FIFA gets its Nations Cup…but in esports
February 27 – FIFA is expanding its presence in the fast growing esports football business with the launch of a new national team competition – the eNations Cup.
esports
Poland’s Ekstraklasa joins the rush to esports with 16-club league launch
February 27 – Poland’s Ekstraklasa has confirmed it will be added to the FIFA Global Series with all 16 of the top tier teams competing.
Esports betting to hit $12.9bn in 2019, revenues to reach $1.38bn in 2021
February 19 – Betting on esports is estimated to grow to a massive $12.9 billion by the end of this year. That is more than double the figure of $5.5 billion in 2016 and puts the esports business firmly in competition with other forms of online betting.
PSG expands esports teams in Asia with Indonesia-based ‘Mobile Legends’ squad
February 12 – Paris Saint-Germain is expanding its eSports footprint in south-east Asia with the launch of a team to play on the ‘Mobile Legends’ game platform.
Top esports players earn more than pro golfers, finds report
January 25 – The rise and rise of esports has been accompanied by a ballooning in esports player salaries. With football clubs increasingly looking to associate with competitive gamers the cost of entry is going up’
FC Köln buys into SK Gaming esports team alongside Mercedes-Benz
January 18 – Germany’s FC Köln has bought into esports team SK Gaming alongside sponsor Mercedes-Benz. No value was given for the investment.
eSports top games pay out over £130m in prize money. FIFA isn’t one of them
December 28 – The boom in football leagues, federations and clubs entering the esports market is only scratching the surface of the potential of the business if you look at the volumes of prize money paid out in eSports competitions over 2018.
eFootball: DFL agrees TV deal with ProSiebenSat.1 for VBL Club Championship
December 20 –Germany’s DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga has agreed a broadcast deal with the ProSiebenSat.1 Group to air the federation’s new launch eFootball VBL Club Championship.
Adidas move into Chinese esports market with Lyon EDG sponsorship
December 11 – Adidas have signed their first eFootball sponsorship deal focussed on the Chinese market with Olympique Lyonnais backed Lyon EDG for their FIFA Online 4 team.
eFootball: Germans line up 22 Bundesliga clubs for inaugural VBL Club Championship
November 10 – The German FA (DFL) has finalised the 22 teams that will kick off the first edition of the TAG Heuer Virtual Bundesliga (VBL) in the battle to become Germany’s first club champions in eFootball. The Bundesliga will provide 13 teams while nine will come from Bundesliga 2.
FIFA and EA Sports launch first eFootball weekly global player ranking
November 28 – FIFA and EA Sports have launched the first global ranking platform of eFootball players that will be based on Weekend League performances and FIFA Global Series events. The first ranking was released this week with Joksan– toping the list with 850 ranking points.
Norwegian FA enters esports arena with first national team playing on FIFA and PES
November 22 – The Norwegian FA has officially launched their six-player official esport national team that will focus on EA Sport’s FIFA and Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer games. Four players will specialise on the PlayStation platform and two on Xbox, meeting six times a year at the Ullevaal Stadium in a dedicated esport arena.
In the game: eMLS adds three new club teams for 2019 season
November 22 – Major League Soccer’s eports platform – eMLS – will go into its second season in 2019 with three new teams, taking the league number up to 22.
FC Nantes completes eFootball.Pro League club line up for December launch
November 14 – France’s FC Nantes will complete the six-team line-up of clubs for the first season of the eFootball.Pro League, the esports competition that will be played using KONAMI’s Pro Evolution Soccer video game.
EA Sports and UEFA launch eChampions League with $280,000 prize pool
November 12 – UEFA and EA Sports have unveiled plans for the new eChampions League which will start in March 2019 with knockout competition and culminating with a final in Madrid on May 31, the day before the Champions League final.