Students enrolled at schools that participate in the Big 12 Conference know that the culture of collegiate athletics is centered on one sport—football. And if the folks behind the Madden Summer Challenge 2020 esports tournament have their way, it’ll stay that way.
Learfield IMG College and Mainline.gg in conjunction with the Big 12 Conference have come together in launching the first esports tournament that will see students from all 10 member schools fight to be named the best Madden NFL 20 player of the tournament.
With the COVID-19 pandemic all but shutting down sports and entertainment across the globe, esports has bucked the trend and is thriving. Thriving so much so that networks such as FOX Sports and ESPN have actively sought out esports events for broadcast, including as simulation racing and Rocket League competitions. Viewership numbers have steadily risen with two examples being the Overwatch League seeing its best peak viewership since this season’s opening week and the League of Legends European Championship reporting an 81% YTD viewership growth during the Summer Split.
According to the VP of Strategic Solutions and Partnerships for Learfield IMG College, Nick Garner, whose organization became the sponsorship rights holder for the conference last April, figuring out how to engage students who were no longer on campus became a priority.
“The Big 12 had brought up the idea of trying to figure out something to do in the midst of this unprecedented student downtime and they came to us,” Garner told The Esports Observer. “We already had established a relationship with Mainline and its CEO Chris Buckner and it made a lot of sense to try and put something together with the Big 12. That was the catalyst for the Madden Summer Challenge. And here we are.”
As of Monday, there were 249 teams registered for the event across all Big 10 schools with qualifiers having already started. The format will see each individual school host its own tournament, sending those 10 winners into the championship tournament along with six wildcards to create a 16-team bracket. The qualifiers and the championships will be broadcast throughout the week with the championships being aired Saturday and Sunday on ESPN’s Big 12 Now’s digital channel and the ESPN Esports Twitch channel.
When developing the tournament concept along with Mainline and the Big 12, and after looking at how well esports was doing in terms of viewership numbers, Garner took a long hard look at how they would incorporate sponsorships into the event. Would he be able to incorporate sponsors already associated with the Big 12 or would he have to find other sponsors, educating them about the opportunities in the space?
“We definitely thought about how to incorporate sponsors and opportunities for those sponsors,” he said. “Our sponsors are already really well educated on sports and events and this event made sense for them. I think brands are recognizing just how well esports are doing, which is really compelling for them. This event is a great way for brands to get involved and reach the gaming and esports audiences.”
While Dr Pepper & Cream Soda is the main event sponsor, each member school also has its own tournament sponsors as well. For member schools, the Kansas State Lottery is the title sponsor for the Kansas State and University of Kansas qualifiers while MTN Dew Game Fuel is the sponsor for the Oklahoma State event. For Texas Tech University, the Texas Tech Credit Union is a sponsor while the University of Texas is sponsored by H-E-B and West Virginia is sponsored by Papa John’s. That’s a total of seven sponsors spanning the event and individual schools.
Mainline’s tournament software has allowed Learfield IMG College’s staff at each of the Big 12 member schools the option to sell sponsors in relation to esports events. Buckner believes that companies are starting to see the enormous reach esports has, especially during the pandemic.
“We’re super excited on the Mainline side. We are the end-to-end execution of the tournament through our software and whether it’s community management or the administration of the tournament itself, having all these students involved it’s just such an exciting time. Who knows the sheer amount of possibilities of how this could expand to as we move into the fall?”
Buckner envisions a collegiate landscape where esports becomes not just a part of the varsity sports culture at participating schools, but a culture derived from its entire student body. Events and competitions can be played from anywhere and Buckner believes this is the reason esports can rival traditional sports engagement.
“With Mainline, anybody could join any university. You don’t have to be part of a team. You don’t have to be a part of the varsity program,” said Buckner, a former Texas A&M Yell Leader. “I think that this is a really amazing step for the collegiate market. It’s at that beginning part of that hockey stick.”
A world in which esports is brought to the student body through both its intramural programs and athletics departments is what Buckner wants to see. Bringing esports to bear at the varsity, club, and student body levels could see hundreds of thousands of new fans and players enter the esports space. For Buckner, this isn’t a dream, it’s a distinct possibility.
“What we are doing is completely agnostic when it comes to where we want to see esports at individual schools,” he said. “Whether it’s through a varsity program or intramurals, we can facilitate that and help each school grow. We truly and dearly see the value of esports in relationship to people and we just want to help collegiate esports grow.”
And as a discerning eye watches the viewership numbers surrounding the Madden Summer Challenge, the Big 12, Garner, and Buckner will be looking to create other engaging and exciting esports events as a part of their futures.
“We’ve got a great partner in Mainline,” Garner said. “We’ve been in communication with the Big 12 and ESPN and we know we’ll have a top-quality broadcast. This is an exciting opportunity for us to deliver compelling esports content to both sports and gaming fans as well as our sponsor brands. That’s the big message.”
