The French premier soccer league Ligue 1 headed into eSports last week by establishing their own brand, via its announcement, called eLigue1.
They have now partnered with EA Sports’ FIFA 17 to make their own gaming competition. Each of the 20 member clubs that the organization has will sponsor two FIFA players, one for Xbox One and one for PS4, to compete in the league’s new eSports branch.
The tournament will have a winter season set to start in November and a Spring Session between February and March. The winners of each season will go on to compete at the eLigue playoffs in May. The winner of that will qualify for a European League where he will play against winners from other European eSports leagues similar to this one, according to Sky Sports.
Didier Quillot, Chief Executive Officer of Ligue 1, called the announcement “a great precedent in French and European sport” and highlighted the “increasing value … that eSports is opening up in sports’ rights, ticketing, merchandising and sponsorship.”