Several North Texas cities are competing to host esports events. The most recent to get into the game is Allen, Texas, which will host home matches of Dallas Fuel, an esports team, in April.
Esports is growing so fast that North Texas is becoming a hub for eSports in the region.
The Dallas News reported that Arlington spent $10 million on a dedicated esports stadium and has hosted several events since it was finished.
Last year Fort Worth hosted the OpTic Arena esports event at the same time it was hosting A-Kon.
Dallas will be hosting DreamHack, a three-day event.
Live esports events help drive tourists to cities that host them, creating business for hotels and restaurants. They show off the city to these visitors.
David Angeles, the assistant director of parks and recreation in Allen, told the Dallas News, “It’s massive. And we should not get caught ignoring it because it’s not mainstream yet.”
Several owners of Texas sports franchises, such as Jerry Jones and Mark Cuban, have spent millions of dollars on esports, the News reported.
Arlington Deputy City Manager Jim Parajohn commented that the fact other cities are vying for esports, was a “validation that this is an emerging business model and an opportunity for cities. We are always in a competitive process, in a competitive market for lots of things, and I think this is a another one that will be competitive.”
Fast food giant Jack in the Box sponsors Dallas Fuel , an esports team that is based in Allen at the Allen Event Center. An upcoming game between Fuel and the Houston Outlaws is expected to draw nearly 5,000 spectators each day of the weekend.
Dallas Fuel COO and President Geoff Moore said the team is working on building its fan base, with weekend activities including exhibits and autograph signings. The team will begin competing at various area venues. Eventually he hopes to build or convert an existing building into a home stadium.
Ngage Esports manages the Esports Stadium Arlington, which is owned by the city. It has a ten year lease with the city. Since opening in November, it has hosted three large esporting events with more scheduled, Jonathon Oudthone, president of Ngage Esports told the Dallas News.
The 100,000 square foot stadium has a gamer’s gallery open to the public that is also very popular. The stadium can accommodate up to 2,500 spectators. It has a stage and high tech audiovisual.
Oudthone envisions Dallas-Fort Worth becoming “a hub for esports.”
