Oxford vs Cambridge university esports varsity returns, students hope unis will recognise esports as a sport with full Blue status

Dom Sacco, Senior Editor

Last Updated: 04/07/2022

Update: Cambridge won the 2022 esports varsity across all five games.

Original article: The age-old rivalry between respected UK universities Oxford and Cambridge continues next weekend as the pair will face-off in an esports varsity.

Tournaments will take place on June 25th and 26th 2022 at the Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London across several games:

• CSGO – Saturday, 11am
• Valorant – Saturday, 3pm
• Overwatch – Sunday, 11am
• League of Legends – Sunday, 3pm
• Rocket League – Sunday, 6pm

In addition to the games on show, the event will also feature various talks on esports and gaming, including ‘prominent figures in the esports industry’.

There will also be networking opportunities and the chance for gamers to meet up in person.

The Oxford Cambridge esports varsity is not new, it’s been going on for this – but this is its first physical event since the pandemic.

“Esports Varsity has been taking place for the past eight years between Oxford and Cambridge,” said Sameer Mazhar, president of the Oxford University Esports Society and co-chair of the Varsity Esports Comittee. “Currently the historic score is tied 4-4.

“We are very excited for a return to in-person varsity following the pandemic and look forward to welcoming everyone to the Red Bull Arena!”

But beyond the spirit of competition and rivalry, there is a wider development at play here.

Organisers are hoping to get esports recognised as a sport with full Blue status.

A Blue is an award of sporting colours earned by student athletes, but it currently includes recognised sports like football, rowing, cricket and more – not esports.

Oxford University eSports Society (OUES) will play against the Cambridge University Digital Gaming Society (CUDGS) next weekend.

The rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge universities is well-known, particularly for the famous annual boat race.

University esports in the UK is thriving. We have the NUEL and NSE as main tournament organisers, with other events taking place too. NSE held its finals at Insomnia 68 recently and University of Warwick was named UK’s Esports University of the Year for the fourth year in a row.

People can register to attend the Oxford-Cambridge esports varsity on this Eventbrite page.

Dom Sacco, Senior Editor

Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He has almost two decades of experience in journalism, and left Esports News UK in June 2025. 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 also previously worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation.

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