Overwatch*
*Watch these matches live here https://www.twitch.tv/VarsityNetwork.
For more information about the HSEL Winter Open, please visit https://www.highschoolesportsleague.com/winter-open-2020.
In February of this year, HSEL and its official funding partner Varsity Esports Foundation (VEF) announced a collaboration with premier esports networking platform eFuse to join the #ForTheGamers Fund — eFuse’s initiative to award over $200,000 USD in branded scholarships in the year 2020. Students attending schools within the HSEL network have the opportunity to win individual scholarships ranging from $500 to $10,000 USD by becoming a member of the eFuse platform to build their respective gaming portfolios. Esports fans and organizations in gaming, tech, and related industries can donate to the #ForTheGamers campaign to help raise funds for future life-changing opportunities. All donations are tax-deductible and support the organizations’ ability to continue awarding college scholarships to high school students throughout 2020. #ForTheGamers fund donations can be made through the official Softgiving fundraising site here: forthegamers.gg.
To learn more about HSEL, visit www.highschoolesportsleague.com.
For the latest news and updates from HSEL, like the organization on Facebook at facebook.com/hsel.org and follow on Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit. Fans can also join the official HSEL Discord and subscribe on YouTube and at Twitch.tv/varsitynetwork.
About High School Esports League
High School Esports League was founded in 2013 and remains the largest and longest-running competitive gaming organization for high school students, with over 2,400 partnered schools and 70,000 participating students — and it is growing. The organization harnesses students’ passion for video games through organized competition and academics, resulting in better engagement, better GPAs, and better career prospects. HSEL is a pioneer in high school esports thanks to its STEM.org certified programs, scholarships, and tournament platform which arm high schools with the knowledge and resources required to positively impact students through competitive gaming. For more information, please visit https://www.highschoolesportsleague.com.
