eSports
Skyesports Masters unveils Velocity Gaming as final franchise for India’s biggest gaming tournament
Velocity Gaming, the Hyderabad-based Esports organization renowned for its prominence in the PC esports space, has been revealed as the final franchise for Skyesports Masters, India’s biggest gaming tournament.
The Skyesports Masters is India’s first-ever franchised Esports league, set to happen across two stages: the League stage and the LAN Playoffs. The League Stage will span multiple weeks from July 8 to Aug. 17 as the eight teams compete in a double round-robin format. Only the top four, though, will be able to make it to the Playoffs, set to happen as an on-ground tournament on Aug. 26 and 27 to crown the inaugural Skyesports Masters champions.
Commenting on entering the Skyesports Masters, Manoj Kasyap, the Founder and CEO of Velocity Gaming, said, “Counter-Strike has always been an interesting esports title, and while it hasn’t been able to grow exponentially in India, I believe the Skyesports Masters is the first step to making that happen. Skyesports has also managed to make this event very viable in the long run for franchised teams. I believe this is the first time in Indian esports something like this is happening. We don’t want to miss out on this amazing opportunity.”
Velocity Gaming has prioritized experience as it prepares to unleash a fight for the Rs. 2,00,00,000 prize pool. The roster consists of the following players:
- Bodhisattwa “The_Guru” Panday
- Dipayan “MaChOleleR” Das
- Tamajit “Logan” Ghosal
- Keven “KevinR” Ross Russel
- Muhammad “Syahhftw” Shyarul Daneal Bin Arif
- Thomas “TAV” Kurian
- Nairit “L0sttt” Banerjee
The roster is primarily composed of players scouted from the Skyesports Masters cafe qualifiers. Velocity Gaming acquired the squad of RDX which won the Kolkata cafe qualifier. The cafe qualifiers are a grassroots-level initiative by Skyesports which happened across 20 cities of the country to give a boost to CS: GO and scout for potential talent.
Headlining the experienced roster is KevinR, the veteran U.S. import who has been competing professionally since 2004 and has numerous international accolades to his name. The rest of the team is also highly accomplished as the squad has earned several top-three finishes in different tournaments, including competitions by ESL and the Intel Extreme Masters (IEM).
Commenting on Velocity Gaming joining the Skyesports Masters, Shiva Nandy, Founder and CEO of Skyesports said, “Velocity Gaming is a name synonymous with PC esports in India. It’d be an injustice to organize India’s biggest gaming tournament without the organization. I am thrilled that Manoj and Velocity believe in our vision for the Skyesports Masters and Counter-Strike. Their involvement is a testament to the potential and longevity of the league.”
With India’s biggest gaming tournament just around the corner, the stage is set for Velocity Gaming and seven other franchise to enthrall the gaming audience of the country with world-class gameplay and nail-biting action.
Zenni Optical, the world’s leading online eyewear retailer, announced a partnership with ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), the leading esports and video game entertainment company. Designed to integrate eye health education with innovative eyewear solutions for the esports community, the partnership will officially launch at DreamHack festival in Dallas, taking place from May 31 to June 2.
This collaboration will showcase a co-branded collection of lifestyle and competitive eyewear and accessories, highlighting Zenni Optical’s commitment to promoting overall eye health, particularly in addressing issues like eye fatigue and strain. Additionally, the initiative will incorporate essential eye health education across various DreamHack Festivals, in alignment with EFG’s broader mission to foster inclusive gaming worlds and engaged, supported communities.
“DreamHack and ESL represent some of the most community-centric and prestigious competitive events in the world. In their own unique ways, they embody esports for everyone. By partnering with these incredible brands across the gaming and esports spaces, we aim to create engaging experiences that combine eye-health education with innovative eyewear solutions for players and fans at all levels,” said Robb Chiarini, Head of Gaming, Sports, & Events at Zenni Optical.
“We are thrilled to partner with Zenni Optical as the Official Eyewear Partner of DreamHack and ESL. The genuine passion that Zenni has for the esports industry is a refreshing sight to see, and a major driving factor for the decision behind our partnership. Zenni’s ongoing commitment to provide eyewear for everyone mirrors our own drive to create worlds beyond gameplay for gamers everywhere,” Craig Levine, Co-CEO at EFG, said.
Bucks Gaming’s Cream City Convergence Esports Tournament has been selected as a Capcom Pro Tour event, becoming one of just three tournaments in North America chosen to be a qualifier for the prestigious Capcom Cup.
The Capcom Cup is an annual Street Fighter 6 competition, hosted by video game developer and esports organizer Capcom, with a $1 million first place prize. Each year, Capcom selects a small number of tournaments worldwide to serve as Capcom Pro Tour events, with the winning players from each event qualifying for the Capcom Cup. As one of the tournaments selected by Capcom for the honor this year, Cream City Convergence will become the first esports event run by an NBA team to work with a major esports organizer.
Top-ranked Street Fighter 6 players will compete at Cream City Convergence when it returns for its second year on Saturday, Aug. 24, at Baird Center. In addition to Street Fighter 6, this year’s tournament will also have brackets for Tekken 8; Super Smash Bros Ultimate; Super Smash Bros Melee; and Guilty Gear: Strive.
The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has announced Kambi and Abios, its esports data subsidiary, as new ESIC Anti-Corruption Supporters. This partnership signals the alignment of Kambi’s longstanding commitment to corporate probity and sports integrity with ESIC’s ongoing battle against match-fixing and corruption in esports.
Kambi and Abios join a distinguished class of other Anti-Corruption Supporter stakeholders who have historically worked with ESIC to ensure that attacks against the competitive integrity of esports competition are appropriately reported and dealt with. Anti-Corruption Supporters assist ESIC in investigating suspicious betting activity, supporting ESIC’s broader mission to combat cheating and betting fraud in the esports industry. Kambi and Abios’ entrance into the Anti-Corruption Supporter class will see the entities actively work with ESIC to assist in ESIC’s mission to disrupt, prevent, investigate and prosecute all attempts to compromise competitive integrity in esport competition.
Abios’ Managing Director and Founder, Anton Janér, commented: “Our mission at Abios has always been to enable the sustainable growth of esports. As such, we’re incredibly excited to join ESIC in their mission to future-proof esports through combatting match-fixing and other integrity-related malpractices. Fair play is a crucial component in ensuring the viability of esports as a long-term community and investment and we hope to be able to support the industry together with ESIC going forward.”
Stephen Hanna, ESIC’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are pleased to welcome Kambi and Abios as Anti-Corruption Supporters. Kambi and Abios are well trusted and recognised operators in their respective industries, and their entrance into the Anti-Corruption Supporter class of ESIC membership emphasises their shared commitment to upholding the highest standards of integrity and fair play within the esports industry.”
The post Kambi and Abios Join ESIC as Anti-Corruption Supporters appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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