· With this alliance, the two organizations aim to drive, democratize access to esports ecosystem in the country
According to the State of India Gaming Report 2022, the Indian esports industry is expected to grow to $140 million by 2027. Over the last few years, esports as a category gained recognition as a mainstream sport especiallyafter beingdebuted as an official medal sports at various international sports platforms. To capitalise on this growing consumer category,Vodafone Idea (Vi), one of India’sleading telecom operators and Paris based Team Vitality, internationally acclaimed esports organisation, have announced a long-termunionto boost the esports ecosystem in India.
Withthis first of its kind collaboration, the two brands jointly aimto create opportunities and exposures to esportsfans and gaming enthusiasts alike. The partnership encompasses many aspects such as brand sponsorship, content partnerships, gaming events and uniqueexperiences ata never-seen-before scale.This will enable Vi customersto participate in esportsand allow exclusive access to some of the popular Team Vitality tournaments and teams. This partnershipwillcreate opportunities for budding esports talent from across the country to have access to professional players, master classes, meet & greets with esports talent and many other opportunities.
Vi is known for its strong presence in the mobile games segment, offering a wide range of hyper casual mobile games to users via Vi Games onVi App.Through this association with Team Vitality, Vi now aims to deepen its focus on esports in India. Vi Games in recent pastforayed into the esports segment by hosting popular free-to-playtournamentsacross gameslike Call of Duty: Mobile, Free Fire Max, Asphalt 9, Clash Royale, etc.
Commenting on the association, Avneesh Khosla, CMO, Visaid“Gaming has always been our strategic focus area and we have continuously strived to strengthenour gaming portfolio with right partnerships and relevant offerings. Over the last few years,esportshas revolutionized the mobile gaming arena especially with younger audiences, and hence,deepening our focus inthis space was a natural progression for Vi Games. We are excited to partner with one of the leading esports organizations of the world – Team Vitality. Together, we aim to drive and democratize access to theesports ecosystem in India. In the coming months, we will introduce some exciting esports and other youth centric content for our consumers toexperience.”
Speaking on the occasionRandall Fernandez, Managing Director, Team Vitality India said,“We are exhilaratedto announceour partnership with Vi. We are at a juncture wheretechnologywillcatapultgamingto the next level and eagerlylook forwardto our journey together. We will unlock new horizons searching foraspiring gaming talent across the length and breadth of the country, set new precedents and create indelible markswithin the esportsindustry.”
Locally, Team Vitality’s all Indian Call of Duty: Mobile (CODM) team were among the top 16 teams globally who qualified and competed in the CODM World Championship 2023 that was held in Atlanta, US betweenDecember 15thand 17th. The organisation previously roped in popular gaming content creators Nischay ‘Live Insaan’ Malhan, Rachit ‘Rachitroo’ Yadav, Nitin ‘Classified YT’ Chougale, Shagufta ‘Xyaa’ Iqbal and Pratik ‘Aurum’ Mehra who have a cumulative YouTube base of 20 million subscribers.
To capitalise on this upward growing industry and to build a deeper connect with consumers, Vi and Team Vitality plan to launch various gaming contests and events.