CSMG, EsportsU, ESTV, NACL and NECC partner to produce College Esports Now with Groundbreaking Original Content to Amplify the Emergence of Collegiate Esports. Hosts Katie Scott and Pauly “Hype” Santoro will take fans behind the scenes weekly across conferences, teams and players to showcase the greatest esports coverage to date.
Program will reach more than 100 million viewers across ESTV, ESTV+ and Twitch as part of its broad distribution strategy
STAMFORD, Conn. – College Esports Now launches on September 30 to deliver groundbreaking original content showcasing the emergence of collegiate esports. The weekly program will feature the top collegiate esports conferences and teams, explore in-depth player profiles, highlight matches of the week and showcase the biggest rivalries in collegiate esports today. College Esports Now will reach more than 100 million viewers across ESTV, the world’s leading 24-7 esports television network, ESTV+, twitch.tv/ESPORTSU and twitch.tv/nacollegiateleague.
ESTV broadcasts to over 100 countries worldwide including North America (U.S. & Canada), Europe (across 42 countries), South America (Brazil), Asia (Korea, Japan & India) and Pan Caribbean Islands.
Hosted by esports personalities Katie Scott and Pauly “Hype” Santoro, College Esports Now will create greater visibility for collegiate esports and establish a foundation to build fandom around players and rival teams, much like traditional sports. The program will be produced as a joint effort between Collegiate Sports Management Group (CSMG), ESPORTSU, ESTV, the North American Collegiate League (NACL) and National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC).
“Gaming on campus is no longer something that just exists as a hobby. Today, universities value esports programs as recruiting tools, enhancing student life on campus and creating post-graduate career paths,” said Angela Bernhard Thomas, EVP of ESPORTSU at CSMG. “Similar to the Collegiate Esports Commissioner’s Cup we held earlier in the year, this show will bring competitive talent to the forefront on a global platform, and feature the fast changing landscape of collegiate esports. This pioneering show is reminiscent of an important moment in time when ESPN brought traditional sports into homes across the country more than 40 years ago.”
College Esports Now will highlight various collegiate esports programs on all levels, its teams, the origin stories of different players and their journey throughout their career. Additionally, the show will feature a special segment with former NFL players, Ahman Green, Shane Vereen and Brock Vereen alongside professional esports players. The show will compile the largest aggregation of stats and rankings across regular season play from multiple conferences.
“As the collegiate space continues to expand, brands look for consistent, high quality programming to align with,” said Eric S. Yoon, Founder and CEO of ESTV. “College Esports Now provides a perfect starting point for both endemic and non-endemic brands to ease into a space that resembles traditional sports programming.”
“We’re excited to showcase our outstanding community of collegiate players that compete with us in the NECC,” said Jacob VanRyn, Commissioner of the NECC. “We’re excited to be a part of College Esports Now so that we can continue to tell the stories of the schools, the programs, and most importantly, the players.”
David Chen, of NACL states, “This show is the culmination of years of preparation and planning in anticipation of the perfect timing for its release. The best-in-class producers of this program will bring collegiate esports to life with high-end broadcast graphics, top-tier talent, celebrity guest segments and world class brands.”
Fans can discover ESTV on CTV (Samsung, LG, VIZIO, TCL, Hisense, Xiaomi, ZEASN OS, etc.), OTT (Roku Live TV, Dish SlingTV, PLEX, RAD TV, Netgem, VIDGO, Sports.TV, SportsMax, etc.) and mobile platforms.
For more information about the NECC, please contact Jacob VanRyn at jacob@neccathletics.com
________________________________________________________________
ABOUT NECC ESPORTS
The NECC began sponsoring esports in the fall of 2020. The NECC is currently sponsoring both regular season competition and championships across a wide variety of titles. The conference aims to serve the gaming community with respect and is a safe and inclusive environment. With more than 250 colleges and universities throughout North America currently competing in the conference, the NECC is proud to be a positive home for the collegiate gaming community.
