Following the announcement of the National ESL and the release of their official website, compLexity's Jason '1' Lake sat down with Trevor 'midway' Schmidt, the new Head of the ESL National, to discuss the team and the new North-American league.

coL|1: Many observers contend that American eSports is in a serious slump. What ideas, plans, surprises, etc, does ESL National have in store for the fans and do you believe the league can help revive the scene in the United States?

midway: That’s a very good question, saving the best for last Jason. To me the key to rebuilding the American scene is rebuilding the infrastructure. We need to be able to see the American scene as understand its depth of competition. Right now it feels like EG and coL, then what? Back in the day you could name 6-10 teams that all were compelling for a segment of the fan base. We need to build that audience for different players and teams. Building that depth will allow us to regenerate the interest and passion we have all lost.


midway: What is it going to take for Team Complexity to beat EG in route to the Intel Extreme Master World Championships? Eight spots get to the New York LAN Finals this fall, what do you think coL needs to do to be a #1 seed in CS?

coL|1: EG’s squad is very solid and obviously has players with extensive experience and calm under fire. It’s always fun to see the teams face off and I expect the IEM battles will be exciting. If we can stay focused and remember the basics of good comms and rotations I believe we have a solid chance of beating them.

You can check out the rest of the dual interview HERE.