Shanghai Hosts Inaugural ACL Grand Finals 2025: Asia's Premier Esports Spectacle Begins
$2 Million Prize Pool, Nine Elite Titles, and a Gateway to Esports World Cup Glory
SHANGHAI, May 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The HERO ESPORTS Asian Champions League (ACL) Grand Finals 2025, hosted by Hero Esports, officially kicks off today in Shanghai, marking the debut of Asia's boldest and most electrifying esports festival. From May 16–18, the city's iconic venues—SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center, Jing'an Sports Center, and the National Exhibition and Convention Center—will transform into battlegrounds for nine top-tier titles, featuring a combined $2 million prize pool and direct qualification paths to the Esports World Cup (EWC).
Why This Matters for Global Fans
Unmatched Scale: The ACL consolidates Counter-Strike 2 (CS2), DotA 2, Honor of Kings, Street Fighter 6, League of Legends Legend Cup, Teamfight Tactics, VALORANT Champions Tour, Delta Force, and CrossFire.
Road to EWC: Selected ACL winners will earn direct entry to the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—the largest esports event in history due to take place from July to August with a record total prize pool of US$70m.
Shanghai's Esports Ambition: The event fuses elite competition with the city's culture, from metro line takeovers to themed airliners ferrying fans to EWC.
Event Highlights:
Counter-Strike 2: China's Elites Go Head-to-Head
After a wild playoff on May 11, LVG and TYLOO are set to clash in the Grand Finals at SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center on May 16. Winner bags not only the ACL x CS2 title, but also a direct ticket to EWC 2025. It's a battle for national pride and a shot at global glory—who will dominate?
Dota 2: $150K on the Line + a EWC Spot!
The Semifinals and Grand Final of DotA 2 hit the National Exhibition Center on May 16, with teams like Xtreme Gaming, Yakult Brothers, Team Tidebound and Excel Esports battling it out. The grand prize $150K in cash! The champion takes $100K home, plus a golden ticket to the EWC this summer—the bracket's wild.
Honor of Kings: Qualifier Winner Takes on KPL Top 5 at the Grand Finals
From May 14th to 16th, Guangzhou.TTG, Chongqing.Wolves, Jinan.RW and Beijing.WB will clash in critical knockout stage matches. Winner of the knockout rounds then goes on to face off against Foshan DRG for the ACL title and a coveted spot at EWC.
Street Fighter 6 : Fighting Titans Clash at DreamHack
From May 17 to 18, the Street Fighter 6 tournament is going down at the DreamHack Festival at the National Exhibition Center. The World's fiercest fighters from around the globe gather in the city and battle over two days for a shot at EWC glory. Who will rise, who will fall, and who will be crowned the ultimate fighter?
Who will fall—Stay tuned.
League of Legends Legend Cup S3: Tigers vs. Eagles – A Legendary Rivalry
The ACL Grand Finals x League of Legends Legend Cup S3 kicks off at 2 PM on May 17 at Oriental Sports Center! It's a showdown between the "Tigers" (AIW, HPA, BL led by legendary top laner Letme) and the "Eagles" (ACM, RNS, PLT led by champion AD carry Bang). Two regions, two styles—one epic clash. Oh, and be sure to catch the opening and halftime shows - where mystery guests drop in to fire up the crowd!
Teamfight Tactics: Strategies on Steroids
T1 locked in their final spot by defeating Alpha Gaming 2-1 in the winners' bracket, while Team Falcons fought through the losers' bracket to secure their place, winning them a chance to go head-to-head in a do-or-die battle with Alpha Gaming on May 17. The winner will then join T1 on May 18th for the ultimate showdown. Let's find out who's got the winning strategy to claim the ACL x TFT championship trophy.
Valorant Champions Tour: Bounty Bracket Showdown
The Valorant bounty knockout stage kicked off at 5 PM on May 14. Six top teams from CN and PAC regions—TE, ZETA, BLG, DRX, XLG, PRX— will battle it out over four days of intense matches. The Grand Final is about to hit JING'AN SPORTS CENTER at 5 PM on May 18.
Delta Force: Top 4 Asian Powerhouses Collide in Shanghai
TEAM A, featuring AG, JMG, PeRo, Q9, and Wolves, fought their way to the top and secured China's spot! From May 17 to 18, China, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand squads will hit the international stage of the ACL Grand Finals, ready to write a new chapter in tactical FPS history.
CrossFire: Asian Gunfight Royale for EWC Glory
Eight top teams from China, Philippines, and Vietnam are locked and loaded! From May 16 to 17 at JING'AN SPORTS CENTER, CN powerhouses like BaiSha, AG, EP, and KZ take on ARC, NT, FAL, and UM. The champ doesn't just win—they punch their ticket to EWC. Let the bullets fly!
ACL Collaboration with DreamHack
DreamHack, Asia's first and world-largest "Esports + Festival" Extravaganza that goes back to 1994, is collaborating with ACL Grand Final 2025 to bring you Esports matches, LAN party, indie games, and more. From May 16 to 18, four major tournaments of the ACL Grand Finals 2025 are about to go down at DreamHack 2025 in the National Exhibition Center : DotA 2, Teamfight Tactics, Delta Force, Street Fighter 6. Stay tuned!
On-Site, You'll Get to:
Gear Up & Retro Gaming Vibes(Top-Tier Rigs + Street Fighter Arcade Throwback)
Meet Celebs & Creators(Rappers, Bands, EDM Stars & Content Creators)
How to Tune In
Tickets: Damai.cn (China) / Tongcheng Travel App (global).
Global Streams: Twitch, TikTok, YouTube, CHZZK, SOOP
For more info, please check ACL official website: https://esportsacl.com/home
About Hero Esports
Founded in 2016, Hero Esports is the biggest esports company in Asia, producing more than 7,000 matches every year that captivate an online fan base of over 800 million. With a global presence encompassing 12 office locations and eight top-tier esports arenas, Hero Esports offers a comprehensive suite of esports services, including tournament organization, marketing solutions, community development, and more. As a private company, Hero Esports counts Savvy Games Group and Tencent, among others, as investors, with Kuaishou and Huya as strategic partners.
Headquartered in Shanghai and employing more than 1,100 employees, Hero Esports is a fully integrated operator of esports tournaments and creator of esports content with global reach. The company has helped produce many prestigious tournaments including the Olympic Esports Week, the Esports World Cup as well as the esports series featured at both the Jakarta Asian Games 2018 and the Hangzhou Asian Games 2023. Hero Esports also worked with the world's top-tier game publishers such as Tencent and Krafton in organizing popular esports leagues such as the Honor of Kings' KPL series and PUBG's PGC series, among many others. In 2024, Hero Esports launched Esports Asian Champions League (ACL), Asia's premier international, multi-title esports tournament. Hero Esports is a member of the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC). www.heroesports.com
For media inquiries, please contact:
ACL PR Team | aclpr@heroesports.com
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