In this special series of articles, Esports News UK’s coverage of the Blast Spring Final 2024 is in collaboration with the betting partner GGBET UK | For transparency: Esports News UK editor Dom Sacco used to work full-time for British Esports between September 2016 and February 2021, and currently does some freelance work for them, a weekly email newsletter.
Blast, the global esports entertainment company, and British Esports, the national body for esports in the UK, have announced a strategic partnership.
This collaboration will focus Blast’s and British Esports’ efforts on political lobbying, grassroots development, education, careers, and professional development. The partnership comes during an historic year for the UK esports industry, with a record number of tier one esports events taking place in 2024.
British Esports has also been running ticket giveaways for the Blast Premier Spring Final at the Ovo Arena Wembley, and has arranged student visits to events like this.
With the UK holding a 6% share of the global esports market and the global sector expected to reach $1.6bn by the end of this year, this partnership aims to capitalise on this momentum and foster further growth.
Robbie Douek, CEO of Blast, said: “This partnership with British Esports is a pivotal step in our mission to support the esports ecosystem in the UK. By focusing on key pillars together, we aim to create a sustainable and inclusive environment that encourages growth and professional development at every level.
“This year alone, the world’s biggest game publishers are choosing the UK as a destination for their esports ecosystems and arena events, helping position the region as a global hub for esports and big-scale events.
“This partnership with British Esports will allow us bridge the gap between tier one arena events and grassroots esports.”
Robbie Douek, Blast
Chester King, CEO of British Esports, said: “2024 is a landmark year for esports in the UK as we host some of the most iconic global esports events. This is an incredible opportunity to leave a legacy from grassroots to professional that promotes the UK as a leading global destination for esports. That is why we were thrilled when Robbie and the team at Blast visited our National Esports Performance Campus in Sunderland earlier this month to finalise our partnership.
“This collaboration between two leading British esports organisations will not only help to solidify the UK as a leading hub for esports but also ensure that we are nurturing the next generation of talent and providing them with the tools and opportunities they need to succeed.”
The partnership comes in a month where London is set to host two tier one esports arena events in consecutive weeks, with the Blast Premier Spring Final taking place in Wembley Arena this week and the RLCS London Major in Copper Box Arena next week. These combined events will see more than 25,000 fans watch live esports events in-person in the United Kingdom in June alone.
To mark the launch of the partnership, Robbie Douek, CEO for Blast, recently met Dave Martin, SVP for British Esports, for a tour of the National Esports Performance Campus in Sunderland.
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.
