Telecom major Bharti Airtel and esports company Nodwin Gaming have announced a partnership to further grow esports in India. Given India’s large youth population and rapidly growing internet penetration, esports has the potential to become a large part of the country’s mainstream sporting culture.
It is estimated that by 2021, online gaming will become a USD 1 billion plus market in India with over 620 million gamers.
The partnership has been kicked off with the launch of the Airtel India Esports Tour, which will also have a national ranking and awarding system for Indian esports players. This will be based on their year-long performance across top tournaments, which will be used as a base to create a points table for all participants.
The Airtel India Esports Tour’s ranking system will be applied to all Nodwin Gaming tournaments including the ESL India Premiership, DreamHack India, KO Fight Nights, The Northeast Cup, and PAN Fest. PUBG MOBILE, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), Clash of Clans, and FIFA will be a part of this new system.
The tour will be broadcast on Airtel’s digital platforms to expand the emerging format to newer audiences. Once the annual tour ends, a final leaderboard across games will be presented to recognize and reward the winners at an awards show.
