PlayVS, the startup on a mission to build the infrastructure for high school esports, is partnering with Riot Games’ League of Legends to launch its first season.
The Los Angeles-based startup will kick-off this October with an early access stint called “Season Zero,” where High school students across Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island can register to participate.
“Riot is one of the best game publishers in the world,” said PlayVS founder and CEO Delane Parnell in a statement to L.A. Biz. “They have always championed ‘League of Legends’ as a sport at the professional and collegiate levels. We are so excited to partner with them to make their game a high school sport.”
The startup, which has backing from Nas and the San Francisco 49ers – raised $15 million in funding in June and has an exclusive partnership with the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), allowing students to compete in esports tournaments through their high school at a state championship level, according to TechCrunch.
The company’s platform is designed to facilitate league organization, including registration, scheduling, and playing the game through its online portal.
As the esports phenomenon grows, Play VS aims to scale to all 50 states providing an inclusive and affordable activity at $64 for each participating student per season, according to L.A. Biz.
“By turning it into an organized activity in high schools across the country, I’m excited to get millions of kids involved and set them up for success, both by teaching core values like teamwork and by making them eligible for hundreds of scholarships and even more professional opportunities,” Parnell said in an email to Crunchbase News.
Play VS’s inaugural season is slated to launch in February 2019.
