eSports

The World’s Best Street Fighter 6 Players Are Set to Clash at Red Bull Kumite New York on March 16th & 17th – Here’s Everything You Need to Know!

Published

9 months ago

March 11, 2024

the-world’s-best-street-fighter-6-players-are-set-to-clash-at-red-bull-kumite-new-york-on-march-16th-&-17th-–-here’s-everything-you-need-to-know!

The two-day event will be held at the historic Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse, New York, March 16 & 17, 2024.
The Main Event on March 17 will be in single elimination format, where 16 players, including an invitee and the Play-In winner, battle through a bracket drawn during the opening ceremony in first-to-five matches.
Confirmed fighters include renowned players such as reigning champion Adel “Big Bird” Anouche, Valentin “Valmaster” Petit and Lin “Oil King” Li-wei.
Commentary lineup features Michael “Yipes” Mendoza, Femi “F-Word” Adeboye, and others for expert insight and analysis.
AOC returns as the Official Monitor Partner with PlayStation as the Official Console Partner and Vitrix as the official partner of peripherals.
The tournament will be streamed live on twitch.tv/redbull and youtube.com/@redbullgaming.

Red Bull Kumite, the eminent Street Fighter 6 tournament, is set to take place this weekend in New York with the full roster of fighters announced and ready to duke it out for the title of Red Bull Kumite 2024 Champion. Here’s everything you need to know!

A highlight in the Fighting Game Community’s calendar, the two-day event will take place at the historic Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse, a fitting venue for what will be one of the most memorable FGC events of 2024. Bringing a rich and immersive storyline to this year’s tournament, fans will play witness to the villainous Battle King’s scheme to rule the underground world of Street Fighter, with only one hero set to emerge victorious.

Confirming the final players who complete the exciting lineup, Red Bull Kumite New York features notable talent such as French competitor Valentin “Valmaster” Petit and the 2023 EVO JP Champion, Lin “Oil King” Li-wei. Since January, fierce competition has also been unfolding on local battlefields, with numerous contenders vying for the last two coveted spots in the Grand Final. Last year’s champion Adel “Big Bird” Anouche will be returning to the iconic cage to defend his title in the ultimate Street Fighter showdown. Players from Japan, Italy, USA, Canada, and France have been competing for the final play-in spots and will be in with a chance to overthrow the pros in what would surely be one of the biggest upsets in FGC esports.

Red Bull Kumite New York kicks off with the Play-In on March 16th, featuring a double-elimination, first-to-three tournament between the eight players who have come from World Qualifiers. The winner will then qualify for the Main Event on March 17th.

The Main Event is a single-elimination tournament featuring 16 players, including 14 that have been directly invited, and winners of the Last Chance Qualifier and Play-In. The bracket draw will take place at the opening ceremony, preceding the action kicking off from round one all the way to the Grand Final, all played in a first-to-five format (BO9).

European Gaming Congress 2024 (Warsaw, Poland)

With the stakes at their highest, the event promises a stellar showcase of unbridled talent, complemented by a distinguished commentary team. Renowned players Joe “LI Joe” Ciaramelli and host Rob “RobTV” Burney will join forces to guide viewers through the thrilling matches. The commentary lineup also includes Michael “Yipes” Mendoza, reporter Zhi Liang Chew, Femi “F-Word” Adeboye, Logan Sama, and Samantha “Persia” Hancock, all returning for another year to provide expert insight and analysis.

Confirmed players for Red Bull Kumite 2024 are as follows:

Victor “Punk” Woodley (USA)
Saul Leonardo “MenaRD” Mena II (Dominican Republic)
Tsunehiro “Gachikun” Kanamori (Japan)
Adel “Big Bird” Anouche (United Arab Emirates)
Wong “Chris Wong” Yuk-cheung (Hong Kong)
Derek “iDom” Ruffin (USA)
Hibiki The Beast (Japan)
Masato “Bonchan” Takahashi (Japan)
Lin “Oil King” Li-wei (Taiwan)
Valentin “Valmaster” Petit (France)
Hajime “Tokido” Taniguchi (Japan)
Du “NuckleDu” Dang (United States)
Shin “Leshar” Moon-sup (South Korea)
Rob “Broski” Livingston (United Kingdom)

Play-in competitors vying for a spot in the grand final:

USA: Noah “NoahTheProdigy” Solis
USA: Sean “Shine” Simpson
USA: Alan “Nephew” Sun
USA: Stephen “Space Boy” Agyemang
France: Nathan “Mister Crimson” Massol
Italy: Andrea “Garnet” Parlangeli
Japan: Ryukichi
Canada: Kuang “Zhen”

Red Bull Kumite New York is joined by three amazing partners for 2024 including AOC as the Official Monitor Partner, bringing exceptional visual clarity and ultra-high refresh rates to competitors, while PlayStation kicks into gear as the Official Console Partner. Red Bull Kumite New York will also be partnering with world-leading peripherals and accessories manufacturer, Victrix, to provide unique and accessible gear to the gaming community.

Watch Red Bull Kumite New York live on March 16 and March 17 via twitch and youtube.

Please see below for a recap:

Red Bull Kumite, the prestigious fighting game tournament, will take place in New York and kick off on March 16 & 17, 2024 at Brooklyn’s historic Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse
AOC will be this year’s official Monitor Partner, bringing exceptional visual clarity and ultra-high refresh rates to competitors. Playstation joins Red Bull Kumite for the first time as Official Console Partner with Victrix joining as official partner of peripherals.

AOC

Founded in 1967, AOC is a globally leading monitor and IT accessories brand and a subsidiary of TPV Technology Limited, the world’s largest LCD manufacturer. AOC’s comprehensive product portfolio provides innovative, ergonomic, environmentally conscious and stylish solutions for professional as well as personal applications. The sub-brand of AOC, AGON by AOC, offers one of the strongest portfolios of high-performance gaming monitors in the world and a complete ecosystem of gaming accessories grouped in three categories: AOC GAMING for core gamers, AGON for competitive gamers and AGON PRO for esports enthusiasts and professional esports players. Since 2020 AGON by AOC has been one of the leading gaming monitor brands and a top choice of gamers worldwide.For more information please refer to AGON by AOC’s official website or follow AGON by AOC on Facebook, X or Instagram.

PlayStation

PlayStation Tournaments enables gamers of all levels to compete, win prizes, and connect with others worldwide, directly from their PlayStation consoles. PS5 Tournaments are available in a diverse range of games, fostering a community where participants can showcase their skills, enjoy competitive play, and take-home incredible prizes.

Victrix

PDP Gaming is an industry leader providing high-quality licensed peripherals and accessories for all major video game platforms. PDP believes that design-forward, high-performance gear should be as unique and accessible as the gaming community itself. From beginner to professional, PDP’s product lines offer uncompromising performance and striking designs that transport gamers into seamless, immersive experiences where competition, connection, and personal expression are limitless. Victrix by PDP is purpose built for Esports athletes and enthusiasts looking for unmatched performance and competitive advantage. For over 25 years, PDP has been supplying video game peripherals and accessories to major retailers across the world, including the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. For more information, visit PDP website and VICTRIXPRO website.

eSports

IESF Concludes 16th Ordinary General Meeting in Riyadh

Published

2 days ago

November 20, 2024

George Miller

iesf-concludes-16th-ordinary-general-meeting-in-riyadh

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The International Esports Federation (IESF) held its 16th Ordinary General Meeting (OGM) on November 18, bringing together over 150 delegates from the member federations in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Before the official start of the assembly, IESF welcomed representatives from the Saudi Olympic & Paralympic Committee (SOPC) and the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF). Abdulaziz Baeshin, CEO of SOPC presented Saudi Arabia’s progress in Esports and sports development and their vision moving forward. Frank Weber, Director of Corporate Marketing at EWCF discussed the success of the EWCF and highlight upcoming plans for the future.

In his opening speech, IESF President HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud expressed gratitude for the number of delegates who attended the assembly. He reflected on the federation’s success and achievements over the past year, the key areas for improvement, and the necessity of continued close collaboration among members.

The first session of the assembly continued with reviewing motions submitted by the members and voting on their acceptance or rejection. The members also voted to grant Full Membership status to Canada, Germany, Latvia, and Malta.

The second session of the OGM was dedicated to electing key positions within the IESF Board and committees. The results are:

Board Member: Mr. Samart Benjamin Assarasakorn
Treasurer: Mr. Daniel Wen Jun Loy

Membership Committee Members:

Mr. Soufiane El Filali
Mr. Jaroslav Melishek

Audit, Risk, and Governance Committee:

Chair: Mr. Tomas Gabris
Members: Mr. Jacopo Ierussi and Mr. Stevan Nenad Rosic

Regulatory Committee Chair:

Mr. Ido Orel Brosh

In his concluding statement, IESF General Secretary Boban Totovski congratulated the assembly on a productive and democratic meeting. He expressed his appreciation for the valuable insights shared by members and their dedication to the growth of the IESF.

“This year’s assembly demonstrated the strength of our community and the shared vision that drives IESF forward. I thank everyone for their contributions to a democratic and smooth process, and I look forward to welcoming more member federations to our family next year and even greater success” said Totovski.

The OGM 2024 in Riyadh was another step forward in IESF’s mission to unite the Esports world under a shared vision. With the growing number of national federations, the IESF continues to cement its role as the largest Esports family.

The post IESF Concludes 16th Ordinary General Meeting in Riyadh appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Chad Kinlay Chief Marketing Officer TrafficGuard

Influencers, Content and eSports: Unleashing the Power of Dynamic Strategies in the eSports Ecosystem

Published

4 days ago

November 18, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

influencers,-content-and-esports:-unleashing-the-power-of-dynamic-strategies-in-the-esports-ecosystem

The sports betting industry is undergoing significant growth worldwide with restrictions loosening and new markets emerging. New opportunities create fierce competition among sportsbooks, and this has led to them devising increasingly expensive and aggressive advertising campaigns.

Public figures and influencers have become a popular go-to for sportsbooks promotions, such as Michael Jordan partnering with DraftKings or Jamie Foxx with BetMGM. Big names are costly, and sportsbooks haven’t realised the ad spend used on these campaigns is going to waste. Without the right precautions in place, up to 22% of ad spend is lost to fraud according to Juniper Research.

The big budgets behind high-profile brand campaigns need to translate into real user engagement. To achieve this, sportsbooks must ensure their digital channels are optimised to capture the surge in interest these campaigns generate. Without proper management, this potential can be lost to inefficiencies like invalid traffic, diluting the impact of their investments.

Ad Budgets Going to Waste

In today’s competitive landscape, sportsbooks need to make every click count. In 2023 alone, The American Gaming Association estimated that over $1.9 billion was spent on advertising campaigns in the US. With such a large amount of spend in play, it’s crucial that sportsbooks see as big a Return on Advertising Spend (ROAS) as possible.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns are vital for sportsbook growth but can be disrupted by invalid traffic (IVT). IVT includes both malicious activity, like fraudulent bots, and unintentional actions, such as users repeatedly clicking on ads without intent to convert. These interactions inflate impressions and skew campaign performance data, leading to higher customer acquisition costs (CACs) and inefficient allocation of ad spend. Effectively managing IVT ensures that ad budgets drive genuine engagement and measurable growth.

Investing into influencers and celebrities also forces sportsbooks to bid on brand keywords to prevent their competitors stealing potential users searching for them. Up to 29% of PPC budgets are spent on this bidding according to Wordstream. As competition for brand keywords increases, PPC budgets are depleted without generating any new net revenue.

As campaigns become more expensive than ever, sportsbooks can’t afford to let profits fall to ad fraud. Instead of cutting budgets, sportsbooks should focus on analysing their campaign strategy.

Problematic Navigational Traffic

Navigational traffic is also presenting a significant challenge to sportsbooks alongside ad fraud. Navigational traffic refers to existing customers clicking on branded keywords to log into their accounts. While this seems convenient and harmless enough, this behaviour drastically inflates CACs. Like ad fraud, this can skew the effectiveness of PPC campaigns. By utilising paid search results instead of organic links to navigate to the site, costs are driven up without contributing to new user acquisition.

In addition to the challenges posed by navigational traffic and ad fraud, the competitive landscape for first-time depositors intensifies the need for strategic bidding on Google search. Brands investing heavily in influencers or sponsorships of major sporting events to generate awareness and drive potential users to search for them. However, without securing top placements in paid search results, these prospective customers may be intercepted by competitors before reaching the organic search listings. This creates a critical juncture where the effectiveness of a brand campaign hinges on converting that intent-driven traffic into first-time depositors, ensuring marketing spend achieves its goal of meaningful user acquisition.

First-time depositors are a critical metric for sportsbooks, and this issue directly impacts the cost efficiency of acquiring them. High CACs make marketing budgets less effective, reducing overall ROI.

Shoring Up Your Defences

Before launching costly ad campaigns, sportsbooks should adopt a multi-faceted approach to address ad fraud. IVT typically goes unnoticed, so to prevent this sportsbooks should monitor and analyse their campaign traffic for any suspicious activity. It is possible to identify IVT by looking out for signs such as irregular spikes in traffic from unknown locations or high pageviews. Fraudulent traffic can then by highlighted and removed.

The advancement of technology has made ad fraud more difficult to identify, and legacy fraud tools fail to detect IVT. They don’t analyse traffic at the impression level or consider the context of the business advertising. Sportsbooks can leverage ad-verification platforms to compensate for this. This allows sportsbooks to analyse and report suspicious traffic in real-time. Fraud can then be blocked before it has a chance to harm budgets.

Sportsbooks can also deploy tactics to reduce the impact of navigational traffic on CACs. Methods include encouraging existing customers to use mobile apps or direct bookmarks to log into their accounts instead of paid search campaigns. This decreases their reliance on PPC campaigns for navigation and protects budgets.

Keeping Profits in Sportsbooks’ Hands

Influencer and celebrity campaigns have proven to be a popular and useful tool in reeling new users and profits. However, if sportsbooks don’t have the essential precautions in place, they risk losing these profits to advertising fraud.

To make the most of their advertising efforts, sportsbooks need to prioritise their traffic. Implementing sophisticated tools to analyse traffic and filter out fraud will allow sportsbooks to protect their interests and focus on driving future growth. This way, they can secure their position in an increasingly competitive landscape.

Written by: Chad Kinlay, Chief Marketing Officer, TrafficGuard

A driven, open-minded, creative senior marketer with a strong sense of dedication and commitment. With over 15 years of progressive international experience in marketing and communications management, Kinlay has a credible history of commercial success.

Asia

8Bit Creatives partners with NODWIN Gaming as the exclusive talent partner for DreamHack India

Published

2 weeks ago

November 7, 2024

George Miller

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

8Bit Creatives, India’s leading esports consulting and talent management agency, has announced its partnership with NODWIN Gaming, a leader in new-age youth entertainment, gaming, and esports, as the exclusive Talent Partner for DreamHack India 2024.

With this partnership, 8Bit Creatives will leverage its significant reach in the Indian gaming, esports and youth communities through its prominent and talented roster of creators. These creators will create content leading up to the festival and also host meet-and-greet sessions.

India’s biggest gaming festival, DreamHack India, is set to take place from 15th to 17th November at the Hitex Exhibition Centre in Hyderabad, marking its fifth edition. For half a decade, the India edition of the global festival has become one of the most anticipated events of the Indian gaming ecosystem. Bringing together a plethora of events, including esports tournaments, BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) events, cosplay competitions, music concerts, and stand-up comedy, DreamHack India is the celebration of gaming, esports, pop-culture, and entertainment.

8Bit Creatives, CEO and founder Animesh Agarwal said “DreamHack India is one of the most prominent events in the Indian gaming and esports calendar and we’re proud to be the exclusive talent partners for it. This is further recognition of 8Bit Creatives’ ability to meaningfully engage the gaming and youth audiences across the country. Our belief in working with the right creators who create experiences that resonate with the youth audiences distinguishes our offerings and we can’t wait to share what we have in store for DreamHack India 2024 with our audiences!”

This is not the first time that 8Bit Creatives will partner with DreamHack India. The organisation was also the talent partner for the event in 2022.

Commenting on the partnership, NODWIN Gaming, Co-founder and MD Akshat Rathee said “Our vision at NODWIN Gaming is to create unforgettable experiences for the youth, and DreamHack has proven to be the ultimate platform to realise that vision, bringing together gaming, entertainment, and community in an immersive celebration. We’re thrilled to have 8Bit Creatives as our exclusive Talent Partner for DreamHack India 2024. It’s especially exciting to welcome iconic creators like Mortal, who joined us in our very first edition, back for this landmark fifth year, alongside fan favourites like Snax, Kaashvi, Thug, and Payal. These creators bring a unique energy that connects deeply with our fans and elevates every moment. Their presence underscores our commitment to crafting electrifying experiences year after year, building on the momentum of events like BGMS and past DreamHack editions. Together with 8Bit and this powerhouse lineup, we’re setting the stage for an unforgettable event that will bring fans and creators closer than ever before!”

8Bit Creatives’s content and esports division S8UL became the only organisation in the year to win ‘Content Group of the Year’ award for the third consecutive year at the Esports Awards 2024. Additionally, they are the only organisation from India to ever win an Esports Award in any category. Earlier this year, gaming content creators from 8Bit Creatives including Naman Mathur, Payal Dhare and Animesh “Thug” Agarwal were invited for a meet and greet session with the honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

The organisation has been at the forefront of India’s gaming and content ecosystem with its extensive range of services, including talent management, campaign curation and execution, brand activations and more.

The post 8Bit Creatives partners with NODWIN Gaming as the exclusive talent partner for DreamHack India appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.