British esports organisation Guild Esports and telecommunications company Sky have joined forces to host a Street Fighter tournament.
The organisation has also announced its expansion into the popular fighting game series and will field a roster of professional players.
The Guild Esports Street Fighter roster consists of a range of European talent including UK player Reneil ‘JoKer JoKeZ’ Landell. According to a release, the expansion into Street Fighter aims to ‘create new revenue-generating and audience growth opportunities.’
To mark the expansion, Guild Esports and Sky will host the ‘Sweat Room,’ a Street Fighter tournament where players will compete in a heated room. The tournament will be used by the organisation to scout aspiring players with one of the competitors eventually added to the Guild’s Street Fighter team roster.
Guild Esports has noted that
The participants in the tournament have been selected by the organisation’s team of coaches and scouts, with the goal of finding promising non-professional Street Fighter players in the UK.
Guild Esports and Sky are no strangers to hosting esports tournaments. In August 2023, the two parties hosted a grassroots women’s Rocket League event for teams looking to go pro. Moreover, Sky will be leading hosting duties and the social media campaign promoting the Street Fighter event.
In recent months, Guild Esports has continued to expand into other esports titles. In August 2023, it raised funding to enter men’s Counter-Strike and in June 2023, the organisation partnered with sim racing peripherals manufacturer Fanatec to open a sim racing facility within the organisation’s headquarters.
Jasmine Skee, CEO of Guild Esports, spoke on the expansion: “Street Fighter is an immensely competitive game with a vibrant and devoted community. We have been closely monitoring its esports scene for a long time, and we believe now is the perfect moment to enter our own professional team.
“Street Fighter offers a completely new audience and future revenue-generation opportunities for Guild, where we will maintain our high standards of professional excellence and intend to compete at the highest level.”
