Traditional sports teams continue pouring into the rapidly expanding global esports landscape. From American football and basketball teams to European, Asian, and Latin American sports organizations, the trends are apparent. The coveted younger-audience demographic is fundamentally shifting a large proportion of interest and viewership to esports. Recognizing these trends, Barcelona FC, one of the undisputed giants of European Football, has just announced that it will be joining the League of Legends Superliga in 2022.
The Superliga is the most competitive tournament in Spain organized by PVL, the Professional Video Games League. By the end of the summer 2021 season, the Superliga had been watched by close to five million people – a record high. The tournament had accumulated over 2.6 million viewing hours, 39% up from the previous year. Other key teams in the Superliga include Vodafone Giants, Movistar Riders, G2 Arctic, and MAD Lions Madrid, and UCAM Esports Club.
Barcelona was able to get this coveted spot in the Supeliga by purchasing the rights that were made available by the departure of S2V esports. Sevilla FC was another Spanish club that had been interested in acquiring the rights to this slot. Although Barcelona was able to win this round, Sevilla is expected to continue its campaign for representation in esports along with other European clubs.
On entering this League of Legends tournament, FC Barcelona is strengthening its commitment to an important strategic sector for the Club. The new eSports division is a program launched with the intention of building a leading sector that will help take the brand to countries like the US and China, connect with new audiences, and create a new source of revenue for the club.
In addition to League of Legends, FC Barcelona currently has two other eSports teams. One is competing in eFootballPES and the other competes in the Rocket League. The club competes in eFootballPro alongside teams like Manchester United, Juventus, Bayern Munich, and Arsenal. In the Rocket League, Barcelona is competing in the biggest European competition, the Rocket League Championship Series, for the third consecutive season.
