ESPL signs Tiger Shroff as face of first-ever franchise-based Esports League
Tiger Shroff becomes one of the first Bollywood actors to partner with Esports to push Esports to the general public in India.- This collaboration aims to nurture an ecosystem that the Indian esports industry has never seen before.
Tiger Shroff set to don a new hat as brand ambassador for India’s first-ever franchise
While Esports has grown exponentially, especially during the lockdown, this league is the first of its kind to partner with Bollywood to bring greater popularity and acceptance to Esports. This powerful collaboration aims to nurture an ecosystem that the Indian esports industry has never seen before. The league will capitalize on Tiger’s popularity and his strong influence on dynamic Gen Y and Gen Z.
Sharing his enthusiasm, Tiger Shroff said: “I am really delighted to be working with Esports Premier League. This opens up a tremendous opportunity to recognize the growing talent in esports in India. As the world‘s first esports franchise-based model, ESPL will surely help place India first on the world map. Esports fans and gamers are shaping the future of entertainment and sports. And I am happy to represent this force of the future. With the majority of the 1.4 billion Indians being young, the Bollywood sensation, also known for its passion for sports and mixed martial arts, will connect Esports to the mainstream as the league’s inaugural edition promises to bring the excitement of Esports through its national tournament. with lakhs of registrations which will start from Wednesday. The preliminary rounds will engage in a very competitive competition as eight teams will be chosen in the third round to take part in the grand final. Speaking about the association, ESPL Director Vishwalok Nath said, “One of the main goals of the ESPL has been to reach every millennial and player in the country and our goal of having Tiger Shroff on board has been to create a much deeper connection and develop the gaming community. We hope that this association will also advance our initiative to step up the mission of taking esports to the next level in India. ”
As part of the franchise-based league, the Hyderabad team was bought by Checkered Flag Sports – a consortium between Sirish Kumar, Prasad Mangipudi and Aashwij Ravula – and the team was named Hyderabad Hydras. Hyderabad is the first city to see the proud owners of the inaugural edition of ESPL. There will be more teams representing cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and states like Punjab and Rajasthan in the next league. India Today Gaming has partnered with Garena to create this exclusive gaming platform featuring their most popular battle royale game, Free Fire, in India.
The matches will be broadcast on giant OTT Disney + Hotstar alongside the official India Today and Aaj Tak YouTube and Facebook channels and their websites. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Season 1 will run virtually over two and a half months. It will also feature a prize pool worth Rs. 25 lakhs where the winner takes home a sum of Rs. 12 lakhs while the teams ranked second and third will take home Rs. 6 lakhs and Rs. 3 lakhs, respectively.