PGL announce Americas RMR qualifier dates and details; Qualifiers set to conflict with Fragadelphia 16

PGL has announced the dates for the RMRs for the three major regions of the Americas, Europe, and Asia, as well as the dates for their respective qualifiers. The currently scheduled dates for the NA qualifiers for the Americas RMR are March 3rd through March 6th, falling right on the dates on which the Fragadelphia 16: Last Chance Qualifier and Fragadelphia 16 are set to take place.

The dates for the Fragadelphia 16: Winter Championship have been known for quite some time, with Fragadelphia announcing the March dates for the LAN final and the Last Chance Qualifier in October of last year.

Strong local North American sides such as Party Astronauts, Carpe Diem (formerly RBG), and Strife are amongst a wide pack of teams that have been working to qualify for the main event over the course of the last five months, through participation in both Fragadelphia LANs and ESEA x Fragadelphia Cash Cups.

If the scheduling issue isn't resolved, teams will have to make the difficult decision between competing in Fragadelphia or attempting to qualify for the Americas RMR. PGL has since clarified their willingness to adjust the Open Qualifier dates following discussions with teams and other tournament organizers, but time is of the essence as Fragadelphia and the RMR Open Qualifiers are fast approaching.

This schedule overlap is not the only controversy to mar PGL's handling of the Americas RMR and its qualifiers, as many are also dissatisfied with the tournament organizer's approach to the slot distribution between the North and South American qualifiers and the allowance of squads to participate in the regional qualifier of their choice.

Currently, South America is allocated eight qualifier spots in the American RMR, while North America is only given seven due to one of the slots being occupied by FURIA, who have been directly invited to the RMR due to their performance at PGL Stockholm.

With top Brazillian sides such as MIBR, paiN, oNe, and GODSENT competing in North America instead of South America, and no shift of their slots from the South American qualifier to the North American qualifier to compensate, there could be dramatic consequences for the Americas RMR. The rigidity of the slot allocation could see a distinct lack of North American sides at the Americas RMR, while a number of weaker South American squads qualify due to top regional teams competing in North America.

The resolution of these two issues is deeply important for the growth of the North American scene. LAN experience versus top regional teams is not something that teams get very often in North America, and forcing teams to decide between this valuable opportunity and a shot at RMR qualification is not conducive to the fostering of the local scene.