AT&T Expands Esports Presence With ESL Deal

AT&T, one of the country’s biggest advertisers, is expanding its presence in the Esports space. The company on Monday announced a deal with ESL, a major U.S.-based esports league.

The mobile giant will be the presenting sponsor of a new mobile gaming league being developed by ESL, called The ESL Mobile Open. 

The ESL Mobile Open will run year-round and kick off later this month. The games will include Clash of Clans, PUBG Mobile, and Asphalt 9: Legends. Anyone can enter, with the top players getting a chance to play on stage and at live broadcasts from ESL events.

The prize pool will be worth $330,000.

AT&T has been significantly expanding its esports presence in recent months. The company became a major sponsor of the Los Angeles-based team Cloud9, and it has sponsored the ESL Arena starting last year.

The mobile giant is betting esports can help it reach young males, a demographic less likely to consume traditional media content. They watch slightly less traditional sports than their older counterparts.

According to a report released last week by the Video Advertising Bureau, esports appears well-positioned to help marketers “reach an passionate, desirable, elusive but receptive audience.”

Per the VAB report, the median age of an esports viewer is 32, with a 63% male skew. The report also found esports fans have a generally favorable view of advertisers that support their favorite teams/games/tournaments.

“Most fans are multidimensional, with a variety of interests well beyond esports and video games,” the report says. “Most importantly, they have a positive attitude towards advertising and are very willing to sample products from sponsors.”

Next story loading loading..