Electronic Arts and the National Football League (NFL) have just announced they are teaming up with ESPN and Disney for exclusive broadcasts of Madden 18. According to the exclusive deal, the final rounds of the EA SPORTS Madden NFL 18 Club Championship and the brand-new EA SPORTS Madden NFL Ultimate League will be broadcast by the sports giant, marking ESPN’s "first-ever long-term, multi-event competitive gaming agreement".
The tournaments will not be broadcast on ESPN 8 The "Ocho", taking place instead at ESPN 2 and Disney XD on the US. Internationally, broadcasts will also be available in the UK and Ireland via BT Sport; Canada via TSN; and Australia, New Zealand, and Latin America (including the Caribbean and Brazil) via ESPN International networks.
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The Madden NFL Ultimate League, if you're curious, is the first ever competitive league of virtual American Football, featuring 16 players competing on 1v1 matches of Madden NFL 18. It will take place for two and a half months starting in February 2nd, and it closes at the start of the real NFL Draft on April 28th. According to the press release, six players are qualified by finishing in the top two at one of the three EA Majors (Madden NFL 18 Classic, Challenge, and Club Championship) while the remaining 10 are selected by points.
Madden doesn't matter a lot to us PC players, as EA has done us the continued disservice of keeping it and NHL away from our lovely hardwares. However, esports are something a lot of people care about, so the news ESPN will be transmitting virtual Football is pretty interesting.
All 32 NFL franchises will be represented on the competition, and as previously stated, you can watch it via ESPN at ESPN2, Disney XD, and the ESPN app. Broadcasts will also be available in the UK and Ireland via BT Sport; Canada via TSN; and Australia, New Zealand, and Latin America (including the Caribbean and Brazil) via ESPN International networks. More details can be found here.
