ESL and DreamHack get dedicated TV coverage in SPORT1 deal

ESL Gaming have expanded their partnership with German television channel SPORT1 to broadcast Dota 2, StarCraft II, and other titles.

Starting on November 3rd, both ESL and DreamHack will have some of their tournaments broadcast on eSportsONE, a new esports-focused linear TV channel, through the renewed deal.

SPORT1 will serve as the exclusive TV partner of ESL’s Dota 2 tournaments, effectively making the channel one of the main broadcasters for some of the organizer’s flagship events like ESL One Birmingham, ESL One Hamburg, and ESL One Los Angeles.

eSportsONE will also broadcast the ESL Pro Tour for both StarCraft II and WarCraft III in Germany, as well as events for NBA 2K and Rocket League.

An emphasis is also to be placed on “exclusive, original produced analysis” that will account for over 1,000 hours of TV per year alongside events.

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Media rights deals are common in traditional sports, with the highest percentage of revenue for many sports actually coming through transactions with television channels. Esports are not on that same level yet but this type of partnership has become more prominent and expected in the past couple of years.

“Having seen the success of eSPORTS1 in German-speaking countries, we are excited to join forces with long-term partner SPORT1 for the rollout of the linear channel eSportsONE across Europe,” said Frank Uddo, ESL’s SVP of global media. “ESL aims to serve the esports community all across Europe, and eSportsONE’s comprehensive and versatile portfolio makes it a great option to view premium esports content.”

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With events moving online in the first quarter of 2020, and there being no end in sight at the time of writing, eSportsONE will have a lot of content to choose from.

ESL One Dota 2 tournaments have typically been split up into regions, with China, Europe & CIS, North America, South America, and Southeast Asia all having their own competitions and winners. ESL One Germany is currently ongoing but will end before this new deal comes into effect.