Twitter Pacts With eSports Giants To Stream 15 Gaming Tournaments In 2017

Following deals with the NFL, MLB, NHL, and PGA, it turns out Twitter doesn’t only want to stream traditional sports content — the company is now making a full court press for eSports broadcasts as well.

Though it initially began experimenting with eSports streams last July with an Eleague Counter-Strike: Global Offensive championship, Twitter announced today pacts with two leading eSports companies, ESL and DreamHack, to broadcast a total of 15 gaming events throughout 2017. The deal also includes original content. Streams will be culled from the ESL One, Intel Extreme Masters, and DreamHack tournaments, according to a release, with the premiere outing being the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice tournament in Poland this Saturday. (Both ESL and DreamHack are a part of the Swedish digital entertainment goliath MTG).

In addition to tournament coverage, ESL — the Electronic Sports League — will also furnish a 30-minute weekly show exclusive to Twitter, featuring tournament highlights and behind-the-scenes footage. All told, there will be 1,500 hours of programming. Marketers will be able to purchase TV-style ad packages during the live broadcasts, as well as sponsor highlight and recap clips. Broadcasts will air at esl.twitter.com

“eSports is growing at a rapid pace and we see this collaboration as a way to tap into the engaged audience of gamers that are already using Twitter as a primary source of content,” said Twitter COO Anthony Noto.

Johannes Schiefer, VP of social media and editorial at Germany-headquarted ESL, said, “eSports fans are endemic to digital…Intel Extreme Masters Katowice is our most anticipated live event.” Added Marcus Lindmark, president and CEO of Swedish digital festival company DreamHack: “This will be a shortcut for fans, as they can both watch and engage on [Twitter] at the same time.”