New gaming formats and more regionality: eSports on course to become a Swiss national sport thanks to Swisscom’s commitment

The successful Gaming Cups will be developed further and become publicly accessible competitions with a focus on successful games such as Fortnite, where fans can look forward to a continuation of the series from 2019 and 2020, with more titles to be announced on an ongoing basis.
To make gaming content as accessible as possible for the wider Swiss public, the Hero League will stream in English, Swiss German and French. In addition, the future registration procedure, the communities and support will all be offered in the same languages that the gamers speak themselves. Gaming influencers and community managers are also being set up in a targeted manner. Annette Kohler: “Physical sports have always relied on local advocates who give the sport a face. It is precisely this principle that we want to cultivate in gaming, but of course in a more digital way as appropriate for the sport.” This is something that does not yet exist anywhere else in the world. “Following the international growth of eSports, we are now bringing it to Switzerland and localising it accordingly. We are convinced that there is a very healthy future ahead for the sport.”

For the implementation, Swisscom will, from 1 January 2022, join forces with MYI Entertainment, one of the leading European eSports and gaming agencies. MYI is based in Bern with additional offices in Zurich and Munich. The partnership with ESL is due to expire at the end of the year. “We would like to thank ESL for the excellent cooperation. Together, we have turned eSports from a niche sport in Switzerland into a mass sport. With MYI, we are now ready to take it to the next level as the new Swiss national sport. We will therefore be making it even more local, more straightforward and more diverse.”