New €20,000 Portuguese esports fund is exactly what the UK needs

BITZER, an esports agency billed as the first of its kind in Portugal, is investing money to stimulate the country’s esports ecosystem.
This year and next, it will pump €20,000 into Portuguese esports organisations and players who want to form new teams.
The fund is exclusively for those operating in League of Legends and CSGO. Orgs can submit a project detailing their objectives and strategy for the next year and a half, which will be analysed by BITZER.
BITZER will then decide which organisations or line-ups will receive financial support.
“This support aims to improve the conditions of players and teams, enhance the training of the Portuguese players and finance entries and expenses related to the participation in relevant competitions,” BLITZER said in a statement.”
 

“We are offering this fund because the Portuguese esports ecosystem and market must grow. We need more teams and more and better players.”
Tiago Fernandes, BITZER

 
So why is BITZER putting his fund together now, and how does it hope to make a return on investment?
Tiago Fernandes, BITZER COO, told Esports News UK: “We are offering this fund because the Portuguese esports ecosystem and market must grow. We need more teams and more and better players.
“Thus, we encourage the emergence of more teams, which are content for brands to sponsor and critical to reach audiences.
“Other than the Bitzer Ventures, we launched our own competitions – CSGO and LOL Superligas – and we will launch BITZER TV, an esports TV channel, that will debut late August.”
João Duarte, CEO of YoungNetwork Group, added: “BITZER Ventures was planned for 2018 but given the feedback from the community, we feel that there are needs that urge to be fulfilled quickly, such as the support and recognition of Portuguese players. This is why we have anticipated the announcement of the fund.”
Could we do with more esports agencies or opportunities like this in the UK? Or must more be done other than just throwing money at orgs?
In our opinion, the UK esports scene is crying out for funding and initiatives like this.
It might only be €20,000, but it’s a start, and will no doubt encourage Portuguese esports hopefuls to take their orgs and teams to the next level.
 
Image source: FreeImages.com/Rui Lousao

Dom Sacco

Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.

As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.