Simona catches up with Ultimate Gamer CEO, Steve Suarez, to find out what inspired the world’s first and only multi-genre esports and gaming proving ground, and where its going.

Ultimate Gamer is unique in that it is a building the world’s largest community of gamers, of all skill levels and walks of life, across multiple genres and titles, while on a mission to find the world’s Best Gamer™.

Join the Ultimate Gamer community at ultimategamer.com

Staying with Ultimate Gamer, yesterday the company announced a partnership with global gaming marketplace Kinguin, which will give its community of over 1.6M esports and gaming fans access to more than 45K gaming titles, and provide opportunities for players to compete in the Ultimate Gamer Arena for discounts on Kinguin products.

It is not unusual for sports teams to experience a purple patch of form. Teams often go on impressive runs, often for seasons at a time. A golden age, if you will. 

English Premier League team Manchester United is the perfect example. The club has always been one of the best in the world, but it’s hard to argue its golden era ran between the 1992-93 season through to 2002-03. United won the Premier League title  eight times during this period, the FA Cup three times, and the UEFA Champions League!

While individual teams experiencing incredible runs is nothing new, having entire states entering a golden age is. Florida may just be that state because several of its teams are now competing at the very highest level and reaching finals like no other time. The Sunshine State’s team regularly has the best odds on Florida sports betting sites and it is easy to see why.

The Rise of Professional Florida Sports Teams

Let us be honest here, professional sport isn’t the first image that comes into your head when someone mentions Florida. Most people’s thoughts immediately head to Disney Land, or those bizarre “Florida Man” news articles that circulate around the internet.

Florida does have a rich sporting history despite often being referred to as “God’s Waiting Room” due to the state’s ageing population. Teams based in Florida have often been underachievers. Sure, Florida teams have excelled throughout time. Look at the incredible Miami Dolphins side of the 1970s, for example. But the state’s teams rarely pull together at the same time. The times they are a’changing, as the legendary Bob Dylan once famously sang.

The Tampa Bay Lightning NHL team triumphed in the competition’s coveted Stanley Cup last season. They won it in 2003-04 and became champions again in 2019-20.

Lightning finished second in the Eastern Conference with 43 wins from 70 fixtures. Only Boston Bruins, with 44 victories, won more regular season games than Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay demolished all who faced them in the NHL playoffs. They smashed Columbus Blue Jackets 4-1, Boston Bruins 4-1 and the New York Islanders 4-2. This earned them a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals where the defeated Dallas Stars 4-2

Miami Turns Up The Heat

There was a similar story in the NBA although Miami Heat fell at the final hurdle. The Heat, led by the age-defying 35-year-old LeBron James, won the Southeast Division comfortably with 44 wins from 73 games. Heat’s fellow Florida franchise, the Orlando Magic, finished in second-place and secured a playoff spot.

“NBA: Finals-San Antonio Spurs at Miami Heat” by completely deck is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Magic fell in the First Round, losing the seven-game series 4-1 to the Milwaukee Bucks, but Miami Heat shone in the knockout format. A 4-0 victory over Indiana Pacers set up a mouth-watering clash with Milwaukee Bucks. Heat exacted revenge for their Florida neighbours with a 4-1 victory.

Miami then brushed aside the famous Boston Celtics 4-2 to reach the Finals. Unfortunately, for fans of the Heat, the lost 4-2 to the LA Lakers.

Even Florida baseball is experiencing a resurgence. Tampa Bay Rays, who have never won the World Series, came agonisingly close to altering that fact last season. They finished with the second-best regular season record (40 wins from 20 games) and went on to reach the World Series finals for only the second time in their history.

That second appearance ended in a 4-2 defeat to the Los Angeles Dodgers who were the only team to best The Rays’ record during the regular season.

Florida’s Hot Form Continues This Season

The hot form of Florida teams has continued into the current season. Currently, only Major League Soccer (MLS) and NFL are running because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Orlando SC are usually the MLS whipping boys but they’re on course for a playoff berth for the first time in their six-year history. Unfortunately, David Beckham’s Inter Miami didn’t get the memo about Florida teams excelling because they’re languishing towards the bottom of the table.

Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are also enjoying something of a renaissance. Long-suffering Dolphins fans have seen their team go 6-3 so far after losing three of the team’s first four fixtures. They went 5-12 last season.

The Buccaneers are 7-3 in the NFC South after a poor 7-10 season in 2019.

What’s behind this sudden recapturing of form is anyone’s guess, but it’s a good time to be a sports fan from Florida right now.

Simona talks cloud-based video game development with Jacob Hawley, Founder & CEO of TLM Partners, Inc., a world-class digital entertainment company on a mission to find and encourage the best future developers.

TLM Partners is unique in employing a totally cloud-based business structure, while working on both its own original indie titles, and partnering with AAA publishers including Activision, Proletariat, and WB Games, on huge titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Spellbreak, and Gotham Knights.

Watch for real insights into the fast-paced and exciting world of video game development, the lowdown on the most important trends, and invaluable advice for those trying to forge their careers.

Find out more about the TLM Team, current projects, and job opportunities here.

Simona has an inspirational chat with Clinton Sparks – entrepreneur, investor, author, music producer, songwriter, multi-platinum DJ, and CBDO and Co-owner of Boston-based esports and gaming organisation XSET.

Grammy-nominated Sparks is responsible for selling over 75 million records, is owner of Get Familiar Radio, and Co-founder and owner of Bootē, a state of the art women’s athleisure line. He has worked with some music’s biggest stars including Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Rick Ross, Diddy, Pitbull, Ludacris, Big Sean, Akon, 2 Chainz, Eminem, Kanye West, Busta Rhymes, Tyga, and The Clipse, and has become a force in esports and gaming, first with FaZe Clan, and now with XSET.

Find out what makes XSET different from other esports and gaming organisations and where its going, get invaluable tips for success in business, and lots of real, no BS advice for winning big in life.

Discover more about XSET here, and get your FREE copy of How to Win Big in the Music Business here.

Staying with XSET, just last week the organisation welcomed esports, music, and culture star Erin Ashley Simon to its ownership team, and announced BMX pro Nigel Sylvester had joined the crew.

The demands on iGaming operators have never been greater, so how can you position your business to capitalise on every opportunity? Find out from some of the industry’s most respected figures, in the latest FREE webinar from Internet Vikings.

On November 17 from 15:00 to 16:00 CET, Peter Ekmark (CEO, Internet Vikings), Jesper Kärrbrink (Chairman, Green Jade Games), and Tomas Backman (CEO, Hero Gaming) will come together for an unmissable,and 100%  free webinar, iGaming: The Ever-Changing Industry. The speakers will discuss current and future trends and challenges of the sector.

The industry of online gaming is highly demanding. It is a race for more entertaining games, faster connection, easier payments. The list goes on and on. So how should iGaming operators and providers position themselves in this ever-changing industry during the year to come? Find the answers to this with our expert speakers in ‘iGaming: The Ever-Changing Industry’

About the speakers:

Peter Ekmark, Chief Executive Officer at Internet Vikings

Peter joined Internet Vikings in 2019 following an extensive 14-year business development venture at successful iGaming operators like Kindred, Vera&John and MrGreen / William Hill. His experience includes collaboration with companies in almost every area related to the industry – from platform providers and game developers to payment providers and affiliates.

Jesper Kärrbrink, Chairman at Internet Vikings and Green Jade Games

Jesper is one of the pioneers of the iGaming industry who also has a background in e-commerce and media. Since 1993, he has been the CEO of several companies, including Svenska Spel and Mr Green. In 2017, he founded a gaming studio Green Jade Games. He has also been acting in a number of boards and is the co-author of three books.

Tomas Backman, Group CEO of Hero Gaming

Tomas has been in the gaming industry since 2011 and held several C-level positions. His first CEO role was with Betit Group in 2015, which got acquired by Gaming Innovation Group in 2016. Tomas stayed with GiG 1,5 years where he headed the B2C department.

In April 2018, Tomas took over the role as CEO for Hero Gaming and since then the company has seen rapid growth, with monthly revenues increasing 400%.

During the webinar our experts will discuss: 

– How can an operator enhance a digital marketing strategy?

– How can the industry adapt to the ‘new normal?’

– How to find a balance for sustainable business scaling in the year to come?

– What’s the current trend of mergers and acquisitions? 

– How increasing regulations will change the sector?

FREE REGISTRATION

The webinar will take place on November 17 from 15:00 to 16:00 CET and will be open for anyone interested in it for free.

This webinar will be the fourth one in the series of free educational webinars from Internet Vikings. The recordings of other events on topics of hosting optimization, efficient domain management, and brand protection can be found on the YouTube channel of the company.

AYO.NEWS says:

There’s no doubt about it, 2020 has been one of the most challenging years in recent history for many businesses, but the iGaming sector has bucked the trend and boomed. However, as we head into 2021 the sector faces a myriad of issues as well as opportunities.

From ever more complex and stringent regulation, marketing rules, and crushing competition in Europe, to the uncertainties of how to connect with new markets in the United States, Latin America an the CIS – its never been more important for operators and suppliers to ensure they are following effective marketing strategies, and positioning themselves to capitalise on opportunities while minimising risk. 

Given that, iGaming: The Ever-Changing Industry, is a truly unmissable opportunity to tap the minds of some of the most successful and respected figures in the industry – it could well be 60 minutes that saves your and your business a whole lot of stress, money and time! 

This is definitely one to mark in your calendar. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

Simona talks esports and video gaming careers with Richard Huggan, Managing Director of Hitmarker – the world’s leading esports and video game jobs platform.

From where most opportunities are located and what skills employers are looking for, to the challenges facing students and education systems, and the exciting plans for Hitmarker as the platform looks to go truly global, you won’t want to miss this honest assessment from someone on the inside.

Check out all the latest esports and video game industry career opportunities at Hitmarker.