The German Football League (DFL) is looking to launch a tournament for clubs in both of the football leagues it organises: the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2.
The competition will see teams from the two tiers of the German football league compete in FIFA with the support of game publisher EA Sports.
Christian Seifert, CEO of the German Football League commented in a statement: “eSport is highly popular among the younger generations, it has almost become part of everyday culture – in Germany and far beyond. With this as a background it is a right decision that clubs and the DFL further expand their engagement in this area. It is a matter of shaping the future and responding to changes in media consumption and leisure time in the digital age.”
In January of this year, the Virtual Bundesliga joined the Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup. This development follows on quickly from reports of German Football Association (DFB) – the governing body for football in Germany – teaming up with marketing agency Infront and esports agency Stark to create its own esports league.
As things stands, 11 German clubs have signed players to represent them in esports. This includes the likes of VfL Bochum 1848, 1. FC Nürnberg, VfB Stuttgart, Hertha BSC, VfL Wolfsburg and, perhaps best known, FC Schalke 04.
Esports Insider says: With so many football clubs entering esports, this development seems like a natural step. Many clubs don’t want to venture out too much so they only sign FIFA players, pitting them against each other should be relatable and not too far-fetched for fans of the Bundesliga.