MESA announces two Nomadic Masters 2025 tournaments with $500,000 prize pool

The international tournament organizer MESA has presented the MESA Nomadic Masters 2025 series of events, which includes two lan tournaments in the capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar. The total prize pool will be $500,000 divided between the two events.

Dates of the tournament
The first tournament, MESA Nomadic Masters Spring 2025, will take place from April 30 to May 4. The second one, MESA Nomadic Masters Fall 2025, will take place from October 15 to 19. Both tournaments will be held offline at MESA Studio for the group stage and at TBA Arena for the final matches.

Competition format
Spring 2025: Eight teams will take part. Two of them will receive invites from Europe and two from Asia. The remaining places will be filled by the winners of regional qualifiers and the MESA League Season 4 champion.
Fall 2025: The format may be expanded to 12 teams by adding invitationals and qualifiers for teams from North and South America.

Selection of teams
Invitations are based on Valve's regional rankings, which are updated in March 2025. Thus, MESA ensures the participation of teams that are outside the top 8 but have significant potential.

Comments from the organizers
MESA Managing Director Hanbaatar Erdene emphasized the importance of such tournaments:

"We noticed a gap in tournaments below the Tier-1 level. Our task is to create opportunities for mid-level teams to rise to the highest level of competition. We are happy to provide a platform that promotes competitiveness in the international arena."

Prize pool
Each of the tournaments will have $250,000 in prize money:

First place: $150,000
Second place: $60,000
Third and fourth places: $40,000
Other places will receive from $5,000 to $20,000 depending on the results.

What does this mean for the CS2 scene?
The MESA Nomadic Masters 2025 not only closes the gap in Tier-2 competitions, but also gives teams a chance to make a name for themselves on the world stage. Players and fans can expect new names, dramatic moments and intense matches.