eLaLiga Santander: football like never before

The eSports are here to stay. They have become a technological and social phenomenon that crosses borders and to which LaLiga has joined in recent years, which continues betting on an innovative sector whose followers grow with the passing of days.

And he has done it through the project eLaLiga Santander, which premieres identity, but was born during the 2017-18 season thanks to LaLiga and Electronic Arts with the firm objective of entering the universe of the digital world, in which football also has its space. The growth since then has been remarkable, with an increase in sponsors and a more professionalized competition, in which it has gone from 17 to 34 registered clubs of LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank. This third season, which begins on February 14, makes it the national FIFA 20 competition that distributes the most economic prize, with a total of 100,000 euros, in addition to the distribution of points for the EA Sports FIFA 20 Global Series.

Last January a first stage of online drafts started, but the real competition is launched this Friday, in Madrid, with a new format and with the Kick Off tournament, where the first points will be distributed. Alfredo Bermejo, director of Digital Strategy of LaLiga, explains that to develop the new game mode of the tournament for this season they had “a very intense period of reflection to see how we could enter this world. We wanted a more concentrated format, in less months, to give more packaging to the face-to-face events. In short, more attractive and oriented to a wider audience, ”he explains. The presidents of the clubs will attend the event, together with Javier Tebas, president of LaLiga; Felipe Martín, director of Sponsorships, Events and RRSS of Santander Spain; Nicholas Wlodyka, VP general director of EA Sports and Sergio Oslé, president of Movistar +.

LaLiga wants to approach audiences that consume football in a different way, who see it every weekend and who live it the rest of the days through video games

The face-to-face Mid Season event will take place on April 1, in Barcelona. In this tournament the 16 players who have accumulated the most points to date will compete. Then, and after the third online tournament, the best classified will be chosen for the grand finale from May 9, in Madrid, where the third champion of eLaLiga Santander will be known.

“The illusion is huge. Personally, it is the first time that I am going to compete in a tournament of this type and, in addition, I do it with the team of my life. I have always seen that there were clubs that bet strongly on this world and that it is the club that you are fond of that who calls you is incredible, ”he says Cristian Barrios, gamer of Real Sporting de Gijón and youtuber known as Chigre. About the new format and the growth of eSports by LaLiga, José Vicente García, Vivi Khofolo, Valencia CF gamer, believes that there will be greater competitiveness: “It is very good for everyone that LaLiga bet on eSports. With this new format, as there are fewer tournaments, effectiveness is sought more than regularity, so it will be more complicated and will increase the level of demand for all ”.

LaLiga has decided to continue betting on eSports to get closer to the young public through gamers, which bring together their two great passions: video games and football. “LaLiga wants to approach audiences that consume football in a different way, who see it every weekend and who live it the rest of the days through video games,” Bermejo says. Thus, this event, with increasingly professional dyes, aims to elevate eSports to a new dimension. And it shows, once again, that football is an entertainment product whose growth is unstoppable.