eSports

LAMBORGHINI PRESENTS ITS FIRST EVER ESPORTS TEAM FOR VIRTUAL RACING AND ANNOUNCES THE THREE OFFICIAL SIM DRIVERS

Published

4 years ago

April 11, 2022

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Strengthening its commitment to the Esports scene with a factory team, Lamborghini has unveiled the three sim drivers who will represent the brand during the 2022 season in international sim racing competitions.

Lamborghini decided to create its own official team to build on the valuable experience gained with The Real Race, the virtual one-make championship that debuted in 2020. The Esports Team represents a further opportunity to expand the brand’s presence in a sector that is constantly developing, highly competitive, and offers the chance to experience emotions comparable to those of a real race.

The three sim drivers chosen to represent the brand in the major international Esports competitions are Jordan Sherrat, Gianfranco Giglioli and Giorgio Simonini.

Sherrat, who was born in South Africa in 1999, earned his place on the Lamborghini Esports team thanks to his success in the latest edition of The Real Race, winning fifteen out of seventeen races and taking nine out of ten pole positions. The dominator of the second edition of the Lamborghini Esports championship for the EMEA region, who gained attention after his third place finish in 2020, is the perfect standard bearer for the team, both for the skills he has demonstrated in competition over the past two seasons and for being a huge fan of the Lamborghini brand.

“Being chosen by Lamborghini to be the Official Sim driver still feels like a dream,” commented Sherrat. “All the hard work and sacrifice I have put in behind the scenes have been recognised and I finally get to live my dream! I want to thank Lamborghini for putting their trust in me to represent their prestigious Brand.”

The second talent selected is Gianfranco Giglioli, a 24-year-old Italian-Venezuelan driver already well-established in the sim racing world. He was one of the first virtual drivers to take part in the Formula 1 Esports Series, finishing eighth in the inaugural season. In 2020 Giglioli placed fifth in the first edition of The Real Race, and that same year he won the Porsche Esports Carrera Cup Italia.

Completing the line-up is 22-year-old Italian sim driver Giorgio Simonini. His list of achievements includes first place in the Sim Grid World Cup 2020 and fourth place in the SRO Esports 2020 championship, results that make him one of the most promising drivers in virtual racing.

Sherrat and Giglioli will compete together in the GT World Challenge Esports Sprint Series Europe, and Simonini will join the pair to form the crew for the 2022 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports Endurance Championship.

The Sprint calendar consists of five races and starts on April 6th with the Misano race. The last appointment is set for August 3rd, with the grand finale scheduled in the virtual version of the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza.

The Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports series kicks off on April 16th with the 12 Hours of Bathurst, the famous Australian endurance race. Here too there are five rounds on the calendar, with the competition concluding on August 27th with the 9 Hours of Kyalami.

Sherrat, Giglioli and Simonini have already started training to prepare for the first events on the calendar, sharing important information on driving and setup. The three sim drivers will be supported during the season by the Squadra Corse staff, who are dedicating a team principal, driver coach and engineers to the project to offer their expertise in the development and analysis of telemetry data, from the track to the virtual simulation.

Automobili Lamborghini’s Head of Motorsport Giorgio Sanna expressed his satisfaction with the launch of this exciting new project: “Sim racing is an important platform in today’s motorsport scene. Video games were born to allow those who didn’t have opportunities for real-life racing to impersonate the professional drivers. Now, after several decades of development in the industry, simulated racing is getting closer and closer to its real-life counterpart and now has nothing to envy from professional motorsport. Moreover, sim racing is an additional tool for us to develop some of the fundamental aspects of real racing, such as car setups and software applications that will play an important role in the future of our brand.”

Lamborghini has also confirmed the return of The Real Race for 2022. The dates of the third edition of the one-make Lamborghini Esports series will be announced in the coming weeks.

Berlin Gaming Industry

Tom Achsel Joins FACTORY-C to Spearhead “Home of Indies” Communications

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Wladimir P.

tom-achsel-joins-factory-c-to-spearhead-“home-of-indies”-communications

FACTORY-C, the Berlin-based communications powerhouse specializing in gaming and esports, has announced the appointment of Tom Achsel as Event Communications Manager. Achsel will join the “Home of Indies” team alongside project initiator Christiane Gehrke, focusing on the platform’s global expansion and upcoming presence at Gamescom 2026.

With over a decade of experience in the tech and gaming sectors, Achsel brings a massive professional network and deep operational expertise to the agency.

A Veteran of the Berlin Gaming Scene

Tom Achsel is a well-known figure in the German development community. His career highlights include:

Games Academy: Served as Head of Marketing & Events at one of Europe’s oldest game development institutions.
Games Ground Berlin: Co-founded and led communications for the Berlin Gaming Festival, curating impactful B2B programs and speaker lineups.
IGDA Berlin: Serves as Vice-Chairman, strengthening ties between local developers and the global gaming ecosystem.

Christiane Gehrke, Senior Event Communication & Sales Manager at Factory-C

“Tom knows the indie scene from multiple perspectives and has a sharp understanding of the needs of indie developers,” said Christiane Gehrke, Senior Event Communication & Sales Manager at FACTORY-C. “He brings everything needed to support the continued development of Home of Indies.”

Scaling the “Home of Indies” Platform

Since its debut in 2022, Home of Indies has grown into a central pillar of the Gamescom Indie Area. The platform provides a shared booth for independent developers, lowering the barrier to entry for international studios.

2025 Growth: The booth expanded to 440 square meters, featuring over 50 games from a dozen countries.
New Features: The project recently added a dedicated Spotlight Stage, streaming booths, and professional networking areas via MeetToMatch.

As Event Communications Manager, Achsel will lead the outreach strategy for Gamescom 2026, ensuring that the creative diversity of the global indie scene receives maximum visibility among press, influencers, and players.

The post Tom Achsel Joins FACTORY-C to Spearhead “Home of Indies” Communications appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

BlueBottle

BlueBottle Launches “League Broadcast” SaaS for Streamlined Esports Production

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Wladimir P.

bluebottle-launches-“league-broadcast”-saas-for-streamlined-esports-production

BlueBottle, the Munich-based esports technology innovator, has officially launched League Broadcast, its professional-grade production software, via a new Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) subscription model.

Announced on January 7, 2026, this B2C release moves the platform from selective partner deployments and its long-standing beta phase into a publicly accessible tool for leagues, tournament organizers, and individual content creators worldwide.

Professional Broadcast Tools for All Tiers

League Broadcast is designed to automate and elevate the visual storytelling of competitive gaming, specifically targeting the League of Legends ecosystem. The software bypasses traditional API limitations by using low-level game data collection to provide real-time, high-fidelity visualizations.

At launch, BlueBottle has introduced a tiered pricing structure to suit different operational scales:

Tier	Status	Key Features	Target Audience
Free	Available	Core overlays, essential team/player data, basic game stats.	Grassroots creators & amateur streamers.
Basic	Available	Commercial usage rights, customizable pre-game elements, professional draft tools.	Semi-pro leagues & small event organizers.
Pro	Coming Soon	Advanced analytics, event-driven automation, premium production tools.	Professional leagues & high-scale live operations.

Supported by Creative Europe Media

The transition to a scalable SaaS model was significantly bolstered by funding from Creative Europe Media, the European Union’s flagship program for the audiovisual and creative sectors. This backing allowed BlueBottle to invest in:

Enhanced Stability: Hardening the software for 24/7 live environments.
Improved Infrastructure: Faster development cycles and dedicated customer support.
Accessibility: Lowering the barrier for European creators to produce “broadcast-quality” content that competes with high-budget international productions.

“This launch represents more than a new pricing model — it’s the moment League Broadcast becomes accessible to the wider esports community,” said Lars Eble, CTO at BlueBottle. “We were able to invest in long-term product quality… ensuring that our B2C customers receive the same level of reliability previously reserved for large partners.”

Strengthening the European Esports Ecosystem

By providing affordable, automated tools for real-time data visualization—such as dynamic gold graphs, inhibitor timers, and 3D in-world branding—BlueBottle is positioning itself as a core infrastructure provider for the digital media age. The platform allows smaller organizations to monetize their formats more effectively through professional-looking sponsor placements and deeper viewer engagement.

The post BlueBottle Launches “League Broadcast” SaaS for Streamlined Esports Production appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Akshat Rathee

Indian Esports 2026: Strategic Growth and the Asian Games Milestone

Published

3 days ago

January 6, 2026

Wladimir P.

indian-esports-2026:-strategic-growth-and-the-asian-games-milestone

The Indian esports landscape is transitioning from a period of rapid “spectacle” growth to a phase defined by lasting institutional structure. Following the implementation of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA), 2026 is set to be the year where regulatory clarity, international competition, and domestic grassroots development converge.

The Impact of PROGA: Policy into Practice

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA), signed into law in August 2025, has officially moved from policy to practice. Its primary contribution to 2026 is the explicit separation of esports from money-based gaming.

Legitimacy: By categorizing esports as a legitimate competitive pursuit, PROGA has unlocked state-level adoption and cleared the way for schools and colleges to integrate gaming into their sports frameworks.
Commercial Confidence: With a clear regulatory environment, brands in sectors like FMCG, automotive, and BFSI are now viewing esports as a stable, long-term youth engagement platform rather than a risky experiment.
Athlete Pathways: PROGA facilitates the creation of standardized national registries for athletes, ensuring that competitive integrity is maintained across grassroots and professional tiers.

The Asian Games 2026: A Global Stage

The Asian Games 2026 in Aichi and Nagoya, Japan, serves as the most critical milestone for the ecosystem this year.

Medal Status: Esports will feature as a full medal event with 11 confirmed titles, including League of Legends, PUBG Mobile (Asian Games Version), and Pokémon UNITE.
Indian Prospects: India’s best historical result (quarter-finals in League of Legends at Hangzhou) has set a high bar. For 2026, the focus has shifted toward high-performance training camps and long-term athlete mentorship to secure a podium finish.
Multi-Sport Integration: Participation alongside traditional athletes reinforces the narrative that esports is a viable professional career, further encouraging government investment through schemes like Khelo India.

Market Evolution and Key Trends

The Indian gaming market is projected to reach approximately $5.02 billion in 2026, driven by a massive player base exceeding 500 million gamers.

Trend	Impact in 2026
Mobile Dominance	Over 95% of the market remains mobile-first, fueled by 5G expansion and affordable hardware.
Beyond BGMI	2026 is seeing a push to diversify the market into fighting games, sports simulations, and PC titles to avoid “one-title dependency.”
Monetization Shift	Revenue is shifting from pure advertising toward battle passes, subscription models, and in-game progression.
Tier II & III Growth	Most new user acquisition is coming from smaller cities, demanding more vernacular and localized content.