eSport in Germany is growing from year to year. And even though several big events and leagues are attempting to further establish themselves, drawing in their teams with cash-prizes, one event continuously happens on German soil regardless of the competition. The event being the Samsung Euro Championship, acting as both championship and kick-off event of this year’s World Cyber Games season. As was the case in the passed years, this year’s SEC is yet again happening at the CeBIT in Hanover, the biggest and most important IT tradeshow in all of Europe.
In accordance with the spirit of the WCG,
250 players representing
30 nations will arrive in Hanover from the
7th through 9th of March, including a march of nations as well as a festive opening and respective closing ceremony. Clearly modeled after the Olympic Games and intended to give off a very special flair, reminding all participants of the core values of fairness and the spirit of professional competitive sports. Compared to other events, where the most attention is given to clans, clan-shirts or prize money, the WCG clearly breaks this stride, imbuing every player with the feeling and responsibility of representing his respective nation. Everybody is an equal part of this event and the greatest efforts are honored with a bronze, silver or gold medal. Players like the German national mooN have attested that standing on stage to receive your medal is clearly
“more than special”.
Awarding ceremony 2007
Another aspect of the SEC’s and the WCG’s unique identity is the choice of disciplines to be played. Last year’s amount of six competitive games has been increased to seven in 2008, leaving no room for boredom, with something for everyone to enjoy. Spectators will not be treated to repetitive CS-matches or overly complex WCIII matches as the sole source of entertainment, as is the case for most mainstream events. The WCG prides itself with a wide assortment of games on offer, consisting of both solely professional eSports games like CS and WCIII, as well as more spectator friendly games like FIFA or NfS. New additions include casual favorites like DoA4 or PGR4. So the target user-base of the WCG ranges from professional to casual gamer and from young crowds to older audiences, extending the reach of eSports far beyond the hardcore minority.
This concept doesn’t keep the big names from competing though. The teams and players invited to the SEC every year clearly show the high level of sophistication involved. With
fnatic,
Grubby,
PGS Gaming,
Mousesports, HoT, ToD, Alternate aTTaX, SK Gaming, Hero and NoA we’ve already witnessed some of
Europe’s greatest cyber athletes compete at the SEC and affiliated events. Many of them will represent at this year’s event as well and fight for the sought after medals.
But the “games” themselves aren’t limited to maps, tracks and servers.
With a huge stage-show involving audience interaction and giving spectators their own chance at
winning prizes, nobody is bound to a passive role in the SEC. The amount of ways to interact with what’s going on is practically unmatched by any similar eSports event or any of the halls or booths at CeBIT. Speaking of CeBIT, with its’ large volume of visitors from all across several industries, there could hardly be a better audience for the proceedings in
hall 22.
The SEC opens eSports to anyone and everyone, giving visitors the chance to be right there with the stars of the scene without the need for isolation or closed doors and curtains.
The combination of eSport and professional players blended with such large amounts of pubic visitors is absolutely unique and can only be found once a year – right here at the Samsung Euro Championship during CeBIT in Hanover. See you there!
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