Tournament organiser and production company ESL has teamed with American collegiate athletic programme Big East Conference to launch a Rocket League competition in the conference.
A pilot event titled the Big East Esports Invitational Powered by ESL was hosted in April, and evidently it was successful. Seton Hall won the Rocket League competition, whereas Villanova emerged victorious in League of Legends.
Craig Levine, Global Chief Strategy Officer for ESL discussed the partnership: “ESL and the BIG EAST are working together with the universities and students to weave esports into the fabric of campus life through competition, research and curriculum. We anticipate that BIG EAST Esports will help lay the structural foundation for the future of player and fan ecosystems in the U.S.”
The inaugural season of Big East Esports will kick off on October 21st, with colleges competing on Rocket League. Matches will be facilitated online through ESL Play, with the top four teams at the back-end of the season moving on to the playoffs.
Vince Nicastro, Deputy Commissioner and COO of the Big East Conference also commented: We are very excited to partner again with ESL to build our platform in this rapidly evolving sector. We believe that competitive esports in the collegiate setting have considerable growth potential, and our inaugural competition will allow us to connect with a growing number of students that are actively engaged in esports on our campuses.”
Esports Insider says: Collegiate esports seems to be getting more and more support, and a company such as ESL getting involved can only help it grow. Rocket League isn’t the game you’d expect to be picked between itself and League of Legends, so this is a little different from the norm. We’re excited to see how the season performs.