The British Esports Association (BEA), a non-profit organzation that supports and promotes esports in the UK, has partnered with Twitch to bring competitive gaming championships to schools and colleges in the UK.
“The combination of passion and education can only lead to more opportunities for themselves and this exciting industry.” Mark “Garvey” Candella, Twitch director of strategic partnerships, said in the announcement. “We are proud to work with the British Esports Association on helping students realise their potential through the practical experience this program creates.”
This new championship will begin Oct. 10 and will run for two seasons. It will be open to students aged between 12 to 19 and each school will be allowed to enter teams for three different games.
The first season will consist of eight weeks of fixtures with breaks during vacation time. The second season will run from the new year. The main fixtures will run for six weeks in a Swiss-style tournament format, with playoffs taking place during the remaining two weeks. The finals will take place live at Birmingham’s NEC stadium in April 2019 as part of the Insomnia Gaming Festival.
The first confirmed game for the championship series is League of Legends with more games yet to be revealed.
Depending on the amount of signups, the schools and colleges will be split into respective regions. The top two teams at the end of the season from each region will get promoted to a Super League from season two.
In addition to the Twitch partnership, the BEA will also be partnering with AoC Sport to create a new committee that will oversee the event. That group will work to make sure the competition is incorporated successfully into college lifestyle, and does not effect the student’s studies if they chose to compete.
