Mobile operator giants T-Mobile have taken their recent esports infatuation to another level by sponsoring Riot Games‘ League of Legends 2017 World Championship.
The deal follows on from news of T-Mobile partnering with North American esports giants TSM and Cloud9 as recently as last month.
A statement on the League of Legends esports site said Riot were “proud” to be announcing the deal. The communications company will act as presenting sponsor of a new segment for the Worlds 2017 broadcast entitled ‘The Best of the Rift’, which celebrates the tournament’s outstanding players each week. The feature will spotlight the stars and celebrate the best performances across the competition.
The move caps a busy year in esports for T-Mobile, who have invested strongly in the industry after a long history of sporting sponsorships. Their recent collaboration with TSM and Cloud9 followed a partnership with Twitch when sponsoring a FGC event at E3 earlier this year.
Both TSM and Cloud9 had promised that their fans will benefit from their respective deals, through increased engagement and the possibility of extra events. The two organisations each have a team at this years Worlds, with Cloud9 taking a confident 4-0 start to their tournament.
Worlds began with the opening of the Play-In Stage yesterday, and will conclude in the finals on the 4th of November.
Esports Insider says: Promising commitment by T-Mobile to the esports scene in 2017 makes them a major player in the field going forward.