“The hell of jumping into the unknown” – Libération

2024-09-20 13:20:16

On the occasion of the League of Legends tournament, the Evry-Courcouronnes arena will open its doors this evening to the fans of Karmine Corp, the first team in Europe to have its own stadium to host its esports events.

After a year of waiting, it’s here. Karmine Corp, one of the most famous esports teams in France, is moving to its own stadium this Friday, September 20, “Arènes de l’Agora”, a newly renovated site located in Evry ( Essonne) and receiving 2,300 fans for the company. celebration. A historic meeting for French and European transport: for the first time in Europe, one of its teams will compete in an official meeting in “at home”.

On this week’s program, League of Legendsmaster of discipline, will inaugurate this great first Friday evening during a quarter-final of the Coupe de France. Then the festivities will start again the next day, with an event that combines sports, entertainment and meeting with supporters around the game. Rocket League – a title in which the players must score goals in the soccer fields while driving cars. All live streams on Twitch.

“For the first time in France and Europe, an official match of an esports team will take place in this team’s stadium. This is the first story [en Europe, ndlr]»said to AFP Arthur Perticoz, general director of the club. “It’s quite a leap into the unknown.” KCorp has signed a five-year contract with the Arènes de l’Agora, owned by the Grand Paris Sud convention, and hopes to organize 10 events there a year.

Until now, most video game competitions around the world take place online or in studios run by publishers or competition organizers. Riot Games, parent company of League of Legendscan for example count on the Studio with just over 200 seats to receive spectators of its European competition in Berlin. Much more, official public meetings (all) are held for special events – the final stages of major competitions – in neutral places, such as the Adidas Arena in Paris or the Sud de France Arena in Montpellier.

“An important step is the growth of the group”

But like traditional sports, esports teams are now expected to have their own stadiums to be able to generate ticket revenue. While many Chinese clubs already have their own infrastructure, the Old Continent has never tried it. “Historically, sports have faced two shortages which are tickets and media rights”explained Arthur Perticoz. “It is fundamental to create new sources of income. So it is a very important step in the development of the garden, we take another step forward with our own room.

For Karmine Corp, it is yet another proof of the very popular success of this group that was born four years ago. In record time, “KCorp” has experienced meteoric growth and built an incredible fanbase, among the popularity of its star founders – streamers Prime and Kameto – and produced successes on the channel. In September 2023, for example, the football club gathers 28,000 of its supporters in Paris La Défense Arena, the largest performance hall in Europe, breaking attendance records for the complex.

The group hopes that other units will do the same to take the entire industry to a new level. “We will be closely watched by game publishers around the world because this could change the business model”want to believe Arthur Perticoz.

“Beyond KCorp, this is undoubtedly an era that could be a new level for French and European imports”confirms Nicolas Besombes, esports sociologist. “In terms of categorizing sources of income, events, fanbase loyalty, approaching new audiences, that opens up a lot of perspectives.”