WRL-A2 eSports event set to open in Shanghai
A professional eSports match venue is ready for the Wild Rift League Asia Season 2 (WRL-A2), which will kick off in Shanghai on Wednesday.
The mobile League of Legends regional league event, the Wild Rift League Asia Season 2, will open in Shanghai on Wednesday, with more overseas participation and international clubs, fitting well with the city's ambition to establish itself as a global eSports hub.
A total of 11 Chinese mainland clubs and eight overseas teams from South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam will take part in the WRL-A2, which will be held at the League Arena (formally the Hongqiao Tiandi Acting Center) between November 1 and January 28. Some international matches will be played online, according to the organizer Riot Games.
Riot Games' League of Legends is one of the most popular eSports games in China. According to industry officials, the bulk of China's mobile eSports teams are in Shanghai or neighboring cities.
The first match of the WRL-A2 will be between TT vs JDG in Shanghai starting from 5pm on Wednesday, which will be open to the onsite audience and users of online streaming sites.
In the first half of this year, a third of China's eSports events were held in Shanghai, which is home to 52 eSports clubs, accounting for a quarter of the total national teams, local officials said.
The city is evolving into a global eSports hub and developing the gaming and eSports industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors of the digital economy.
