Twenty-four teams from across the country will be directly invited to the competition.
Battlegrounds Mobile India, the Indian version of PUBG Mobile, is undoubtedly the most popular esports title in the region. Given its fanbase, Start Sports, a major Indian television sports channel, has teamed up with esports company Nodwin Gaming to televise the BGMI Masters Series, it revealed in a press release today.
The BGMI Masters Series will take place from June 24 to July 17. Twenty-four invited teams from across the country will compete for a share of the Rs. 1.5 crore (about $192,000) prize pool and the title of champions.
BGMI Masters Series: How to watch BGMI Masters Series
Since the birth of esports, almost all tournaments have been streamed on digital platforms. The BGMI Masters Series, however, can only be watched on the TV channel, Star Sports. Fans looking to tune into the competition will have to purchase the channel to enjoy the BGMI action.
The BGMI Masters will be broadcasted in Hindi, English, and Tamil from the Nodwin Studios in Delhi. It will begin on June 24 and will be live between 8:30 PM and 11:30 pm IST on each matchday.
Teams to compete in Delhi Masters Series for Rs. 1.5 crore prize pool
In a release, Start Sports confirmed that the tournament will be broadcasted live from the Nodwin Studios in Delhi, which have been “specifically built for large-scale esports tournaments.” The tournament features a huge prize pool of Rs. 1.5 crore (about $192,000). Currently, no details about the list of invitees or the format has been revealed.
This will be the second offline event for BGMI esports. The first one was the All-Stars Invitational in April, which was also organized by Nodwin Gaming. This tournament was broadcasted exclusively on the Krafton-backed streaming platform, Loco.
Television will open new avenues for esports
We look forward to spreading the reach of esports, making a connection with the youth across India and bringing esports into the arena of other traditional sports.
BGMI esports tournaments are known to pull in big viewership numbers. The BGMI Launch Party, which was the first official event for the game in July 2021 peaked at 547,888 viewers, according to Esports Charts.
The recently-concluded Battlegrounds Mobile Pro Series (BMPS) peaked at 304,709 viewers and had an average viewership of 73,260.
With these numbers, it isn’t surprising to see Star Sports foray into esports. There are also several positives for esports with broadcasting on TV. Firstly, selling media rights to channels opens a new avenue of revenue for tournament organizers.
Secondly, broadcasting the BGMI Masters Series on TV will enable esports to reach an untapped market across India, where internet connectivity may be limited.
We have been working tirelessly through the pandemic to build the foundation for such a big collaboration. This is a very big step for us in the right direction as we now take esports to the masses. So far, esports has always been associated with live streaming on digital platforms. Through this collaboration with a mainstream sports channel, we hope to break that mould. Satellite television does have its advantages like its unrivaled reach across every nook and corner of the country, uninterrupted and timely broadcast that is not dependent on internet connectivity and speed as well as affordability for the masses living in far-out areas. We look forward to spreading the reach of esports, making a connection with the youth across India and bringing esports into the arena of other traditional sports.
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