For the second time, a Brazilian team won ESL Challenger Melbourne.
MIBR—the only South American representation at the event—took down the arguable tournament favourites in Aurora off the back of great performances from Felipe “insani” Yuji, and with it, qualifying them to ESL Pro League Season 20 in Malta later in the year.
Earlier in the day, Apeks capitulated a 11-3 lead against MIBR, going on to lose 26 of the last 27 rounds of their best-of-three against MIBR, squandering any opportunity to play in the grand final. Rebels also lost their semi-final match-up against Aurora, getting knocked out in convincing fashion.
ESL Challenger Melbourne 2024 streams
ESL Challenger Melbourne 2024 was broadcasted live on Twitch and YouTube. Missed the matchday? Head to each channel for spoiler-free VODs of the replays of each day.
ESL Challenger Melbourne 2024 schedule & results
The eight teams that attended ESL Challenger Melbourne 2024 were split into two groups, with each playing out a full double-elimination bracket. The top two teams from each group progressed to the playoffs, where a single-elimination bracket determined our 2024 champs.
Friday, April 26
| Match | Teams | Time (AEST) |
| Group A Opener | Apeks 13-2 sunday school | 10am |
| Aurora 13-3 Party Astronauts | 11:25am | |
| Group B Opener | MIBR 13-4 KZG | 12:50am |
| Rebels 13-7 Rooster | 2:15pm | |
| Group A Winners Match | Apeks 13-11 Aurora | 3:40pm |
| Group B Winners Match | Rebels 13-10 MIBR | 5:05pm |
| Group B Elimination Match | KZG 0-2 Rooster | 6:30pm |
Saturday, April 27
| Match | Teams | Time (AEST) |
| Group A Elimination Match | Sunday School 0-2 Party Astronauts | 1pm |
| Group B Decider Match | Rooster 0-2 MIBR | 4:15pm |
| Group A Decider Match | Aurora 2-0 Party Astronauts | 7:30pm |
Sunday, April 28
| Match | Teams | Time (AEST) |
| Semi-final #1 | Apeks 1-2 MIBR | 1pm |
| Semi-Final #2 | Aurora 2-0 Rebels | 4:15pm |
| Grand Final | Aurora 0-2 MIBR | 7:30pm |
ESL Challenger Melbourne 2024 squads
Aurora’s Denis “deko” Zhukov and MIBR’s Felipe “insani” Yuji were the two biggest prodigies hitting Australian shores: both touted as stars in the making.
Joakim “jkaem” Myrbostad—an honourary Aussie in the eyes of many—was back on the Australian stage for the first time since he left the infamous Renegades roster that took him to a major semi-final in Berlin and went into the event with good form, leading into the ESL Challenger Melbourne with a 1.15 rating over the previous three months.
Aussies also enjoyed Rooster finally playing in front of a home crowd, with Corey “nettik” Browne coming into the event in hot form across domestic competition. For those looking for a fresh face, KZG were the most exciting team to be playing at the event, and the core of Jayden “Hassie” Hasse, Sam “Samuukxs” Hensel, and Bailey “Estate” Tobin finally got their big chance to prove that Australia has more strong teams than just the big three.
| Team | Squad | ||||
| Apeks | sense | jkaem | nawwk | STYKO | CacaNito |
| MIBR | insani | exit | saffee | brnz4n | drop |
| Rebels Gaming | innocent | casey | olimp | Flayy | kisserek |
| Rooster | TjP | chelleos | dangeR | asap | nettik |
| Aurora Gaming | Lack1 | KENSI | deko | Norwi | r3salt |
| Party Astronauts | ben1337 | RUSH | chop | WolfY | cxzi |
| sunday school | Liki | rekonz | mizzy | guag | versa |
| KZG | Samuukxs | Estate | Hassie | Mingovi | KRAXYT |
