Football Sports Development (FSDL) and South Asia’s leading esports company NODWIN Gaming today announced the launch of eISL as the Indian Super League becomes the country’s first major sports league to venture into competitive gaming, in collaboration with EA SPORTS TM. FSDL has been consistently curating new concepts and platforms to explore the youthful and global facets of football and eISL is another exciting platform to engage the growing number of young football fans in India with the rapidly growing online gaming spectrum. NODWIN Gaming will be the tournament organizer for eISL.

The first edition of eISL is set to debut alongside ISL season 2021-22 from November 20. The eISL finals will be held on March 20, 2022, with a mega prize pool of INR 74 Lacs and an additional INR 4 Lacs for the Season MVP. 22 esports athletes, 11 male and 11 female, will represent all 11 ISL clubs, driving inclusivity with the growing female presence in the esports arena.

A total of 117 matches will be played as this new esports tournament in collaboration with NODWIN Gaming and EA SPORTS TM will determine the champion of the eISL and will also be an official league qualifying event to the EA SPORTS TM FIFA22 GLOBAL SERIES (FGS) Playoffs as ISL becomes the contributing league for the global tournament post its historic inclusion in EA SPORTS TM FIFA 22.

Aspiring EA SPORTS TM FIFA 22 esports athletes of the country will compete in a total of 11 online qualifiers. Each qualifier will determine the representatives for the 11 clubs – 1 qualifier per club. Each club will play 2 athletes – 1 male & 1 female. An additional 12th all-female qualifiers will determine the selection of the female players in each club.  The rest of the 11 qualifiers will be held in the order of the final ISL 2020-21 season standings. The tournament will have online qualifiers, regular season and grand finals. The clubs will play round-robin matches alongside the inaugural eISL season and a leader board will be put in place. The top 4 clubs will advance to the Grand Finals. The finalists will play in a double-elimination format to determine the winner. Keeping the safety measures in place, a bio-secure bubble will be set up for players in Gurugram, Haryana during the course of the eISL season.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Football Counter (@footballcounter)

Says Martin Bain, Chief Executive Officer at FSDL, “Fan engagement is one of the key factors to building a sport and expanding its footprint. The growing online gaming landscape in India provides a great opportunity to engage with the next generation of fans in the country. The esports experience is vital to the future of football and we continue to evolve towards its growth.”

“eISL is an exciting platform and we are confident that it will lead the evolution of fan engagement and contribute significantly to boost the sport’s popularity in the country.”

“NODWIN Gaming along with Indian Super League and EA SPORTS TM aims to select the best FIFA players through EA SPORTS TM FIFA Global Series India Qualifiers. The strong equity of ISL in India, coupled with the vibrancy of FIFA 22 is sure to spark the intrigue of viewers and players alike. This is sure to bring joy to the millions of esports fans in India”, said Mr. Akshat Rathee, MD & Co-Founder, NODWIN Gaming.

EA SPORTS TM FIFA Global Series, the most inclusive esports tournament has reached the sub-continent as part of its global expansion. With many of the world’s biggest football leagues running qualifying events, the EA SPORTS TM FIFA Global Series brings mammoth participation and viewership. NODWIN Gaming aims to bring together the followers of the sport and the lovers of esports under one blanket to embrace the beauty of the sport in a different shape and form.

The qualifications will take place between 1-3 November 2021 and the Grand Finals on 19 & 20 March 2022.

Registrations for the qualifiers will be held on ESL Play and from the events section on PlayStation. Players will have to create an ESL Play ID to register for the tournament on the ESL Play platform. The minimum age to enter the competition is 16.

For Trial related updates: Latest trials updates in Mumbai Football

The post FSDL reiterates youth appeal with revolutionary esports platform eISL appeared first on Football Counter.

The deal includes all major AFC national team and club competitions, including but not limited to the final round of the AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar, AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022, the AFC Asian Cup China 2023, as well as the annual club competitions, the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup from the 2021 season.

FSDL was established to develop Indian football as the commercial partner of the All India Football Federation, and to operate India’s top tier football league, the Indian Super League. FSDL will be sub-licensing the media rights to partner channels and digital service providers, offering significantly more coverage of the AFC’s competitions on both linear and digital channels in a region where the passion for football has grown exponentially in recent years.

Dato’ Windsor John, the AFC General Secretary, said: “The AFC is delighted to enter into this partnership with FSDL, which represents another decisive step towards increasing the consumption of the AFC’s competitions and confirming football as Asia’s number one sport as outlined in the AFC’s Vision.

“We look forward to working with FSDL in expanding the fanbase of the AFC’s world-class competitions in a region that continues to showcase Asia’s undeniable passion for the game, and we thank them for believing in the future of Asian football.”

Mrs. Nita Ambani, Founder & Chairperson, FSDL said: “This is a hugely significant development for Indian football. To bring Asia’s best footballing action for our fans is a key part of our long-term strategy, commitment, and desire to have as many Indian youths participate, follow, and engage with the sport. I believe the live telecast of AFC competitions to our homes will enable a generation of youth to follow the “beautiful game” and continue to raise and develop the profile of the sport.

“We are fully committed to the development of Indian football and will continue to work with the stakeholders in India, AFC and the FIFA towards building a strong ecosystem.”

Patrick Murphy, Board Member and CEO at Football Marketing Asia, said: “We are excited to welcome FSDL as our valued media partner. FSDL has strong relationships with broadcasters throughout the Indian subcontinent who have the necessary experience and expertise in their local markets to further strengthen the presence of Asian football. We are looking forward to seeing more fans enjoy AFC competitions.”

CREDITS- AIFF MEDIA

For Trial related updates: Latest trials updates in Mumbai Football

Also Read: The Resurgence of Mumbai Football

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for all the latest happenings in the world of Indian football

The post AFC agrees media rights deal with Football Sports Development Limited in the Indian Subcontinent appeared first on Football Counter.

“This will be a developmental league. We have been told that this won’t strictly be for U21 players. A few overage players will be allowed, while many clubs want their reserves to have a chance,” a senior club official told Times Of India.

The league is a fantastic idea, but it may also create financial problems for the clubs. So for this, in a separate meeting, all the clubs were informed that the clubs have to look for the travelling and accommodation expenses. The league will bear the organisational and operational costs. The budget for travelling and accommodations for each club is expected to be around 80 Lakhs to 1 Crore.

“The development league is a very good idea, but I’m not sure if all clubs are willing to spend the money. There has to be ways where the expenses are cut down,” told another official to Times of India.

This new development league is slated to kick off in January 2022 in Goa, under a safe bio-bubble. All the teams will play a single game against each other, and the top 4 will qualify further. This format is encouraged by the leading European leagues, which also have a league for the reserve players, which helps in the development of players, teams, and the sport!

Other than this league, FSDL has multiple plans for upcoming players. This includes the decrease in a number of foreign players in the playing XI and also the rule that made all the teams in ISL to sign at least four U-21 players (those born on or after January 1, 2001) and two of them will be mandatorily a part of the match-day squad.

With all the European leagues influences it will be interesting to see how sports betting like $2 deposit casino will be taken seeing how common it is Europe

For Trial related updates: Latest trials updates in Mumbai Football

Also Read: FC Goa announce first feeder Club partnership

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for all the latest happenings in the world of Indian football

The post ISL to propose a new league for reserve and U-21 players appeared first on Football Counter.