Who will be German champion? The Bavarians? Dortmund? Union or maybe Freiburg? In e-football, none of these clubs. Because they won’t be there when the new season starts.
The gaming league starts its new season on November 15th. However, only with 29 instead of 36 clubs. That should change next season. Then participation in the virtual Bundesliga will be mandatory for all first and second division teams – those who do not take part face a fine.
Because although the eFootball club competition has been around for a few years, the gaming community has so far taken little notice of it. One reason why the DFL is introducing compulsory participation. More than two-thirds of the clubs voted for the required amendment to the bylaws. Werder Bremen welcomes that. “Clubs that don’t take part in the Virtual Bundesliga will be fined, which they have to pay. And maybe it will even become an A criterion at some point,” explains Bremen’s e-sports officer Dominik Kupilas.
“That means if you don’t take part then you can’t take part in the real Bundesliga either. We’re not there.” But the new obligation shows the seriousness of the competition and the increasing professionalism, says the DFL.
The top teams are missing
But that only works if everyone participates – especially the big clubs – and that’s where things are still lacking at the moment. Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern Munich do not currently have an esports team in the league, nor do the other top teams this season so far: SC Freiburg and Union Berlin.
In the case of Bayern in particular, this shouldn’t change in the coming season. According to an industry insider, they would rather accept the fine from the DFL than join the virtual Bundesliga. Because: The record champion has a sponsorship contract with a game developer with whom the DFL does not work. The football simulation from EA Sports is played in the Virtual Bundesliga. Thanks to the millions in revenue from his sponsorship, a possible fine from the association should probably be bearable for Bayern.
What happens when you are relegated from the professional league?
Some don’t want to, others can’t, such as FC Ingolstadt. The footballers around Captain Tobias Schröck have said goodbye to the 3rd league on the real pitch, and that’s why Ingolstadt is no longer allowed to play in the VBL on the virtual green. “I think we got very far in this league last year, and I think it’s a strange rule that you can’t play in the game because we’re in a third league now,” said Schröck.
But the virtual Bundesliga is a DFL product and therefore reserved for the first and second division teams. It is still unclear whether there will also be opportunities for third-division teams and lower-league clubs to qualify for the Virtual Bundesliga in the future. However, the DFL “is in contact with the DFB in order to create an eFootball ecosystem that is as attractive as possible.”
Expensive esports teams
It is clear that without the financial support of the DFL it will be difficult for some clubs. Because according to DFL guidelines, each team needs at least three players, plus a full-time manager and a room that serves as the main e-football venue. For Arminia Bielefeld it was too much money for too little attention. They abolished their e-sports team, which they founded in 2019, after just one year.
SC Paderborn, on the other hand, is sticking with its team, even though the marketing effect has been minimal so far: the club has already invested around 300,000 euros – an average league game on the club’s channel only has around 80 viewers. “We don’t have eSports at the moment. But we have support from the German Football League, which is now supporting this project at the beginning,” says Managing Director Martin Hornberger, “and I think it will continue to be the case in the future there will be league partners and sponsors.”
E-Sports as a source of income
VfB Stuttgart had also given up their team in the meantime, but regrouped again this season. According to CEO Alexander Wehrle, the decision to do so was made independently of the DFL, and the reintroduction is seen above all as an opportunity to reach Generation Z.
“If you think one step further and then play in European competition, then that’s very interesting and also lucrative,” says Wehrle. The project manager of the Virtual Bundesliga at the DFL, Jörg Höflich, is also hoping for the same: He sees the potential for the league to develop from a pure marketing project into a lucrative product for the DFL, into another mainstay for the clubs. “Where it can go is of course always a bit of a crystal ball. But the possibilities are definitely there” Jörg Höflich is certain.
Whether the virtual Bundesliga will really benefit the clubs remains to be seen. Just like the question of whether the league is accepted by fans and clubs. Only one thing is clear: all clubs must. Whether they want to or not.
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Source: BR24 Sport 03.11.2022 – 08:54 a.m
