ELEAGUE will show all-access footage from Final Kombat 2020, one of the last live U.S. esports events before the shutdown

Remember when esports tournaments used to be held in person before the shutdowns in response to COVID-19? ELEAGUE, the partnership between Turner and WME/IMG, is airing a behind-the-scenes look at one of the last in-person ones Friday night at midnight ET/PT on TBS. The tournament in question is Final Kombat 2020, a Mortal Kombat 11 tournament that took place in early March at the Park West Theater in Chicago.

Here’s more on it from an ELEAGUE release:

The two-hour special, ELEAGUE Presents Mortal Kombat 11 Final Kombat, will take fans on an all-access tour of Final Kombat 2020, which was held in early March at Chicago’s historic Park West theater. The show will offer an in-depth look at the competitors as they played their way toward the championship title for the Mortal Kombat 11 Pro Kompetition.

Final Kombat 2020 saw the 16 most skilled Mortal Kombat 11 players from around the world compete in a double-elimination bracket with $100,000 in prize money on the line. The event saw a collection of fan-favorite FGC leaders participate, including former EVO winner and Esports Player of the Year, Dominique “SonicFox” McLean. McLean entered the tournament with a bold objective to win the finals using DC’s The Joker character, in a bid to follow up the Injustice 2 Pro Series 2018 title. A win would be McLean’s second world championship across two different NetherRealm fighting games using The Joker. Final Kombat also featured former ELEAGUE champion Ryan “Dragon” Walker and unsung hopeful Jarrad “NinjaKilla212” Gordon.

And here’s a trailer:

It’s notable that this continues ELEAGUE’s line of cross-WarnerMedia initiatives, as Mortal Kombat 11 is published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment (as discussed with the Mortal Kombat 11 tournament ELEAGUE held last summer, the first coordinated esports initiative the company held after AT&T’s merger with Time Warner). This kind of all-access coverage also continues ELEAGUE’s focus on storytelling rather than just broadcasting events. And it’s also interesting to see some new esports content coming out during a period where there isn’t much sports competition.

ELEAGUE Presents Mortal Kombat 11 Final Kombat airs on TBS at midnight ET/PT Friday night.