eSports

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Launches Ambitious Plan to Create World-class Esports Cluster

Published

3 years ago

March 12, 2021

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Here East, the tech and innovation campus, has committed to leading a major new initiative to accelerate the growth of an esports cluster on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. A new report published by Delancey’s Here East and supported by the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) has outlined a roadmap to create a world-class esports cluster that will drive job creation and bring an industry worth $180bn globally to east London.

Through interviews with a wide range of stakeholders, esports leaders and academics, Here East and LLDC have identified the unique characteristics that make Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park the natural home for esports in the UK. These characteristics include state-of-the-art sporting venues, close proximity to international esports teams and close engagement with academic institutions and local initiatives specialising in esports.

The report outlines a series of recommendations that Here East and LLDC believe will consolidate the Park’s position as the UK’s leading esports cluster. A dedicated team, led by Here East and LLDC and including other Park stakeholders and venues, will be established to deliver marketing and communication campaigns, new esports partnerships and collaborations with local initiatives to develop pathways to foster talent.

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is already home to global esports competitions at the Copper Box Arena, Staffordshire University London – which offered the UK’s first esports undergraduate course – and esports and gaming businesses such as BT Sport, Sports Interactive and Bidstack.

The plan will build upon the long-term regeneration strategy being delivered by LLDC and stakeholders across Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. With its mix of world-class tech, creative, culture and higher education, the Park offers an unrivalled environment to support the emerging esports cluster.

Considering esports generated £60m in revenue across the UK in 2019, creating a world-class esports cluster on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park would accelerate the growth of the industry in the UK and drive job creation and economic growth in London.

Gavin Poole, CEO of Here East, comments, “Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park already hosts some of the most high profile esports competitions, teams and businesses in the UK and Here East has become the fastest growing community of esports innovation in the country.

“This report outlines our vision to transform the Park into a world-class esports cluster that sends a clear message to the global esports community – London has the talent, venues and expertise to become a global capital for esports.”

eSports

North Star Network Acquires Um Dois Esportes

Published

19 hours ago

April 26, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

north-star-network-acquires-um-dois-esportes

North Star Network has acquired Um Dois Esportes, a sports coverage and analysis site created from the merger of Gazeta Do Povo and Tribuna do Paraná in 2020.

Julien Josset, co-founder of North Star Network, said: “Thank you to the team at GRPCOM for their faith in us to take the brand forward. Um Dois Esportes is an established and renowned site in Paraná State, and we’re excited about the challenge of developing this asset.

“We’re happy to maintain the collaboration with the existing editorial team, and look forward to working with them, bringing our unique NSN approach, to take UDE forward.”

NSN’s signing of Um Dois Esportes is the media house’s fourth acquisition of 2024, following the recent deals to purchase UK-based SportsMole and MrFixitsTips, as well as Chilean site AlAireLibre, which was announced in March.

The latest addition to the North Star media portfolio joins existing assets including Top Mercato, Afrik-Foot, and Vringe. The Paris-based company already oversees a significant Brazilian operation, delivering over 6 million sessions per month, from the likes of Trivela, Premier League Brasil and Lakers Brasil.

NSN will retain Curitiba-based journalists from the Um Dois Esportes legacy team to maintain the asset’s unique tone and popular coverage of the Paraná sports scene across site and social.

Rafael Mello, Director of GRPCOM, said: “We were surprised by the interest, and initially had no intention of selling Um Dois, but as the conversations evolved, we realised this was a serious group with good intentions. We were very happy to see our project being valued by a large international group and going global, demonstrating the quality of the content we produced.

“We’re also proud that North Star inherited our journalists, who are truly responsible for the success of the product we offer readers every day.”

Alona Shevtsova

L&G esports team founded by Alona Shevtsova won the national Dragon EC Cup tournament

Published

3 days ago

April 24, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

l&g-esports-team-founded-by-alona-shevtsova-won-the-national-dragon-ec-cup-tournament

Ukrainian esports team L&G won the Dragon EC Cup tournament, held on the 20th of April by Dragon Esports Club. Four teams competed in the tournament’s final: Lazer Cats, L&G, which received a direct invitation to the final stage, EsportsBattle, and ThunderFlash, which had open qualifiers. During the Grand Final, the L&G team competed with Lazer Cats on Mirage, Anubis, and Vertigo maps.

“This victory is a testament to the exceptional talent and commitment of our players, as well as the collective effort of our coaching staff and support personnel,” said Alona Shevtsova, founder of L&G Esports. “We are immensely proud of their accomplishments and grateful for the unwavering support of our fans.”

L&G is among the top 5 Ukrainian teams in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It was founded in 2021. The previous name was Leogaming, and it was created on the initiative of the famous Alona Shevtsova from the fintech sector.

The team began competing in top tournaments and almost immediately made it to the Advanced division of the ESEA League Europe competition. The team also participated in and took prizes in European tournaments such as the SCL League, WhiteBit Crypto Open, Phoenix League, and local competitions. The team players are marat2k, r0ublE, kr1vda, kL1o, OneUn1que, rji (coach).

The winners received a 50,000 UAH prize. Dragon Esports Club also prepared a 15-skin giveaway for the broadcast’s viewers.

It is worth mentioning that the L&G team created its merch items, which are available for order worldwide. To get more information about the team, visit the L&G Instagram page, Twitch, or Telegram Channel.