Global Esports Federation Preparations Take Flight for the Commonwealth Esports Championships

With six months to go, preliminary planning for one of the most anticipated esports events this year – the inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships – has kicked off, headed by the Global Esports Federation (GEF) Director of Esports, Kelvin Tan, who was named Tournament Director for #CESC2022.

The first team preparation guide meeting is due to be held this week, with the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), GEF and British Esports Association set to jointly lead the meeting, designed to brief delegations as they begin team selections and preparations.

The #CESC2022 will be staged in Birmingham on August 6 to 7 at the city’s International Convention Centre (ICC) and is lining up to be an in-demand ticketed event for spectators. The Commonwealth Esports Forum – a global convention of thought leaders and idea creators – will be held at the same venue on August 5.

Bringing together esports athletes from across the 72 Commonwealth nations and territories, the Commonwealth Esports Championships is a joint initiative by the GEF and the CGF, as part of the Strategic Partnership announcement in May 2020.

“The Commonwealth Esports Championships is a breakthrough for esports and will be staged in the Commonwealth Games host city of Birmingham. Following the mind-blowing viewership at December’s Singapore 2021 Global Esports Games, with more than 500 million global views, it’s exciting to start moving and taking our prestigious event portfolio to cheering fans around the world again,” Paul J. Foster, CEO of the GEF, said.

The GEF is meeting with partners, including the Commonwealth Games Federation, the British Esports Association, FACEIT, IMG – who produced the Singapore 2021 Global Esports Games, and the West Midlands Growth Company, among many others. FACEIT is the GEF’s Strategic Partner for Esports Services and is responsible for the production of the Commonwealth Esports Championships.

“I’m proud to be leading the teams in Birmingham to lay the foundations and establish the event team with our partners. We look forward to welcoming our community to the first-ever Commonwealth Esports Championships this summer,” Kelvin Tan, Tournament Director for #CESC2022, said.

“Despite the challenges in 2021, the GEF has staged three editions of the Global Esports Tour, multiple #worldconnected series events, and our flagship Global Esports Games. We have welcomed the feedback on GEG 2021 from our community in last week’s Townhall session, and event debriefs with the stakeholders in Singapore, the publishers, IMG and all the delivery partners. In this very dynamic time for esports, we continue to evolve and shape our portfolio and adapt each of our marquee events,” Paul J. Foster said.