The inaugural season of Esports Premier League 2021 saw favourites Mumbai Marshals come out on top as the winners.
The franchise-based league system from India Today Gaming, the esports division of India Today boasted a 25,00,000 prize pool and the lion’s share has been bagged by Mumbai Marshals. Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Mr Manish Sisodia and Ms.
Kalli Purie, Vice Chairperson, India Today Group were present in the ceremony to hand over the accolades and cash rewards to the winners and runner-ups in a city hotel.
After a two months-long festival of Free Fire, Sagar Patel, Indranil Saha, Jayesh Yadav, Naitik Khosto and Asjad Khateeb led Mumbai Marshal were able to outshine the competition. Jayesh Yadav impressive form through the entirety of the tournament saw him bag the MVP award with a 30,000 INR cash reward for the 74 killed he picked up.
“We, at ESPL, are committed to revolutionising the Indian Esports ecosystem and we are very proud to announce our next big Esports IP, World Esports Cup. We are thankful to Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, Mr Manish Sisodia who unveiled the logo of this upcoming championship. We believe this tournament will also help us to contribute in making India a global Esports powerhouse. We are also thankful to all our sponsors and stakeholders for their support and belief. This is just the beginning of a new era,” said ESPL Director Vishwalok Nath.
The tournament attracted over 100 Million views over all of their videos making it one of the most successful esports events in India. With over a million registrations, only 8 teams were able to make it to the final stage of the tournament where the competition grew more tight and intense.
“Esports now is growing very fast. I am convinced that this “E” sport deserves
all the support and recognition. I promise that the Delhi government will encourage Esports in every possible manner. We will be happy to encourage all the initiatives that will help the industry and the sector to grow.” said Delhi’s Deputy CM Manish Sisodia.
The tournament in general was a massive success that gave us a glimpse of the potential that the mobile esports industry carries. Esports getting recognized by mainstream media with help attract support from various mediums that will eventually unlock the true potential of Indian Esports.
