Posting for discussion purposes only & to allows us to gain some background on the world of TRUE esports. (I have to emphasize 'TRUE esports' as many platforms out there are masquerading as esports when in fact is still just gaming. Also, this terminology is often quoted on MSM announcements & GXR media articles.)
It was only a month ago that MPL Philippines (Mobile Legends Professional League Philippines) became a franchise league.
India now has followed by building its first ever franchise-based Esports league called the Esports Premier League (ESPL) for the game Free Fire. (Please note India's ESPL - Esports Premier League is not related in any way to a tournament matchmaking platform called ESPL (Esports Players League). Just happened to use the same abbreviation.)
It is made up of 8 franchised teams representing their states.The teams were unveiled by Indian Government Ministers representing their respective states. picture source is on article link above.
The eight franchise teams are Punjab Paladins, Chennai Celestials, Delhi Dukes, Hyderabad Hydras, Kolkata Kaijus, Rajasthan Reapers, Mumbai Marshals, and Bangalore Ballistics.
No doubt more & more franchised leagues will established worldwide as esports matures.
One day, I think we will see franchised leagues in Australia where we will have a National Championships between States along with franchised club leagues & cups.
Hopefully, GXR/RTE will be a big player in the Australian esports scene in the near future. GXR did run a Fortnite GXR OCEANIA CUP & proven there is an audience plus top players participation.
Based on my observation, the accelerating factor for Mobile Legends Pro League Philippines & India's Free Fire Esports Premier League becoming franchised leagues is mainly due two factors: 1) the number of highly skilled players competitively playing Mobile Legends & Free Fire and 2) the proven massive audience in those countries for those games.
MPL Philippines was averaging over 201k viewers per match while up to 1.4M peak viewers for popular matches.
I reckon next game to go to a franchise league system in India will be Battlegrounds Mobile India (formerly PUBG Mobile). It has the 2 factors of large number of players & proven viewing audience. Battlegrounds India now has over 50M downloads in just 1.5 months since released on Android. Game is yet to be released on apple.
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