ESL Annexes WCS North America

European tournament organizer ESL has announced the annexation of the North American World Championship Series. The takeover followed the recent collapse of the NASL regime, which was home to dozens of WCS players whose livelihood and safety are now in danger.

“We reserve the right to protect the interests of players on European teams in the North American region,” said ESL Geschäftsführer Michal “Carmac” Blicharz. “This is a peaceful, non-military transfer of tournament assets to our German headquarters.”

“The North American competitive scene is weak,” said former Canadian citizen and ESL Minister of Propaganda James “Kennigit” Lampkin. “Under the strong guiding hand of the ESL, the region will be made strong again.”

The action has drawn heavy criticism from the American-based Major League Gaming, who held WCS NA for one season in 2013 before ceding control to the now-toppled NASL.

“ESL has clearly violated the Jönköping Convention and we have no choice but to impose sanctions,” said MLG CEO Sundance Digiovanni, referring to the 2012 partnership between ESL, DreamHack, and MLG. “We are strongly considering revoking ESL’s MLG Gold membership.”

However, despite ESL’s assurances, many believe the organization has sinister motives. Sources from within Europe and America have reported that foreigners in all ESL-occupied WCS regions are slowly disappearing.

“We could see the systematic elimination of all foreigners by the Round of 16 in every ESL-occupied region,” said aspiring journalist Rod “Slasher” Breslau. “Follow the coverage of this potential atrocity on www.ongamers.com.”

DreamHack, the sole remaining non-ESL affiliated tournament in the EU region, has urged players and fans to speak out against the annexation, and believes that appeasing ESL will not end its expansion.

“We shall fight on Reddit, we shall fight in forums and Twitch chat, we shall fight in the venue and in production value. We shall never surrender.” said DreamHack Prime Minister Robert Ohlen.

Ohlen added:

“First they came for Apollo, and I did not speak out. Then they came for WCS, and I did not speak out. Then they will come for DreamHack, and there will be no one left to speak for us.”