eSports

How esports are saving the betting market

Published

6 years ago

March 27, 2020

Reading Time: 3 minutes

It almost doesn’t matter in which part of the world we are currently sitting. The struggle with coronavirus has affected operations in all kinds of businesses. One of the highlights of the situation is the cancellation of all major sports leagues, be it NBA, NHL or MLB. But in the light of all these events, one type of entertainment still continues through all this chaos – esports.

We have seen it first in China. Even though the LPL, China’s regional League of Legends competition was paused in early January, it very quickly switched to online mode, which allowed the competition to continue without any necessary risks involved. In some way, esports are coming a little bit back to their roots, where online tournaments were the bread and butter of the competition. And not only that esports continue to operate, at the moment they are stronger than ever . With many people sitting at home, esports’ events continue to be one of the regular things remaining to be seen. Even more importantly, esports’ viewers, mostly sitting at home, are very used to watching events on Twitch or Youtube, so it’s not a big change for them. Looking at Europe, we see that the LEC league of League of Legends was briefly paused to prepare the online solution, while CS:GO tournaments like the Flashpoint, ESL pro League or ESEA continue almost as if nothing happened.

Pavol Krasnovsky, CEO of esports analytics company RTSmunity, commented on the situation: “Even before current crisis, many betting operators realised that it is time to redefine their opinion regarding significance of Esports in their sportsbook offer. With all major sports events and leagues being cancelled or rescheduled, esports are becoming main target of punters, all around the world. In upcoming months, esports offer will become one of main deciding factors in punter´s choice of bookmakers.”

On top of that, we see very quick reactions from well-known brands like the NBA teams, which decided to offer at least competitive matches in NBA2K when they can’t play the sport itself. Another example can be the Australian Grand Prix, which was cancelled but ultimately resulted in heated esport battle between F1 drivers and other sports stars like Thibaut Courtois – to fill the void, they decided to race in an esport event, and to show the people what esports are about. And if you want to see some more examples, just look at football, where many teams played a game of FIFA20 against each other as the stadiums are on lockdown. And here are some more – Fox Sports network has revealed, that the inaugural eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series race on March 22nd drew 903,000 viewers on FS1, making it the highest-rated esports TV program to date. How crazy is that?

Hand in hand with sports is also one industry – the betting industry. With many classic sport events canceled, esports are now a shining beacon of content and product offers. Considering the already fast acceleration of the esports betting market, the whole coronavirus situation can be seen as a sort of “when life gives you lemons, just make a lemonade” moment. Aside from the fact that there is still a huge amount of events to bet on, there are also many new viewers and punters watching very closely to see what esports are about. And what they will see is mainly this – esports are innovative, very dynamic and able to adapt very easily. To make it possible to adapt for sportsbook operators,they need to act now, because very soon, the migration of punters will be done, and they will very quickly realize who has the most comprehensive offer.

competitive Tekken

Team Vitality Signs 16-Year-Old Tekken 8 Prodigy Neia to Fighting Games Roster

Published

3 days ago

January 26, 2026

Wladimir P.

team-vitality-signs-16-year-old-tekken-8-prodigy-neia-to-fighting-games-roster

Leading French esports organization Team Vitality has announced the signing of Neia, one of the most promising young talents in Tekken 8, as part of its Fighting Games division.

Following a breakthrough 2025 season and a standout showing at EVO Nice, the 16-year-old phenom has committed to representing Team Vitality for the next two competitive seasons.

Neia now joins an elite lineup within Team Vitality, training alongside renowned Tekken players Jeondding and KingReyJr, as well as the H-DOPE and K-TOPE duo CientifiKOF in Fatal Fury. The signing underlines Team Vitality’s continued ambition to nurture emerging talent while strengthening its presence across the fighting game ecosystem.

A breakout year for a rising Tekken star

Despite her young age, Neia has rapidly established herself as one of France’s most exciting Tekken prospects. Known for her mastery of Lili, she stands out for her aggressive playstyle, creative decision-making, and strong technical execution.

Her rise began on June 8, 2025, during a Kayane Session hosted at V.Hive, Team Vitality’s Paris headquarters. Spotted by French champion and content creator Kayane, Neia impressed immediately by defeating several high-level players, including a professional competitor — a performance that sparked widespread attention within the community.

Strong results on the international stage

Neia’s momentum continued throughout 2025:

13th place at Ultimate Fighting Arena (UFA) Paris in September
17th place at EVO Nice in October while representing French club BMS, eliminating top international players such as Tibetano
4th place at Galaxian Explosion in December, defeating Jodd in the top eight — her best result to date

These performances confirmed her status as a breakout Tekken 8 talent with significant international potential.

The next chapter in yellow and black

For the 2026 season, Neia has chosen to continue her competitive journey with Team Vitality, benefitting from world-class coaching, infrastructure, and performance support. Her next major milestones include Tekken World Tour Sweden (January 2026) and EVO Japan (May 2026).

Team Vitality’s commitment to talent development

As a major force in European esports, Team Vitality places player development at the heart of its strategy. By joining the organization, Neia will train in a high-performance environment alongside seasoned professionals, accelerating her growth on the international fighting game circuit.

Fabien “Neo” Devide, President and Co-Founder of Team Vitality, commented: “We are delighted to welcome Neia to Team Vitality. Her potential, seriousness, and determination fully reflect the club’s mindset. Alongside her mentor Kayane, we are proud to support her in this new phase and confident she will find the ideal conditions to thrive with our fighting game players.”

With Neia’s arrival, Team Vitality strengthens its Fighting Games roster while reinforcing its role in shaping the next generation of esports champions.

The post Team Vitality Signs 16-Year-Old Tekken 8 Prodigy Neia to Fighting Games Roster appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

BETER

BETER dominates ICE Barcelona 2026 with prestigious double esports award win

Published

3 days ago

January 26, 2026

Wladimir P.

beter-dominates-ice-barcelona-2026-with-prestigious-double-esports-award-win

BETER, a Europe-based provider of live streams, live data, and odds for esports and sports, is celebrating a double award win at ICE Barcelona 2026.

The provider took home the trophy for Best Esports Innovation at the European iGaming Awards 2026 and Esports Innovator of the Year at the International Gaming Awards 2026.

The win marks the second consecutive year that BETER has topped the Esports Innovator category at the International Gaming Awards, driven by its commitment to evolving the iGaming industry with new formats of in-demand, fast-paced content.

BETER’s esports offering sets the standard for others to follow, consisting of its exclusive ESportsBattle tournaments. These tournaments deliver non-stop betting action across popular titles, including eFootball, eBasketball, eHockey, and eTennis, with more than 500,000 events scheduled annually.

Underlining the provider’s commitment to transparency, ESportsBattle recently received the ESIC Gold Standard Accreditation, further establishing BETER as one of the most trusted names in high-frequency content.

Operators can also take advantage of BETER’s Esports Odds Feed, delivering market-leading odds with the highest uptime across more than 450 tournaments globally, covering 40,000+ pre-match and live events annually, all powered by a team of in-house expert traders.

The awards follow a hugely successful period for BETER’s esports division, including the launch of eTennis, the first of its kind in the market, as well as the addition of the European Conference tournament to its eBasketball series.

BETER has also strengthened its position in the US market, where ESportsBattle is already live in New Jersey and Colorado with tier-one operator bet365. Internationally, the product was integrated by leading operators and aggregators, including Entain CCE and Meridianbet in 2025.

Securing two major award wins at ICE Barcelona is a testament to the quality of BETER’s market-leading fast-betting product suite, as well as the dedication and professionalism of its team.

Vladyslav Vitrenko, Public Relations Lead at BETER, said: “Winning two major esports awards at ICE is a significant milestone for BETER and marks an incredibly strong start to the year.

“We have worked hard developing the best fast-betting products in the market, and this award is a testament to the effort put in by the team – effort that we continue to make to ensure more players than ever before can access our products.

“We are constantly developing new products while maintaining a strong public presence, openly showcasing our operations, integrity measures, and product updates to remain transparent and trustworthy for our operator partners and their players.

“The demand for fast-betting content will only continue to rise, and these awards further position BETER as the go-to provider on the market.”

The post BETER dominates ICE Barcelona 2026 with prestigious double esports award win appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

eSports

Esports World Cup 2026 Tickets on Sale Now

Published

3 days ago

January 26, 2026

Wladimir P.

esports-world-cup-2026-tickets-on-sale-now

First wave of tickets includes Early Bird passes, premium experiences and special travel offers ahead of seven-week competition for a record-breaking $75 million prize pool

The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) officially opened tickets sales for the Esports World Cup 2026 (EWC), the world’s largest esports event, set to return to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 6 through August 23. The first wave of ticket options for fans is now live at esportsworldcup.com and through international ticketing partners Tixr (US and EU), Webook (Middle East and Saudi Arabia), Platinumlist (Middle East and India), and Damai (China), alongside special travel packages from Saudia Holidays available to first purchasers.

EWC 2026 will feature a record-breaking $75 million prize pool that reflects the evolution of the EWC as a premier sporting event and the anchor multi-title competition within the global esports ecosystem. Over 2,000 players representing more than 200 Clubs and over 100 countries will compete in Riyadh in the industry-leading cross-game Club Championship that is now a focal point of the esports calendar.

Limited-edition goodie bags for Weekly All-Access and Premium Tournament purchases contain a collector coin, trading card, aluminium water bottle, tote bag, T-shirt, fridge magnet, merch voucher, and a collectible pin.

Saudia Holidays, the travel division of Saudia Airlines, the Kingdom’s national carrier, now also offers an all-in-one Early Bird package to experience the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, including return flights, hand-picked hotels near the action, and a free All-Access Pass for the full duration of the stay, with one simple booking and no hidden fees.

Regular Tournament Passes and Daily Passes will be released in the next wave of sales.

The EWCF has officially confirmed the weekly schedule for EWC 2026, locking in seven weeks of world-class competition. Below is the schedule for each EWC tournament, sorted by week.

The post Esports World Cup 2026 Tickets on Sale Now appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.