True Gamers unveils plans to create $280m esports island

Esports lounge network True Gamers has announced plans to build a large-scale ‘esports island’ in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The island will include training facilities, a tournament venue, content creation spaces and hotels for accommodating esports and gaming personnel.

The ambitious idea is based on an actual, real-world island located near the UAE capital Abu Dhabi. True Gamers is currently in talks with ‘high-profile investors’ to acquire the $280m (£219m) needed to both acquire the island and build all facilities that are needed for the project.

According to a release, the project is a result of a long-term research effort by True Gamers which included input from over 100 organisations that operate in the esports space. This apparently includes more than 30 teams from North and South America, Europe and MENA. True Gamers has specifically mentioned Virtus.Pro, Team Spirit and BetBoom as some of the organisations that provided input for the project.

The island will feature several locations focused on competing, providing boot camps or offering accommodation. The Digital Tower is the name of the island’s hub which will include spaces for meetings, startup accelerators and animation studios. In addition to the tower, an arena will be built, called the TG Arena. It will feature spaces for esports tournaments as well as a computer club with around 100 PCs, a simulation racing section and a space for console gaming.

The project will be rounded up with a bootcamp section, which will be ‘akin to American collegiate fraternities’. The boot camp will feature accommodation and technology for training, and will be created with inputs from team managers around the world, according to the creators.

The island will also have a hotel, called the GG Resort, which will offer 200 rooms with gaming PCs along with traditional hotel amenities. The island will also have a ‘parachute jump check-in’ inspired by PUBG.

The island’s creators did not provide exact dates for its opening, but did note that they anticipate a return on investment in 10 years after the Esports Island is opened.

Anton Vasilenko, CEO and co-founder of True Gamers, commented: “True Gamers conducted a comprehensive market analysis of the MENA region’s esports landscape and the global esports industry’s growth trajectory before esports Island development. This in-depth analysis gives us the confidence that the proposed business model will be instrumental in bringing esports Island to life.”