eSports

British Esports Association Enters into Partnership with College of Esports

Published

5 years ago

December 10, 2021

Reading Time: 3 minutes

British Esports Association has announced an exclusive Higher Education (HE) university-level partnership with the College of Esports.

The College of Esports is a world first university-level institution dedicated solely for university degrees in the business of esports.

The university degree portfolio will include Foundation, Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels and will be delivered at the College of Esports campus at the iconic Velodrome, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, with students starting in September/October 2022 for the start of the academic year 2022/2023.

For transparency, the British Esports Association has helped produce part of the degree and provided College of Esports with some guidance, but will not be teaching the courses.

Each university-level programme will focus on the global billion-dollar business of esports.

The student experience will centre on traditional academic subjects taught through the lens of an industry that many are so passionate about, supported by their unique TRI-Curriculum. This consists of the main degree courses plus two additional curricula to make students World-Ready, providing higher contact hours and a holistic 360 teaching approach.

This approach will ensure an exciting, cutting edge teaching model which fully prepares each student for a career within esports and other sectors.

The College of Esports is a boutique university-level institution, with student places to be limited, ensuring each student receives the maximum benefit from their studies and wider experiences.

All university-level provision has been designed in partnership with the British Esports Association to ensure that each programme is industry-ready, with input from the wider esports sector. A College Advisory Board populated by leading figures will provide guidance to the college and will be announced in due-course.

Each course will provide best-in-class academic teaching combined with leading knowledge and input from the esports sector, to provide students with long-term value, career flexibility and a holistic understanding of international business at both macro and micro levels.

It will cover the business of international esports, IP rights, management of players and talent, event management, sponsorship, logistics, marketing, business and more.

As well as training people to go into the industry, the College of Esports will also offer a business incubation unit to help students grow their ideas into their own businesses.

The British Esports Association will provide unique industry expertise, as well as enriching the learning materials of the degree content, in order to ensure relevance to the student and sector as a whole.

The British Esports Association also has a separate exclusive Further Education partnership with Pearson to offer Esports BTEC qualifications of which students can then progress smoothly from these BTEC courses onto the BEA accredited courses at the College of Esports.

The College of Esports facilities based within the Velodrome, home to many international sporting triumphs, will include new purpose-built classrooms, eateries, a library, social areas as well as state-of-the-art gaming spaces for students.

Professor Philip Wilson, founder and Chair of the College of Esports, stated: “We are delighted to have entered into this long-term exclusive higher education partnership. The knowledge, experience and expertise of the British Esports Association is a central pillar of our approach to ensure that the College of Esports is at the cutting edge of the industry for our students.”

“Our partnership will create the UK hub of esports business and provide additional legacy to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as job creation and community support in the boroughs that we engage.”

British Esports Association chair Andy Payne OBE commented: “We’re delighted to have signed this exclusive university-level partnership with the College of Esports to help deliver esports business degrees and ensure a bright future for our exciting industry. Esports not only offers many exciting career opportunities, it also gives people essential transferable skills that can be applied to many other roles and industries.”

eSports

Esports Awards adds player-voted EWC Players’ Choice Award, extends Esports Foundation deal

Published

2 days ago

June 19, 2026

Wladimir P.

esports-awards-adds-player-voted-ewc-players’-choice-award,-extends-esports-foundation-deal

The Esports Awards and the Esports Foundation (EF) on June 18, 2026, announced a three-year extension of their partnership through 2028 and introduced a new player-voted honor, the EWC Players’ Choice Award. The announcement was made in London, with voting tied to Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026 in Paris.

The EWC Players’ Choice Award will be decided exclusively by professional esports players. According to the announcement, competitors attending EWC 2026 will vote in person, while a secure digital voting platform hosted by the Esports Awards will allow participation from additional eligible players and clubs.

Eligibility requires players to have competed in at least one qualifying S, A or B-Tier tournament during the official competitive season. Players will not be able to vote for themselves or teammates, with the Esports Awards overseeing the process.

“The talent and innovation of our sector should be getting the exposure it deserves.,” said Michael Ashford, CEO of the Esports Awards. “The Esports Foundation has done an incredible job in generating mainstream attention, and industry exposure outside of the standard circuit. Our partnership has enabled us to expand our operations and footprint and it’s through our continued collaboration that I hope we can bring the Esports Awards to the global community, and provide the industry with better visibility all year round.”

The Esports Awards also confirmed its 2026 ceremony will take place in the United States, starting what it described as a rotating host city model featuring “previously unvisited destinations.” The event previously staged its 2024 awards ceremony and the 2025 Decade Awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as part of the Esports World Cup program.

EWC 2026 is scheduled for Paris from July 06 through August 23, 2026, with more than 2,000 players and 200 Clubs from over 100 countries set to compete in 25 tournaments across 24 games. Voting for the EWC Players’ Choice Award will run from July 1 through August 18, 2026, with the winner to be revealed during the Esports Awards ceremony later this year. The Esports Awards said additional details about its 2026 event will be announced in the coming weeks.

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chess

ENC 2026 chess qualifiers wrap as 82 nations and territories make the field

Published

3 days ago

June 18, 2026

Wladimir P.

enc-2026-chess-qualifiers-wrap-as-82-nations-and-territories-make-the-field

The Esports Foundation (EF) has completed the online regional qualifiers for the Chess tournament at the Esports Nations Cup 2026 (ENC), scheduled to debut in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from November 2-29, 2026.

EF said the 128-player chess field is now largely set. 64 players from 64 countries and territories received direct invitations via official Champions Chess Tour (CCT) rankings at the end of May, while 61 players qualified through online regional events operated by Chess.com across North America, South America, Africa, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East/India/Central Asia, and East Asia/Southeast Asia/Oceania.

A further slot was awarded to Amani Alazmi (Kuwait) via the Host Region Wildcard as the next highest-placing competitor from the host region. Two Wildcard Solidarity slots for underrepresented regions remain and will be announced at the end of August after all ENC qualifiers are completed. With qualifiers concluded, EF said at least 82 countries and territories will be represented in chess at ENC 2026.

EF highlighted that Jamaica, Paraguay, Singapore, South Africa, Tajikistan, Tunisia, and Turkmenistan each secured two qualifying slots despite not receiving a direct invitation. Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador, Venezuela, Morocco, Nigeria, Algeria, Jordan, Australia, and New Zealand secured one slot each.

The chess competition runs November 2-8. EF said the event will open with a round-robin group stage featuring 16 groups of eight players, before moving to a 64-player single-elimination playoff bracket. The full list of qualified players and nations is available on the ENC website’s chess page.

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1xBet

HLTV Awards returns to Belgrade on January 9, 2027, adding Lifetime Achievement honor

Published

4 days ago

June 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

hltv-awards-returns-to-belgrade-on-january-9,-2027,-adding-lifetime-achievement-honor

HLTV will stage the HLTV Awards presented by 1xBet in Belgrade, Serbia on January 9, 2027, returning to the Sava Center. The company said more than 1,000 players, industry professionals, creators, and fans are expected to attend.

HLTV also confirmed Dust2 creator David Johnston will feature as an award announcer. HLTV linked the booking to the 25th anniversary of Dust2.

For 2026, HLTV is updating its Hall of Fame process and eligibility rules. Four players will be inducted again, with “at least two and up to three” slots reserved for players from the Counter-Strike 1.6 and early eras. HLTV also removed the former “neo rule,” allowing players to be inducted for their playing careers even if they remain active in other roles such as coaching.

HLTV is adding a Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be decided by the Hall of Fame Board. The ceremony will also move Community Awards onto the main stage show for the first time, rather than the pre-show segment.

Separately, HLTV will kick off the 2027 Awards season with an invite-only “HLTV Awards by 1xBet Launch Party x GRID” in Cologne during the Major. HLTV said industry members can apply for an invite to the ceremony via its awards page.

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