Ubisoft has announced that they are taking their esports operations internal, building on the success of Rainbow Six Siege and Brawlhalla.
Ubisoft has announced the foundation of their own esports and competitive gaming division. This is a stark departure from their strategies in the past, which relied on third-party organizers to get things done. The new department is said to be a consolidated global team.
Why is Ubisoft founding their own esports division?
“Building upon six years of experience drawn from our competitive gaming activities on titles such Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, Brawlhalla, Trackmania, or For Honor, and looking at the evolution of our industry across the board, the revamp of our internal structure will give us the adequate tools to enter the next chapter of our journey and shape the future of esports and competitive gaming at Ubisoft.”, shared Geoffroy Sardin, Senior Vice President, Executive Publishing at Ubisoft.
What will Ubisoft's new esports division do?
According to Ubisoft, here are some objectives they hope to accomplish with their new department:
- Building thriving and inclusive competitive ecosystems for Ubisoft’s portfolio of competitive games, for fans to engage and take part in, and for organizations and sponsors to grow in. Whether looking at our most mature esports scenes such as Rainbow Six Siege’s, Brawlhalla’s and Trackmania’s, or other existing and future competitive games, we are dedicated to grow each competitive ecosystem into reaching its full potential.
- Creating a multi-year plan with competitive activities, tournaments and leagues adapted to all, and a clear path from amateur to professional play, that inspires and engages players across the world.
- Providing superior entertainment value and service to Ubisoft’s audience, through a diverse esports product offer, premium broadcast and event production, entertaining content, and a strong local presence allowing local communities to enjoy activities and content tailored for them.
- Leveraging new opportunities by accompanying early on Ubisoft’s development and editorial teams across Ubisoft’s worldwide network of development studios, to collaborate on competitive games’ vision, scope and features, as well as revenue-sharing in-game items strategies.
- Implementing, in collaboration with partners and organizations, healthy and sustainable esports business models and revenue streams, that contribute to create a mature and virtuous environment for all.
Who will lead Ubisoft's new esports division?
François-Xavier Deniele has been appointed Senior Director, Esports and Competitive Gaming. He will now oversee all aspects of esports and competitive gaming at Ubisoft. He has been at Ubisoft since the early days of their esports initiatives and previously worked on their EMEA programs.
“We are proud of what our teams have accomplished over the past years in all regions, and of the milestones we have reached on our competitive portfolio in such a short time.” said François-Xavier Deniele, Senior Director, Esports and Competitive Gaming at Ubisoft. “Now our focus turns to 2022 and beyond. Strengthening esports and competitive gaming as a key pillar of Ubisoft’s culture, our streamlined internal organization will allow us to gain in agility, ultimately benefiting all our competitive ecosystems across Ubisoft’s portfolio of brands.”
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Ubisoft to expand esports offerings beyond Rainbow Six and Brawlhalla
As part of the announcement, Ubisoft confirmed that they are looking to go back to international events with live audiences when the global health situation allows for it. They also confirmed that they will continue to support games like Rainbow Six Siege and Brawlhalla, both of which are entering their seventh year of competition.
But that's not all - they also teased some exciting announcements about future titles. They want to "broaden their portfolio" across a number of genres. Ubisoft are already in talks with development teams for their next games to build esports programs.
Ubisoft will also offer plug-and-play events on platforms of gamers' choice, both playing and watching and directly embedded where possible. Such as on PlayStation's Open Series Tournaments.
“Our partnership with PlayStation to have Rainbow Six Siege be part of their native Open Series Tournaments is a great success and a great showcase of the ultimate grassroot activity.” explained François-Xavier Deniele. “It allows a different audience than the one taking part in our professional and semi-professional circuits to engage in competitive gaming and we are looking forward to multiply similar opportunities.”
Ubisoft also says that their broadcast studios in Las Vegas, Paris, and Sao Paulo will play pivotal roles in their new initiatives moving forward.
What do you think of Ubisoft's new plans for esports? Let us know on Twitter @esports, and keep it locked here to Esports.gg for all the latest in esports news and highlights.
