The world of eSports continues moving quickly on all fronts. In today’s news, the marriage between online gambling and the ESL continues to grow as a major online bookmaker resigns an important partnership deal, and the latest NCAA ESPN College League Of Legends Week 5 Coaches Poll is out.
Betway and ESL Renew Commitment
In what was highly anticipated news, UK-based oddsmaker/bookmaker Betway has renewed its partnership contract with the ESL through the end of 2019. The agreement also calls for the ESL to maintain an option to renew the agreement in 2020. This move along with the bet365 move into e-sports shows that sports bettors are anxious to become increasingly involved with betting on eSports leagues and tournament events.
For Betway, the move represents a confirmation of the oddsmaker’s intention to be a big player in the world of eSports for years to come. As part of that commitment, Betway is offering a nice menu of eSports betting promotions along with offering eSports betting markets from all over the world.
According to Betway Head of Esports Adam Savinson in regard to the new deal: “ESL are among the elite event organizers across the global esports landscape, so we’re delighted to extend this relationship following another successful year for all involved. At Betway we remain committed to reaching and entertaining even more esports fans around the globe.”
Bernhard Mogk (SVP) from ESL added: “We are glad to continue our partnership with such a strong and reliable partner like Betway. Having Betway as a truly global partner, across various CS:GO tournaments and leagues, creates benefits for fans all over the world.”
Given the impact eSports is starting to have on the online gambling industry, the time is fast -approaching where all online bookmakers will be providing access to a growing menu of betting markets and options. There’s still a lot of logistics that need to be worked out to prevent integrity issues for the gamers, leagues and tournaments hosts.
ESPN Releases NCAA League of Legend Ranking from Week 4
After week 4, thirty-seven NCAA League of Legend teams remain undefeated with most of the action involving non-conference matchups. Sitting at the top of the rankings is University of California Irvine, which retains the top spot with 610 points. Coming in at 2nd was Maryville (572 points) with Columbia College 3rd (568 points), Harriburg 4th (523 points) and University of Illinois 5th (436 points).
Turning the attention to week 5, there should be significant changes in the top 25 as ranked teams start facing off against other teams in its conference. Among the key matchups in the East Conference will be No. 4 Harrisburg University vs. University of Toronto, No. 6 Western Ontario vs. No. 25 Rochester Institute of Technology, No. 14 McMaster University vs. No. 23 York University and No. 13 Stony Brook vs. No. 16 University of Ottawa. In the Big Ten, the results from No. 17 Michigan vs. No. 11 Maryland and Ohio State vs. No. 21 Rutgers could have a significant effect on the polls.