- Samsung Electronics Italy with its storage division becomes the official partner of the new 2024/25 season in Italy.
- Another new feature of the new season will be the entry of ProGaming Italia as the competition organizer.
Samsung Electronics Italy lands in Italian universities with UNIVERSITY Esports. The storage division will support the largest esports, technology and education project developed for university students in Italy in the 2024/25 season, accompanying students in their involvement in gaming, entertainment and geek culture, while showcasing the career opportunities offered by the emerging esports and video game industry.
The new season of UNIVERSITY Esports, which kicked off on September 24 when registration opened for all university students, will be supported by the Italian company ProGaming Italia, which will take care of everything related to the management of the competition and the organization of the events, which will return to university campuses in Italy this year, as well as events related to this ecosystem but not directly to the competition.
The goal is to promote student involvement in the esports industry through competitions, training and job opportunities, while providing fun and entertainment through the various activities that are part of UNIVERSITY Esports, which has already become the largest global platform for gaming, technology and education for college students worldwide, present in 26 countries on four continents and with the participation of more than 100,000 students from 2,000 universities.
In the words of Stefania Falconetti, Head of Storage at Samsung Electronics Italia: “We are proud to join the UNIVERSITY Esports community. This partnership gives us the ideal opportunity to put our technology at the service of students and the gaming world, helping to create an even more immersive and engaging gaming experience while supporting the development of an innovative and evolving sector.”
According to Josh Williams, Global Director of UNIVERSITY Esports, “We are proud to have a company like Samsung on board with UNIVERSITY Esports. The brand’s entry raises the bar for the project, and with their support, we will provide a more comprehensive educational and entertainment experience for young people during their time at university.”
Daniel Schmidhofer, Founder and CEO of Quote ProGaming Italia, comments, “We are excited to bring a prestigious brand like Samsung closer to a project like UNIVERSITY Esports, with the goal of enhancing the college esport experience and continuing to support the esport ecosystem in Italy. Our mission is to facilitate connections between brands and gamers through authentic experiences, creating concrete opportunities for university students to develop their skills in gaming and digital entertainment. Through this unique partnership with UNIVERSITY Esports we will provide our expertise in event management and organization, creating an engaging and educational environment for participants.”
First subdivision, changes and format
UNIVERSITY Esports, which in Italy will see the partnership of Samsung, is also present in Spain, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, and this time it will have a qualifying format that will allow the finalists in each tournament to access the PlayOff to be held in early December.
One of the benefits will be to provide greater accessibility as time requirements are reduced by having to play one game per week, better balancing academic responsibilities with a passion for esports, allowing for more inclusive and flexible participation.
The finals will be online and can be viewed on the official competition channel. In addition, a prize pool of 500 euros will be awarded to the champions of each match.
UNIVERSITY Tour
As in previous occasions, the UNIVERSITY Tour will be launched in the coming months, which will visit four of Italy’s most important universities, offering a gaming space and innovative activities to entertain university students with video games, again free of charge.
In addition, as in previous editions, events in collaboration with universities will serve to provide knowledge to students through lectures held at the relevant centers to raise awareness of the growth of the ecosystem, the need for professionalization, and entrepreneurship opportunities in academia.