ESL Gaming has announced a partnership for their inaugural season of the ESL Indonesia Championship. Indofood, a subsidiary of Salim Group, has partnered with ESL as a title sponsor to present ESL’s first entry into the Indonesian market. Indofood brands PopMie, Chitato and Indomilk will also feature as premium partners alongside their parent company.
An online league featuring DOTA 2 and Arena of Valor teams, the season boasts a total prize pool of US$100,000 (£77,800) and will run for three months online before culminating into an offline final. Nick Vanzetti, Managing Director for ESL Gaming Asia Pacific and Japan said: “We’re excited to be able to work with brands such as Indofood, Popmie, Chitato, and Indomilk to bring to Indonesia a true pathway to esports glory. Our partners are crucial in helping us to create the platform for Indonesian players to shine, with more opportunities to reach the global stage.”
ESL announced a partnership with Salim Group last September, and this is clearly a first step towards their strategy in Indonesia. Salim Group remains a powerful conglomerate within Indonesia’s space, and can no doubt assist ESL in managing the event alongside connecting them to sponsors such as Indofood.
Axton Salim, Director of Indofood said: “ESL is one of the leaders in esports and we are very happy to be working with them to build up esports in Indonesia. Together with ESL, Indofood wants to provide an exciting platform and best experience for local esports players to achieve success. We hope with this collaboration, more Indonesian players will excel globally.”
Esports Insider says: A promising start for ESL, their strategic partnership with Salim Group is already producing results. With a strong backing in the region, they’ll be able to expand quickly if any singular event proves exceedingly popular. An intriguing tidbit is the mention of a broader regional tournament. While details have been scarce, 2019 could introduce two tournament circuits within South East Asia, with ONE Championship and ESL getting in the mix. That would be a huge boost to the community within the region and help teams and player stability immensely.