PlayVS, HyperX Arena, and Allied Esports to Host PlayVS Live: Gridiron Showdown - An Official NFL Community Esports Event in Celebration of Super Bowl LVIII

PlayVS Live: Gridiron Showdown will welcome one hundred Las Vegas students at the HyperX Arena to face off in Madden NFL 24, merging professional sports with esports in celebration of athletes everywhere

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- PlayVS, the leading amateur esports platform for varsity leagues in North America, today announced its inaugural esports Super Bowl LVIII event – PlayVS Live: Gridiron Showdown. In collaboration with the NFL, the event will be hosted at the HyperX Arena in Las Vegas on February 5, 2024, from 3:00 - 6:00 pm PST. The Super Bowl's largest youth-focused esports event will showcase the connection between traditional sports and esports, welcoming local students, NFL legends, and esports content creators while facilitating friendly competition and the chance to win tickets to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.

One hundred students from Vegas Parks & Rec will gather for an afternoon packed with competition, meet & greets, special guests, and prizes. The event kicks off with a panel featuring former NFL linebacker Dhani Jones and NFL fullback Johnny Stanton, along with creators DubDot and TheSketchReal, as they explore the links between traditional sports, esports, and essential skills like strategy and teamwork. Afterward, the students will enter Training Camp: a Madden NFL 24 mini-game competition that will unfold across PCs throughout the arena. Students will compete for the chance to play on the main stage as they tackle Madden NFL 24 mini-games Offense, Defense, and Special Teams.

To close out the event, Jones, Stanton, and the creators will select ten standout students to join them on the main stage for the Gridiron Showdown. Chosen players will go head-to-head in Backfield Survival mode, aiming to avoid tacklers as running backs. The student with the highest score will come away with a special prize pack.

Throughout the afternoon, students will record their high scores on an activity sheet to share with parents. By scanning a QR code at home after the event, parents can see a recap of what their kids learned at HyperX Arena and enter for a chance to win Super Bowl LVIII tickets.

"We're thrilled to be working with the NFL on this event as we help students learn about the connection between what's happening on the field and what's happening on their screens," said Jon Chapman, PlayVS CEO. "Esports provides many of the same benefits that traditional sports can provide: community, camaraderie, leadership skills, the list goes on. To be able to help spread that message set to the backdrop of one of the biggest sporting events of the year is an incredible honor."

"The NFL is proud to be working with PlayVS to bring their esports program to Las Vegas," said Renie Anderson, Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer of the NFL. "We deeply value PlayVS's commitment to expanding esports access and finding innovative ways to integrate it with professional sports. There's no better way to commemorate Super Bowl LVIII than by celebrating the values that our NFL teams and esports players share."

PlayVS is proud to present this one-of-a-kind experience at the forefront of youth esports innovation to the students and their guardians. PlayVS Live: The Gridiron Showdown is only the latest in a string of initiatives focused on increasing student access to esports and spreading awareness of the shared benefits of competitive gaming to the wider public.

ABOUT PLAYVS

PlayVS (pronounced Play Versus) is North America's leading scholastic esports platform, on a mission to unlock the many benefits of esports for players everywhere. PlayVS offers a single community in which players, coaches, educators and parents come together to compete, connect and grow through the power of esports. PlayVS is the official high school esports partner to the NFHS Network, the Special Olympics and state and regional organizations in the U.S. and Canada that offer officially sanctioned scholastic esports leagues. To learn more about PlayVS, visit https://playvs.com/.

About the National Football League (NFL)

The National Football League (NFL) is America's most popular sports league, comprised of 32 franchises that compete each year to win the Super Bowl, the world's biggest annual sporting event. Founded in 1920, the NFL developed the model for the successful modern sports league, including national and international distribution, extensive revenue sharing, competitive excellence, and strong franchises across the country.

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SOURCE PlayVS