Foremost Lagos-based esports organization, League of Extraordinary Gamers Ltd and Embassy of France in Nigeria recently announced their partnership on an interactive LAN esports tournament.
The LAN event titled ‘Legends Extraordinary Club Open – LECO’ is being done in conjunction with the French embassy in Nigeria as part of the embassy’s ‘French Connexion’ event.
In the frame of Novembre Numérique / Digital November, the Institut Français du Nigéria, the Embassy of France in Nigeria and the Alliance Française de Lagos – Mike Adenuga Center, present French Connexion, a gathering of events dedicated to the digital culture. The program brings together several thematic, from animation, to digital art or e-sport.
Esports is a growing phenomenon today and Nigeria has caught into it. Earlier on in the year, the Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare gave the official government nod to esports, by declaring it a national sport and acknowledging its potential and place among Nigeria’s youth as well as the potential positive impact on the Nigerian economy as a whole.
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Esports activities in Nigeria has seen a rise and this event in an indication of the attention esports is now commanding in Nigeria.
Title: Legends Extraordinary Club Open – LECO
Game Title: Player Unknown Battleground – PUBG Mobile (Battle Royale)
Tournament Platform: Mobile
Date: Saturday, 28th November, 2020
Venue: The Auditorium, Alliance Française de Lagos – Mike Adenuga Centre, Ikoyi
Time: 5pm to 8pm
Forty-two teams registered for LECO qualifiers which saw the final eight teams that will converge at the Alliance Francaise – Mike Adenuga Centre in Ikoyi. The eight teams will represent eight different cities in Lagos to see which one becomes the very first ‘Legend’ in Lagos.
The matches will be streamed live by the popular PUBGM VIP caster, MrxFlip and will be available to watch on YouTube.
Speaking about the purpose behind this initiative, Head of the Cooperation and Cultural Affairs, Rafaël Pont had this to say “the French Embassy in Nigeria and its cultural network has been looking to promote digital culture, democratize and support it. With this day dedicated to video games, we try to bring together this community of developers, studios and players, with different backgrounds but with the same passion for video-gaming entertainment.”
In his remarks, LXG Esports CEO, Emmanuel Oyelakin commended the French embassy in Nigeria for showing such interest in Nigeria’s youth. According to him “to see the French embassy in Nigeria recognize and support the budding esports and gaming industry in Nigeria, tells you we are at the threshold of something huge in Nigeria. We continue to witness the emergence of Nigeria’s esports and gaming industry. With a youthful population of over 130 million armed with their internet-enabled gaming devices – consoles, mobile phones, PC rigs and all, we will be tapping into our decades-long gaming culture to produce the next leaders in the digital space – gamers, streamers, content creators, robotics experts, influencers and so much more. Asides the support the government has promised, we also hope to have more critical stakeholders join on this adventure to build Africa’s largest esports industry.”
LXG on its part will continue to blaze the trail by setting standards for esports and gaming events production, growing the esports ecosystem in Nigeria and helping many more achieve their dreams and aspirations in the esports and gaming world.”
Sponsors and partners for this event include Institut Français du Nigeria, French Embassy in Nigeria, Alliance Francaise – Mike Adenuga Centre, Lagos State Sports Commission, PopCentral TV, NextMagic, Redbull, Complete Sports, TECNO, TECNO HiOS Operating System, Aha Games and Showgear.
To demonstrate the magnitude and authenticity of this event, endorsements have come from global esports bodies within and beyond Africa including Esports Nigeria, Esports Federation of Africa (ESFA) and World Esports Consortium (WESCO).
It is indeed a new dawn in Nigeria esports.
