Esports Today

Rob and Andrew discuss the ESL CSGO tournament with Joe Wong, then discuss China's surprising slump on the MOBA front. Then, Rob and Andrew have to go, their planet needs them.

Rob and Andrew sift through the rubble of the Shanghai Major and try to understand how Valve got it so wrong. Plus, is Korean Dota here to stay, and who can make IEM Katowice exciting?

Rob and Andrew discuss Fnatic's embrace of the villain role in the ongoing drama of CSGO, plus Rob is called to account for his bad pre-season LCS predictions.

Rob and Andrew take a hopeful yet reserved look at the nascent Overwatch professional scene as some important new investment enters the young esport. They also ponder the necessity of individual celebrity star power in both League of Legends and Counter-Strike.

It's an upsetting week in esports for Rob and Andrew. Rob's favorite StarCraft player, Life, is in police custody, and it seems like half of pro League of Legends in suddenly ineligible to play. But at least Evil Geniuses Dota remain runners-up at a major tournament.

Andrew admits he was wrong about everything when it came to StarCraft at DreamHack Leipzig, but is happy with a resurgent European scene. Then Rob and Andrew appreciate the return of Brood War, and discuss Luminosity's slow, unsteady rise as a top Counter-Strike team.

Andrew and Rob discuss what we learned about the state of Counter-Strike and a resurgent Alliance Dota team at the Minsk Star Series event. Then Rob talks about the winners and losers of League of Legends' opening week.

Rob and Andrew welcome Taylor Cocke to look at the new season of LCS, and whether this will mark a sea-change for North American League of Legends. Then they get Sad About StarCraft as major sponsor, SBENU, crashes and burns amid fraud allegations. But StarCraft remains awesome, and Andrew is looking forward to the Shanghai Major.

Rob and Andrew close-out the year in Esports Today with a retrospective on their favorite moments of the year and what they meant, plus they discuss the legacies of StarCraft's retiring giants. Then, listeners share their top moments of 2015 and what made them special. Esports Today will resume January 12!

Joe Wong joins Rob and Andrew to dissect the ESL ESEA Finals and discuss the greatness of Fnatic's 2015 Counter-Strike season. Then Joe explains Valve's odd new patch for Counter-Strike, and Rob is curious about the direction NA LCS is headed next year as it becomes the Ex-Fnatic Show.

Rob and Andrew talk about the end of Street Fighter IV at the Capcom Cup and the enduring greatness of Daigo. Then they chat about the new Team Liquid Dota 2 team's success at The Defense, and discuss Riot's major changes to the Korean League of Legends ecosystem.

Rob and Andrew sit down with Rod "Slasher" Breslau to discuss how Luminosity came out of nowhere and nearly won DreamHack CSGO, and the current state of Counter-Strike. Then, Rob and Andrew chat about Legacy of the Void's terrific DreamHack debut. Plus, some good listener questions.

Andrew and Rob discuss the Dota 2 Frankfurt Major with Alan "Nahaz" Bester. How unprecedented was OG's victory? What's the deal with EG? Also, Nahaz doesnt't want to hear any hand-wringing about China. Plus, we discuss the LoL trade season and IEM San Jose.

Rob comes back from Blizzcon positively glowing from the StarCraft finals. He and Andrew dig into the signature moments of the weekend, including why INnoVation came up short, and why the Life vs. sOs matchup was so perfect. Then they answer listener questions, and look forward to the Dota 2 Frankfurt Major.

Rob and Andrew dive into a week of championships. Did KOO Tigers let an opportunity slip through their fingers? Envyus firmly ensconce themselves at the top of CSGO at DreamHack, while Heart of the Swarm StarCraft ends with some whimpers at BlizzCon opening week.

On the eve of Blizzcon, Taylor Cocke steps in for Andrew Groen to talk with Rob about the Korea vs. Korea League of Legends final, a new generation of Hearthstone stars, the final act of Heart of the Swarm StarCraft, and DreamHack Counter-Strike.

Rob and Andrew encounter a StarCraft matchfixing scandal with a shocking lack of surprise and explain why, unless more bad news breaks, this isn't such a huge deal. Rob calls Prime the "Springtime for Hitler" of Progaming teams. Rob and Andrew appreciate the stylishness of an Origen victory in League of Legends but feel grim inevitability around SK Telecom, then try and understand Secret's secret as they bounce back from The International and win an MLG event.

Harsh truths are learned, bitter pills are swallowed as Rob and Andrew contemplate the aftermath of the StarCraft 2 Proleague season, and Taylor Cocke joins them to discuss the end of the dramatic League of Legends group stage. Finally, Andrew relishes in the oddities of SoCal Regionals and the beautiful balance of Street Fighter 4.

It's time for Worlds 2015, where nobody knows anything and the Fate mocks every League of Legends prediction. James "Obscurica" Chen joins Rob and Andrew to discuss why this group stage has been so wild, and what happened to China's vaunted LoL scene. Meanwhile, Rob is mending from injuries sustained during the violent crash of the ByuL Hype Train in StarCraft 2's latest GSL season, but he still finds it in himself to grill Andrew about the Dota 2 tournament at ESL One.

Rob and Andrew gather after a hectic week of travel to revisit the latest chapter in perennial StarCraft underdog ByuL's amazing autumn, and discuss what they're looking forward to at League of Legend's World Championship.

Cloud9 pour fuel on the flames of their Heroes of the Storm rivalry with Tempo Storm at the Heroes World Championship America Final in Las Vegas, and Rob and Andrew debate whether team drafts or in-game play determine victories. EnVyUs defeats Team SoloMid again in Counter-Strike at DreamHack: London, and Rob marvels at how every lucky break seemed to go Envy's way. Finally, the Job-like trials of ByuL continue in StarCraft as he loses the StarLeague final to herO in typically upsetting and heart-breaking fashion. Join Rob and Andrew as they savor the sweet agony of a great StarCraft player falling down against basic Protoss openings.

Rob and Andrew use the ESL Counter-Strike tournament in Dubai to figure out what is happening in Counter-Strike beyond the shooting as Team Liquid's Joe Wong returns to explain the economic aspects of the game and how teams use map strategy. Then Andrew revels in the Fall Classic and Snake Eyez' triumphant Zangief before the conversation turns to the dramatic WCS season finale, and Rob explains how MarineLorD broke his spirit.

Rob and Andrew discuss the China Regional Qualifiers for League of Legends and the surprising fall of SK before they are visited by the Spirit of StarCraft and reminded why this was once the king of esports. Detailed discussion of the StarLeague semifinal between ByuL and TY, a check-in on Chinese League of Legends, and a look at what went wrong for SK Gaming's League of Legends team.

Rob and Andrew chat about Heroes of the Storm's big international tournament at PAX, then talk to The Score's Kelsey Moser to get caught up on the state of Chinese and Korean LoL. Also discussed: Cloud9's miracle LoL run at the Regional Finals, and KT's StarCraft 2 Proleague stand.

Fnatic recapture Counter-Strike glory at ESL One Cologne while CLG finally get their League of Legends championship. Andrew is probably wrong about Rocket League.

This week, Andrew and Rob preview the ESL One Cologne CSGO tournament with special guest Joe Wong from Team Liquid, react in shock to Evil Geniuses' post-International roster switch, and enjoy a wild series from StarCraft's Jaedong.

The International is over, but there's a lot of ground to cover in this extended post-event episode. Hosts Andrew Groen and Rob Zacny talk with Idle Thumbs' and Dota Today's Sean Vanaman about their big takeaways from the tournament. Then it's time for IEM StarCraft and another soO second-place, and a check-in with CS:GO.

Welcome to Esports Today! In our inaugural episode, hosts Andrew Groen and Rob Zacny discuss The International's group stage and what to expect from the main tournament. Then, they take a look at their favorites in the StarCraft II GSL Season 3 round of 32. Finally, some predictions for the League of Legends LCS quarterfinals, and the state of League heading into Worlds.