PSV Eindhoven Announce eSports debut with FIFA 17

PSV Eindhoven Announce eSports debut with FIFA 17

PSV Eindhoven are set to become the first Dutch club to join the growing list of professional football teams signing eSports players, following the likes of Manchester City, West Ham United, Schalke, Valencia and Sporting Lisbon.

However, PSV have opted to forgo the usual route of signing an established player, as they also revealed their plans to host a dedicated FIFA 17 tournament, in which they will narrow down their competitors to a selective few, before offering their ideal candidate a professional contract. 

The Marketing and Media manager for PSV, Guus Pennings, confirmed that the club has acknowledged how big the eSports scene has grown in recent years, and how much it has started to cross over with traditional sports.

“We believe it is important to support what our fans are interested in. The world of eSports continues to grow and because of this popularity, the world of eSports and traditional sports begin to merge. Many of our young PSV fans both play and spectate eSports tournaments online.

“This is why PSV are interested in being represented in this field. The eSports gamer who PSV will contract will have full use of facilities and will wear red and white at these big eSports events. Of course, he or she will also feature in the annual team photo”

While details on the format of PSV’s FIFA 17 tournament are currently scarce, so far it has been confirmed that the tournament will be held at the iconic Philips Stadium and will be open to any player above the age of 16.

As the release date of FIFA 17 draws near, we expect more details to be announced over the next month via PSV Eindhoven’s official channels.  

With household football clubs making their way into the eSports scene, it's only a matter of time before another clubs join the fray. Who do you think will be next? Could we see a pro league between the clubs themselves? Only time will tell.

Translation provided by Dexerto.

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