It’s an inescapable fact if you live in the UK that the Commonwealth Games are here, with the sporting event plastered over every news site, TV channel, and, if you live in Birmingham, taking over your street. But for the esports world, this year’s Games have a special meaning because of the addition of the inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships.
For the past two months, teams from across the Commonwealth have been competing to represent their nations in Dota, eFootball, and Rocket League. Now, the finals loom on the horizon for the teams lucky enough to qualify.
The Commonwealth Esports Championships is proceeded by the Commonwealth Esports Forum on August 5th. This £295 ($361) entry event will feature panels from industry professionals. Tickets are still available.
The event proper will kick off the Rocket League (Open) finals on Saturday, August 6th, at 10:30am. This will be followed by the eFootball series (Open) and conclude with the Dota 2 (Womens) finals. Sunday will see the women’s finals for Rocket League and eFootball. The Dota 2 (Open) finals take place in the afternoon. Tickets for all four sessions are running out fast and are priced at £35 ($42).
The future of Commonwealth Esports
The ICC, Birmingham, the venue for the Commonwealth Esports Championships
Regardless of who you support, the event seems primed to catapult esports into a wider consciousness. The event this year is part of a pilot to see how esports could be integrated into the Commonwealth Games on a regular basis. Katie Sadleir, CEO of the CGF echoed that in her statements about the event in a recent release. “I have no doubt the Commonwealth Esports Championships will present a thrilling sporting spectacle and point the way towards the future of esports.”
Scottish competitor Gary “Big Stuff” McInnes further added to the point: “The Commonwealth Games is massive, and it could be the start of something really big, having an esports competition alongside it. It’s a great feeling and I’m buzzing to get down there and see how I get on. It will be great meeting other players from all over the world.”
Over the weekend, we’ll get to catch a glimpse of what esports integrated into a spectacle like the Commonwealth Games will look like. Hopefully, it will be a vision of great things to come.
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