eSports

LAMBORGHINI PRESENTS ITS FIRST EVER ESPORTS TEAM FOR VIRTUAL RACING AND ANNOUNCES THE THREE OFFICIAL SIM DRIVERS

Published

2 years ago

April 11, 2022

LAMBORGHINI PRESENTS ITS FIRST EVER ESPORTS TEAM FOR VIRTUAL RACING AND ANNOUNCES THE THREE OFFICIAL SIM DRIVERS

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Strengthening its commitment to the Esports scene with a factory team, Lamborghini has unveiled the three sim drivers who will represent the brand during the 2022 season in international sim racing competitions.

Lamborghini decided to create its own official team to build on the valuable experience gained with The Real Race, the virtual one-make championship that debuted in 2020. The Esports Team represents a further opportunity to expand the brand’s presence in a sector that is constantly developing, highly competitive, and offers the chance to experience emotions comparable to those of a real race.

The three sim drivers chosen to represent the brand in the major international Esports competitions are Jordan Sherrat, Gianfranco Giglioli and Giorgio Simonini.

Sherrat, who was born in South Africa in 1999, earned his place on the Lamborghini Esports team thanks to his success in the latest edition of The Real Race, winning fifteen out of seventeen races and taking nine out of ten pole positions. The dominator of the second edition of the Lamborghini Esports championship for the EMEA region, who gained attention after his third place finish in 2020, is the perfect standard bearer for the team, both for the skills he has demonstrated in competition over the past two seasons and for being a huge fan of the Lamborghini brand.

“Being chosen by Lamborghini to be the Official Sim driver still feels like a dream,” commented Sherrat. “All the hard work and sacrifice I have put in behind the scenes have been recognised and I finally get to live my dream! I want to thank Lamborghini for putting their trust in me to represent their prestigious Brand.”

The second talent selected is Gianfranco Giglioli, a 24-year-old Italian-Venezuelan driver already well-established in the sim racing world. He was one of the first virtual drivers to take part in the Formula 1 Esports Series, finishing eighth in the inaugural season. In 2020 Giglioli placed fifth in the first edition of The Real Race, and that same year he won the Porsche Esports Carrera Cup Italia.

Completing the line-up is 22-year-old Italian sim driver Giorgio Simonini. His list of achievements includes first place in the Sim Grid World Cup 2020 and fourth place in the SRO Esports 2020 championship, results that make him one of the most promising drivers in virtual racing.

Sherrat and Giglioli will compete together in the GT World Challenge Esports Sprint Series Europe, and Simonini will join the pair to form the crew for the 2022 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports Endurance Championship.

The Sprint calendar consists of five races and starts on April 6th with the Misano race. The last appointment is set for August 3rd, with the grand finale scheduled in the virtual version of the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza.

The Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports series kicks off on April 16th with the 12 Hours of Bathurst, the famous Australian endurance race. Here too there are five rounds on the calendar, with the competition concluding on August 27th with the 9 Hours of Kyalami.

Sherrat, Giglioli and Simonini have already started training to prepare for the first events on the calendar, sharing important information on driving and setup. The three sim drivers will be supported during the season by the Squadra Corse staff, who are dedicating a team principal, driver coach and engineers to the project to offer their expertise in the development and analysis of telemetry data, from the track to the virtual simulation.

Automobili Lamborghini’s Head of Motorsport Giorgio Sanna expressed his satisfaction with the launch of this exciting new project: “Sim racing is an important platform in today’s motorsport scene. Video games were born to allow those who didn’t have opportunities for real-life racing to impersonate the professional drivers. Now, after several decades of development in the industry, simulated racing is getting closer and closer to its real-life counterpart and now has nothing to envy from professional motorsport. Moreover, sim racing is an additional tool for us to develop some of the fundamental aspects of real racing, such as car setups and software applications that will play an important role in the future of our brand.”

Lamborghini has also confirmed the return of The Real Race for 2022. The dates of the third edition of the one-make Lamborghini Esports series will be announced in the coming weeks.

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TEAM VITALITY TO SET FIRE TO THE TEKKEN 8 SCENE WITH SOUTH KOREAN PLAYER JEONDDING

Published

21 hours ago

April 22, 2024

Adrienn Sarkany

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Team Vitality, Europe’s leading esports organisation, is back on the fighting game scene with the latest instalment of the famous franchise TEKKEN. Following the release of the eighth edition of the renowned game earlier this year, the French club now welcomes TEKKEN 8 player “Jeondding” to the hive. This expansion strengthens the organisation’s presence in South Korea, reaching a new milestone on its mission to dominate the international stage.

JEONDDING MAKES DEBUT WITH TEAM VITALITY AT EVO JAPAN 2024

Jeon “Jeondding” Sanghyeon stands as a formidable player in the competitive TEKKEN 8 scene, boasting several successes and titles to his name. Recently, Jeondding ranked amongst the top two players in the Tekken 7 World Tour Grand Finals 2022 and top eight in 2023. His dominance also extends beyond the global stage, as in the same year, he emerged as the champion in both the VSFighting XI 2023 and CEO 2023 tournaments.

Recognised for his distinctive gameplay style, Jeondding has become widely known for his mastery of often overlooked characters in competitive play, such as ‘Eddy Gordo’. His ability to excel with these characters has earned him esteemed recognition within the fighting game community. Jeondding will continue to showcase his skills with ‘Eddy Gordo’ as he represents Team Vitality at EVO Japan, marking his debut on the international stage with the team from April 27th to 29th.

Beyond his skill, Jeondding’s charm shines through in LAN events. His charismatic presence strikes a perfect balance between competitive performance and entertainment, engaging fans worldwide. A passionate sports fan himself, Jeondding recognises the power of fans, electrifying the atmosphere wherever he competes!

“When I first got contacted by Team Vitality, I couldn’t believe it! I wondered if I could join a huge team like this, and now that dream has come true. While exchanging with the organisation, I started to get to know more and more about the identity of the club, watching their videos on their YouTube channel, their trophees… and it gave me goosebumps. I want to grow with this club, continue to be a great player and bring new titles on Tekken 8 for Team Vitality!” explains Jeon “Jeondding” Sanghyeon

REACHING A NEW MILESTONE ON THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE BEFORE ESPORTS WORLD CUP

With the latest addition of Tekken 8, Team Vitality expands its competitive game titles to eight, along with ten rosters across male and female esports circuits under its banner. This addition not only solidifies the French club’s foothold in South Korea but also marks the organisation’s return to the fighting game community. Jeondding’s participation in key international events further strengthens Team Vitality’s commitment to tackling the global esports scene, with appearances slated for TEKKEN 8 tournaments at EVO Japan, Evo and CEO.

“I’m thrilled to announce our return to the fighting game scene with TEKKEN 8. We’re especially excited to debut alongside the highly respected and renowned player Jeondding. With this title, we hope to expand Team Vitality’s fan base as we embrace the passionate fighting game community! This new game also strengthens our presence overseas, adding enormous value to Team Vitality’s journey towards international domination.“ explains Fabien “Neo” Devide, Co-founder and President of Team Vitality.

Team Vitality’s international expansion is accelerated by the multiplication of top-level international competitions, including the much-anticipated Esports World Cup in the summer of 2024. Tekken’s welcome to the Team Vitality teams marks the first part of the announcements linked to this competition. With its performance-based DNA, Team Vitality is adding another string to its bow to win new titles on the international scene.

eSports

IESF Announces the European Regional Qualifiers for Esports World Championship

Published

1 day ago

April 22, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: < 1 minute

The International Esports Federation (IESF) has announced the European Regional Qualifiers for the 16th World Esports Championship. From July 6 to July 31, 750+ athletes from Europe will compete for a slot at WEC24, set to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

As the only fully online event hosted by IESF in 2024, this tournament will spotlight Europe’s best esports talent across four game titles. The event will feature competition in the following categories:

CS2 Open
CS2 Women
MLBB Open (Mobile Legends: Bang Bang)
MLBB Women
PUBG MOBILE
DOTA2

Athletes from 43 nations will compete in the event, determined to claim victory and proceed on their journey on the “Road to Riyadh”. The national champions of the eFootball series will advance directly to WEC24.

Igor Nedeski, Esports Manager at IESF, said: “We’ve ensured that despite being exclusively online, the European Regional Qualifiers will deliver the same level of intensity and high standards as the other regional qualifiers. Athletes and fans can look forward to an exciting and competitive experience as the battle for a spot at the World Esports Championship kicks off.”

eSports

Everything you need to know ahead of ESL Pro League Season 19

Published

3 days ago

April 19, 2024

Peter Tolan

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The ESL Pro League (EPL) returns to St. Julian’s, Malta, for Season 19 on April 23 – May 12, 2024. The world’s biggest Counter-Strike league will see teams from around the world arrive on-site for three weeks of non-stop action, and only one team will emerge victorious as Champions.

Here is all you need to know about ESL Pro League Season 19

The 19th Season of the ESL Pro League will see the 32 best Counter-Strike teams compete for a total prize pool of $750,000, a win in the race to secure Intel® Grand Slam V, and a spot at IEM Cologne 2024. Commencing on April 23, contenders from around the globe will face off in Malta for a spot in the Playoffs. There, the six best teams will compete live in front of an intimate live audience at the InterContinental Malta on May 10 – 12, 2024.

Starting with the upcoming season, EPL will see some improvements to its schedule. While the number of teams and the tournament structure remain the same compared to recent seasons, the duration of the tournament has been adjusted to three weeks instead of five. To accommodate this change, two groups will be played simultaneously during the Group Stage, resulting in a more intense story for fans to follow.

Schedule and Format

Group Stage (April 23 – May 5):

Four groups of eight teams will compete in separate triple-elimination brackets
- All matches are best-of-three
The top four teams from each group will advance to the Playoffs
- Group Stage winners advance to the Quarterfinals
- The Group Stage runner-ups advance to the Round of 12
- The Group Stage third and fourth-place teams advance to the Round of 16

Playoffs (May 7 – 12):

The top sixteen teams will compete in a single-elimination bracket
- All matches will be best-of-three, excluding the Grand Final which will be best-of-five
- The third and fourth Quarterfinals, as well as both Semifinals and the Grand Final will be played out live on stage in front of an audience

Teams Attending

Astralis (Partner Team)
BIG (Partner Team)
Complexity (Partner Team)
ENCE (Partner Team)
FaZe Clan (Partner Team)
Fnatic (Partner Team)
FURIA (Partner Team)
G2 Esports (Partner Team)
HEROIC (Partner Team)
MOUZ (Partner Team)
Natus Vincere (Partner Team)
Ninjas in Pyjamas (Partner Team)
Team Liquid (Partner Team)
Team Vitality (Partner Team)
Monte (ESL Challenger Jönköping winner)
Virtus.pro (ESL Challenger Atlanta winner)
SAW (ESL World Ranking)
Team Falcons (ESL World Ranking)
GamerLegion (ESL World Ranking)
BetBoom Team (ESL World Ranking)
Eternal Fire (ESL World Ranking)
3DMAX (ECL S46 Europe winner)
FORZE (ECL S46 Europe runner-up)
M80 (ECL S46 North America winner)
BOSS (ECL S46 North America runner-up)
The MongolZ (ECL S46 Asia-Pacific winner)
TYLOO (ECL S46 Asia-Pacific runner-up)
Imperial Esports (South American Qualifier winners)
Sharks Esports (South American Qualifier winners)
Pera Esports (European Conference winner)
Bad News Kangaroos (Oceanic Qualifier winner)
FlyQuest (ANZ Champs winner)

Prize Money (USD)

TOTAL	$750,000
1st	$170,000
2nd	$80,000
3rd-4th	$45,000
5th-8th	$32,000
9th-12th	$23,500
13th-16th	$17,500
17th-20th	$12,000
21st-28th	$7,000
29th-32nd	$3,500

Broadcast Talent

Hosts
- “Tres “stunna” Saranthus
- Freya “Freya” Spiers
A Stream
- Jason “moses” O’Toole
- Janko “YNk” Paunović
- Mathieu “Maniac” Quiquerez
- Harry “Harry” Russell
- Hugo “Hugo” Byron
- Henry “Henry” Greer
- Chad “SPUNJ” Burchill
- Alex “Machine” Richardson
B Stream
- Neo “Ne0kai” Caine
- Harvey “Skriv” Rodgers
- Lucy “LucyLuce” Eastwood
- Brandon “BDog” Rawlings
- Travis “Trav” Landaw Mott

Where to Watch

The live broadcast will be available on FACEIT Watch, ESL FACEIT Group’s premier esports viewing platform created by esports fans for esports fans and open for all.

Featuring a unique multi-perspective view selector where users can watch their favorite player’s perspective directly next to the main event stream, a live chat, a kill cam, live-generated replays of key moments, a sound mixer, a rewards program, and more, FACEIT Watch revolutionises esports streaming by putting fans in control of their viewing experience.

Fans can also watch the action on the ESL Counter-Strike Twitch and YouTube channels. For those unable to tune in live, all matches will also be available to watch on-demand for free via YouTube.

For more information about ESL Pro League Season 19, and the latest updates on the event, please visit the official website, and follow ESL Counter-Strike on X, Facebook, and Instagram.