Capcom is Mixing Things Up With the Street Fighter Pro League

Capcom has long run the Street Fighter competitive scene through two major events, there’s Evo and everything feeding into that, and the publisher’s own Capcom Pro Tour. But now, Capcom is bringing a new idea to North America, called the Street Fighter Pro League. This format is not only team-based, but a few different kinds of rules are tossed in the mix to make things interesting.

This announcement comes straight from Capcom Unity, and the premise of this new tournament format is about “adding new layers of strategy and drama” to the Street Fighter esports experience. This event will be starting this year, but hardcore Street Fighter players might want to note that Capcom Pro Tour will also be running as normal.

Here’s the pitch. In the Street Fighter Pro League, teams of three will be formed with a mix between community favorites, newer players, and of course the top pros from the Capcom Pro Tour rankings. That means the CPT pros will be elected team captains, the second slot will be filled via online qualifier events, and the third slots will be filled via fan voting. Captains will then draft from that pool of players, per their respective slots.

The final wrench in the gears is the “character ban” rule. Players won’t just be able to stick with their mains. Before each match, each team will be able to pick one character to ban, and teammates can’t pick the same characters during a match. The intent here is to encourage team play and strategy beyond individual skill and single character mastery. This particular rule is getting a divisive response on social media.

The Street Fighter Pro League will get started in April 2019, and tournaments will air every Thursday through May. The finale for season one will be held in June, and the top two teams will move on to season two. The draft will follow in August, and the season will conclude in November at which point the first champion will be crowned. For further updates, keep your eyes on the Capcom Fighters social media channels.

[Source: Capcom Unity]