More than half of young people under the age of 15 have heard of esports around the world. In France, there are 10.3 million occasional players and 3.3 million esports people. That’s why the Professional Football League launched a competition called “eLigue 1” in 2017. During the 2020/2021 season, the format of the competition is reviewed and invites all professional clubs in the 1st division (Ligue 1) to structure a professional team.
In 2018, Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace undertook a series of initiatives in the field of eSports through the organization of the first Meinau Gaming competition. The club continued its structuring with the signing of local partnerships: a Strasbourg school delivering diplomas in the professional field of esports and a Mulhouse school for training eSports players. The club intends to position itself at the heart of the local ecosystem and participate in the development of eSports in our territories in order to forge a link between the amateur and professional world.
Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace is also involved in the highest regional competition: the R1 eSport championship. For the occasion, the club has put together a team made up of experienced local players. Among them: Guillaume Riehl, born in Sélestat and winner of the Grand Est final of the eFoot draft organized by the FFF in 2020. He was shortlisted for the French team.
In April 2021, the Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace formed a partnership with Team Vitality, the French leader in eSports clubs. This partnership allowed Racing to rely on RocKy and coach Brian Savary to form its first professional team on the FIFA game. It has become a competitive and attractive project which has led to the participation of players World champion and double champion of France appearing in the European top 25.