Announcement made via Facebook Live event involving a block of ice.

Game Of Thrones

The eagerly awaited new season of Game Of Thrones will air on HBO on July 16.

A teaser trailer for the fantasy drama has also been released, watch below or HERE on mobile.

The intricate Facebook Live event at one point drew more than 140,000 viewers as flaming torches melted a block of ice into three streams, one of which revealed the date. The entire process lasted more than an hour.

As time of writing, the teaser trailer entitled ‘Sigils’ was still trending on Facebook with 3.2m views and counting.

The teaser trailer features voice-overs from cast regulars as a rotating sculpture of savage animals gradually crumbes. The voice of Jon Snow, portrayed by Kit Harington, is heard last as the screen closes in on an image of a blue eye – not unlike that of the Night King.

“There’s only one war that matters,” Snow says. “The Great War. And it is here.”

The seventh season will mark the penultimate series. Historically new seasons of Game Of Thrones have launched in April, however the upcoming series was delayed due to a demanding production schedule and the need to shoot in winter conditions.

The late start means the latest escapades of Westeros will be ineligible for Emmys consideration.

Season 7 will comprise seven episodes compared to the usual ten per season.

Show creators D.B.Weiss and David Benioff serve as executive producers on the series along with Carolyn Strauss, Frank Doelger and Bernadette Caulfield.