For transparency: Esports News UK editor Dom Sacco used to work full-time for British Esports and currently does some freelance work for them, producing their weekly email newsletter
The British Esports Association has partnered with Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies to host its 2021 student finals.
The British Esports Championships consist of League of Legends, Overwatch and Rocket League tournaments for students aged 12+ in schools and colleges across the UK.
Confetti’s 400-seat live events venue in Nottingham, known as Metronome, will host the grand finals on July 3rd 2021. It will feature six finals, covering Division 1 and Division 2 in each game. The grand finals will be an all-day event, with each final played on stage. There will also be interview and practice areas, as well as various pop-ups and activities planned for the students to get involved in.
The finals will give student teams the experience of performing on stage to a live audience, as well as online viewers via the British Esports Twitch channel and Confetti’s Twitch channel.
Metronome features a 400-seat auditorium, with the Championships finals likely to host a smaller number of attendees. British Esports and Confetti say they’re working together ‘to ensure all safety precautions are made’, and that the finals are held in accordance with government guidelines, so the live audience will be restricted to limited capacity.
The winning school and college teams will receive jerseys, trophies and professional coaching from some of the UK’s top esports teams.
“We’re delighted to be bringing the British Esports Championships grand finals to a live venue once again. It’s been two years since our finals were held at a physical event and we’re excited to get the students together to take part in what I’m sure will be another memorable finals.”
Andy Payne OBE, British Esports
Last year, the British Esports Championships finals did not take place due to uncertainty around the pandemic. The year prior, they took place at Insomnia Gaming Festival at the Birmingham NEC.
Confetti Institute will handle production of the Championships finals, including the physical event and the online streams. British Esports will be organising the event and supplying the talent, including admins, host and casters. The full schedule and talent are to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
Confetti currently offers qualifications including its BSc (Hons) esports production degree and the level 3 BTEC in esports production.
Confetti Media Group CEO, Craig Chettle MBE, said: “It is an honour to be hosting the British Esports Championships finals here at Confetti. Esports is a huge focus for us, having recently launched two new courses for college and degree-level students, and a cutting-edge esports complex – Confetti X – scheduled to open later this year, putting Confetti and Nottingham at the forefront of esports in the UK.”
British Esports chair, Andy Payne OBE, added: “We’re delighted to be bringing the British Esports Championships grand finals to a live venue once again. It’s been two years since our finals were held at a physical event and we’re excited to get the students together to take part in what I’m sure will be another memorable finals. We’d also like to say a big thank you to Confetti for supplying the venue.
“If there are any changes to the current nationwide restrictions, the grand finals will be updated accordingly in line with government guidance, as the safety of our participants is paramount.”
There’s more info on the British Esports Championships here.
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.
