Major League Soccer (MLS) and Electronic Arts have announced the competitive schedule and new online format for the 2021 season of eMLS, Major League Soccer’s esports league. 

The season will feature a $70,000 prize pool and will be headlined by eMLS Cup presented by Coca-Cola on March 20-21. Competition will occur on EA SPORTS™ FIFA 21 and will be played exclusively on PlayStation®4 (PS4).

With the health and safety of all participants at the forefront, the entirety of the 2021 competitive eMLS season will be online. Two clubs are new to eMLS next season – Inter Miami CF and Saint Louis City SC – which puts total club participation at 27. 

Each Club is represented by a professional FIFA player in all eMLS competitions in a quest to be crowned the best FIFA ‘21 player in North America. Some Clubs are retaining their FIFA player from last season while other Clubs will be signing new players. The full 2021 eMLS roster will be released on Thursday.

Looking forward to the new season Senior Vice President of Properties and Events, Major League Soccer, Camilo Durana, said:

“With an expanded roster of clubs and the return of many of our top competitors, we’re excited to announce our 2021 eMLS season.

 “eMLS has become a successful and important part of our annual calendar, enabling our League and clubs to connect with fans across North America and all over the world, while highlighting our most exciting players. With the continued and enhancing support of our partners and increasingly competitive field, this eMLS season promises to be our best season yet.”

While Group Director & FIFA Competitive Gaming Commissioner, Brent Koning, added:

“The popularity of the eMLS continues to grow as this marquee tournament is another example of FIFA’s elevation into a tier one esport.

“Our partnership with MLS and the 27 MLS clubs provides another engaging avenue for attracting new fans and partners to the sport through compelling competition.”

The 2021 eMLS season will be comprised of three live-streamed tournaments that each take place over the course of two days, doubling the content hours of the 2020 eMLS season. 

The season will kick off in January with eMLS League Series One presented by Coca-Cola, continue in February with eMLS League Two presented by Coca-Cola and conclude in March with eMLS Cup presented by Coca-Cola. 

Ahead of each League Series, all 27 Clubs will play in online qualifier games with the top 8 Clubs in points making it to the respective League Series knockout tournament. After League Series concludes, the top 11 Clubs in total points will automatically qualify for eMLS Cup. 

The remaining 16 Clubs will compete in a Last Chance Qualifier tournament to battle for the final 12th seed of eMLS Cup. The New York Red Bull’s eMLS competitor, George Adamou, is the reigning eMLS Cup champion from 2020.

2021 eMLS Season Schedule:

• Jan. 16-17 – League Series One
• Feb. 13-14 – League Series Two
• March 20-21 – eMLS Cup

Fans can tune in to all three competitions (detailed below) on Twitch.tv/MLS, Twitter.com/MLS and MLSsoccer.com.

eMLS is an Official League Partner of the EA SPORTS™ FIFA Global Series – the global competitive FIFA ecosystem – whereby players can advance from the FIFA 21 Global Series Playoffs to the FIFA eWorld Cup. 

The Global Series shifted to a completely online format and will be region-based in 2021. eMLS is a Tier 1 League Qualifier for the North America region which enables the top three finishers at eMLS Cup to receive direct seats to the PS4™ Global Series North America Regional Playoffs.

eMLS players finished the FIFA 20 global competitive season in strong form and will look to keep up the momentum for FIFA 21. FC Cincinnati’s eMLS player, FCC Fiddle, and Atlanta United’s eMLS player, Paulo Neto, were champions of the North America and South America EA SPORTS™ FIFA 20 Summer Cups, respectively. With these two trophies, eMLS finished the FIFA 20 season with more regional titles than any other domestic soccer league in the world.

New this season, JLab becomes the official audio and microphone partner of eMLS and competitors will wear JLab Play headphones and use Talk Microphones. eMLS competitions will also feature SCUF Gaming controllers. Specializing in high-performance customized gaming controllers and accessories, SCUF controllers enable gamers to improve their gameplay by completely redefining control.

Cheez-It® & Pringles® are returning as the Official Snack Partner of eMLS and will be the presenting partner of eMLS Player Lounges and eMLS Player Profiles, a digital series highlighting the player’s personal stories. PlayStation® continues its partnership as the Official Console Partner. Coca-Cola continues its partnership as the Official Carbonated Beverages and Water Partner and will be the presenting partner of eMLS League Series and eMLS Cup.

For more information on eMLS, including participating clubs and player signings, visit www.MLSsoccer.com/eMLS.

AYO.NEWS says:

No doubt many will be disappointed to learn that yet another major esports tournament has been forced totally online, but still, we expect this year’s action will be more popular than ever, which can only be a good thing for the entire FIFA esports ecosystem in the long-run. 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Red Bull Wololo, the Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition 1v1 online tournament, is set to return for a third season in January 2021. 

From 2 January, competitors will battle it out on a global stage, to find out who can forge the strongest civilisation. According to organisers, there’s going to be a brand new story introduced, and the prize pool is the biggest yet.

The competition will be split into two parts, with Open Qualifiers taking place over two weekends, and the eight qualifier winners invited to the finals to take on the top eight pros from II and Age of Empires professional players Mr_Yo, TheViper, Hera, Liereyy, TaToH, TheMax, Nicov, and Capoch.

Qualifier prizes, including official Red Bull Wololo hoodies, gaming mousepads, AOC Gaming monitors, and custom engraved wooden tankards, will be awarded to the top 128 players. The 16-person Finals will take place over five days, from 16 January, with a “remarkable prize pool” up for grabs. 

The Red Bull Wololo III will see players face off in one-on-one competition in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. Starting in the Feudal Age, the action will rage across 12 new and existing maps. A new story will add a unique twist to the overall narrative – with players representing Asian Civilisation, rather than the Western one of Red Bull Wololo I and II. 

The event will be streamed globally and hosted by well-known Age of Empires 2 casters, including T90Official, Nili_Aoe and Dave_Aoe.

Red Bull Wololo III takes place on the following dates and at the following times. You can catch the main event on the official Red Bull Twitch and YouTube channels.

Qualifier 1: Saturday, January 2 & Sunday, January 3

Qualifier 2: Saturday, January 9 & Sunday, January 10

Main Event: Saturday, January 16 & Sunday, January 17

Main Event: Friday, January 22 & Sunday, January 24

AYO.NEWS says:

Games like Age of Empires might not grab the esports limelight like other titles, but it’s an extremely popular title and makes for very interesting competitive play, so it’s great to see Red Bull is continuing to support Wololo. 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Swift Media Entertainment, parent company of esports organisation TSM, has launched the ICON talent management company. 

Based in Los Angeles, ICON says it will be focusing on representing top-tier digital talent in the gaming, streaming, and esports spaces – fostering careers through branded content, influencer marketing, and the development of new business ventures. 

ICON’s CEO, Damian Skoczylas, is a veteran of traditional Hollywood talent management, who has since expanded his expertise into the emerging digital entertainment landscape. He previously served as SVP of Talent at Bottle Rocket Management, SVP of Talent at Studio71, Head of Talent Development at AwesomenessTV, and was Senior Talent Manager at Fullscreen.

Before joining the digital entertainment business, Skoczylas worked for Untitled Entertainment, in the Talent and Branded Entertainment departments.  

Introducing ICON, Skoczylas said:

“At ICON, we bring our vast expertise to the specific needs of streaming and gaming talent, and can connect brands to valuable opportunities with specific individuals in mind.

“With our talent-first approach, ICON services and supports our clients according to their individual needs and ambitions, delivering the highest level of service and opportunities. ICON is ideally positioned to build and develop talent into the mega-stars and entrepreneurs they aspire to be.”

AYO.NEWS says:

With the digital entertainment space awash with unrepresented, or inadequately represented talent, we’re seeing talent agencies pop up around the world. For example, last month EMERGE Esports launched in Singapore, while in October Japanese esports management agency RELATION X secured a strategic investment from talent agency group Gushcloud International. Of course, we reckon ICON’s Hollywood connections are going to be a considerable advantage when it comes to landing talent the best deals. 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Esports Entertainment Group (EEG) has entered a multi-year partnership with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles. 

The deal, which is the first the gambling operator has made with an NFL team, makes EEG the Eagles’ official esports provider, and will see the football team become an EEG shareholder. 

EEG will run bi-annual esports tournaments for the Eagles, using Madden NFL and the Esports Gaming League (EGL) platform – which the company announced it would be acquiring during the summer. The collaboration will also cover content creation, including videos to promote the esports tournaments. 

Discussing the news CEO of Esports Entertainment Group, Grant Johnson, said:

“We are thrilled to partner with the Philadelphia Eagles as they introduce their fans to the world of competitive esports gaming.

“The Eagles join a growing list of high-profile organisations that have chosen Esports Entertainment Group as their esports tournament provider, affording us an incredible opportunity to expand our brand reach within multiple large, dedicated fan bases and setting the stage for significant growth ahead. We intend to build on this momentum.”

While Senior Vice President, Revenue and Strategy, Philadelphia Eagles, Catherine Carlson, added:

“This innovative partnership with Esports Entertainment Group presents a wonderful opportunity for us to expand our reach in a growing market and create new experiences for Eagles fans.

“Esports Entertainment Group has always been a progressive leader in the esports space and has been ahead of the curve in terms of how its interactive platform brings together gaming enthusiasts from all around the world.

“We look forward to debuting a number of exciting projects through this partnership, including the launch of the highly anticipated Madden tournament series on the Esports Gaming League platform.”

In addition to its esports betting platform Vie.gg, EEG also operates an online sportsbook in the form of SportNation.bet. 

AYO.NEWS says:

EEG is nothing if not well-resourced and ambitious. In addition to the new deal with the Philadelphia Eagles (NFL), this year the company has announced partnerships with Philadelphia Union (MLS), LA Galaxy (MLS), and LA Kings (NHL). Plus, as well as acquiring Esports Gaming League, the company has also announced plans to acquire Helix eSports and ggGGCircuit. 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Esports betting operator Luckbox is set to start trading on the TSX Venture Exchange in Toronto today. 

Luckbox’s parent company, Real Luck Group Ltd, is due to make its public market debut on Wednesday, 16 December, at 2.30pm GMT / 9.30am ET / 6.30am PT under the ticker “LUCK”.

The milestone is quite an achievement for the Isle of Man-based operator, which accepted its first bet just 20 months ago, and has witnessed incredible growth – especially since the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a worldwide boom in video gaming and esports. 

In fact, although Twitch saw its viewed hours increase 50% quarter-on-quarters to 5 billion in the second quarter of 2020, and Facebook saw its viewership rocket 75% over the same period, Luckbox reported a 500% increase in turnover during the spring lockdown. 

Reflecting on 2020, Luckbox CEO Quentin Martin, said:

“The massive potential of esports is well documented and late last year PwC cited esports as having higher growth potential than any other sport. That was before we knew about Covid, of course, and the events of 2020 have put esports in sharper focus. Many who weren’t paying attention certainly are now.

“We’re at the forefront of the esports betting sector and we’ve seen first hand the impact it’s had on esports betting. It’s been huge – a large part of our reasoning to go public this year was the acceleration we saw during lockdown.

“We saw a massive spike in players moving from betting on sports to betting on esports and, encouragingly, we managed to lock up some 75% of the gains we made. We have clear evidence that players who tried esports betting for the first time enjoyed it and stuck with us.

“I think another indication of esports’ shift into the mainstream was our EGR Award in November. The EGR Operator Awards are the Oscars of the betting industry and for us, an esports-dedicated platform, to be named Rising Star shows that the egaming world is taking esports seriously and accepts it is very much a vertical to watch.”

Looking ahead, Martin pointed out that most of Luckbox’s growth so far had been organic, and there was huge potential now for growth through marketing. Specifically, the company will be focusing on content marketing, affiliates, influencers, and direct media, and strengthening its marketing team with more key hires. 

He also highlighted plans to launch sports betting, work on a casino offering, and bring odds compilation in-house, possible through a merger or acquisition. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It’s been a crazy year for everyone involved in esports, video gaming, and online casino, with business in pretty much all verticals, except traditional sports betting, seeing significant growth as consumers looked for ways to entertain themselves in the face of lockdowns, travel restrictions, and the closure of real-world entertainment venues. 

Now, as we are poised to begin 2021, it’s looking increasingly likely that the much touted COVID-19 vaccines won’t be a silver bullet solution, and that disruption from the pandemic will last well into the new year and possibly beyond. 

Of course, on the face of it, this looks great for esports, video gaming, and online casino, and very likely it will be another good year overall. However, operators should bear in mind one important difference; for most of 2020, in the developed world at least, governments have been subsidising populations and businesses, sheltering them from the economic fallout of the crisis. However, this is clearly unsustainable in the long-term, and many programs are now being withdrawn. 

Will the online businesses that thrived during the 2020 crisis find that consumers have a lot less disposable income in 2021? 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

North American esports organisation TSM has appointed Ned Watkins as Senior Vice President of Sales. 

Watkins will be tasked with driving content monetisation at the organisation, which now fields teams in titles including League of Legends, PUBG, Fortnite, Rainbow Six Siege, Smash Bros, Apex Legends, Magic: The Gathering, World of Warcraft, VALORANT, Teamfight Tactics, and chess, along with a growing roster of streamers and content creators.   

Before joining TSM, Watkins spent seven years at collegiate athletic conference Pacific-12, where he was most recently Senior Vice President of Integrated Sponsorships and Sales. Prior to that, he was National Sales Manager at CBC Corporation and Fox Broadcasting. 

Regarding his new role, Watkins said:

“I am thrilled to join TSM, one of the most recognisable and significant esports organisations in the world today. To join an organisation of this level, and be a driving force of its future is unbelievably exciting.

“Esports has seen significant growth in the past few years, growth that has exploded even more during the pandemic. There is a huge opportunity in this industry and I see lots of clean real estate available for high-profile brands to activate in new and innovative ways, and I am excited to show just how engaging a partner the organisation is and can be.”

TSM has existing commercial partnerships in place with Logitech G, Grubhub, Twitch, GEICO, Legion by Lenovo, MTN DEW AMP GAME FUEL, and recently signed a deal with office furniture company Herman Miller. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Yet again, another senior executive from the worlds of traditional sports and broadcasting is joining a major esports organisation, as the entire sports and entertainment industry goes through something of a revolution – fueled of course, by the pandemic.  We’re sure that Watkin’s past experience will help TSM with its monetisation goals, and we very much doubt he’ll regret the move. 

‘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. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.