Esports platform Estaz has launched a new tournament platform for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
The platform will provide daily tournaments and weekly challenges that will be produced in both English and Arabic. Estaz will also have a professional league - the first of its kind in the region - consisting of two seasons with a two day "offline finale".
Also on offer is an esports academy with the aim of creating regional talent across multiple facets of the esports industry, such as marketing, team management and production.
Estaz notes that Gen Z and millennials have become "unreachable" via conventional forms of media and it aims for their new tournament platform to help create a bridge between brands and this particular age population.
"It’s beyond money and entertainment"
"My partners and I have launched Estaz after having gauged the immense potential of esports in the MENA and analysed the needs and wants of this underserved audience, the amateur esports players, who aspire for a professional esports career," said Estaz founder and CEO Charbel Khoury.
"We have seen in the last couple of years governments rush to back up esports in different ways and means. The belief in this industry has exponentially grown. Globally, the numbers have surpassed expectations."
Estaz co-founder Fadi Nakhle added: " Gen Z is the first generation to make gaming an integral part of their lives; they’ve successfully monetized a hobby. Of course, it’s beyond money or entertainment for them. They use the gaming platform to chat and socialise, connect and widen their network, and even make a career out of it."
The launch of Estaz is being supported through AD Gaming, a United Arab Emirates-based firm looking to expand the gaming industry in the region.
Indian games media platform Nazara recently acquired a majority stake in Publishme, the largest publishing company in the Middle East and Turkey.
Yoozoo Games CEO of Turkey and MENA Arslan Kiran recently spoke at PGC Digital #6 earlier this year, where he predicted that the MENA games market will hit $6 billion in 2021.
