Electronic Sports League

The Electronic Sports League (ESL, formerly ESPL) is an eSports league, which is operated by Turtle Entertainment in Cologne, Germany. Today it has more than 5,000,000 registered members and consists of over 1,000,000 teams, which have played over 22.5 million games in addition to leagues, tournaments and VERSUS, the ESL's own online matchmaking. The ESL supports over 50 games in different genres through various national and international leagues. Games are usually broadcast via Twitch.tv, or played publicly at conventions such as Gamescom or CeBIT. ESL also operates the Intel Extreme Masters world championships.

History

ESL was founded in 1997 as Deutsche Clanliga (DeCL) by today's CEO, Ralf Reichert, and members of SK Gaming. It was renamed in 2000, making it the oldest league of its kind in the world. In July 2015, Modern Times Group (MTG) bought a majority share within Turtle Entertainment for $86 million.

Until June 2015, the Electronic Sports League was operated by the German company Turtle Entertainment GmbH, headquartered in Cologne. The main sources of income are sponsorship revenue, online advertising, merchandising and international licensing business. Licenses to operate their own national branches of ESL are assigned to partners from across Europe.

ESL One Cologne

ESL One Cologne is a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major tournament run the Electronic Sports League and sponsored by game developer Valve Corporation. There have been two tournaments by the name so far:

English as a second or foreign language

English as a second or foreign language is the use of English by speakers with different native languages. Instruction for English-language learners may be known as English as a second language (ESL), English as a foreign language (EFL), English as an additional language (EAL), or English for speakers of other languages (ESOL).

English as a second language (ESL) is often used for non-native English speakers learning English in a country where English is commonly spoken. English as a foreign language (EFL) is used for non-native English speakers learning English in a country where English is not commonly spoken. The term ESL has been misinterpreted by some to indicate that English would be of secondary importance. However, it simply refers to the order in which the language was learned, consistent with the linguistic terminology of second-language acquisition. The term ESL can be a misnomer for some students who have learned several languages before learning English. The terms English Language Learners (ELL), and more recently English Learners (EL), have been used instead, and the students’ home language and cultures are considered important.

Cologne

Cologne (English pronunciation: /kəˈloʊn/; German Köln [kœln], Colognian: Kölle [ˈkœɫə]), Germany's fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich), is the largest city both in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region, one of the major European metropolitan regions and the largest in Germany with more than ten million inhabitants.

Cologne is located on both sides of the Rhine River, less than eighty kilometres from Belgium. The city's famous Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Cologne. The University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln) is one of Europe's oldest and largest universities.

Cologne was founded and established in Ubii territory in the first century AD as the Roman Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium, from which it gets its name. "Cologne", the French version of the city's name, has become standard in English as well. The city functioned as the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and as the headquarters of the Roman military in the region until occupied by the Franks in 462. During the Middle Ages it flourished on one of the most important major trade routes between east and west in Europe. Cologne was one of the leading members of the Hanseatic League and one of the largest cities north of the Alps in medieval and Renaissance times. Up until World War II the city had undergone several occupations by the French and also by the British (1918-1926). Cologne was one of the most heavily-bombed cities in Germany during World War II, the Royal Air Force (RAF) dropping 34,711 long tons of bombs on the city. The bombing reduced the population by 95%, mainly due to evacuation, and destroyed almost the entire city. With the intention of restoring as many historic buildings as possible, the successful postwar rebuilding has resulted in a very mixed and unique cityscape.

Fly Away

Fly Away or Flyaway may refer to:

Music

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