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The Phygital Games: what this new sports project is regarding
A new era opens with this sport modality.
Physical and digital sports create many opportunities. (Free Press Photo: Pexels)
In February we had the opportunity to participate in the first edition of the Phygital Games of the Future, which is the firm proposal by the Russian government to promote a new sports modality. The city of Kazan was the epicenter of this event that brought together more than two thousand digital and physical athletes representing more than 100 countries in the world.
What are phygital games? As its name indicates, it is the fusion between physical sport (conventional sport) and digital sport (esports). To put it more clearly, in a confrontation between team A versus team B, the first phase of the match consists of playing the FIFA video game (with its Volta mode, which is like street soccer). It is played for three minutes and then the players move to face each other in physical soccer in its 5 versus 5 mode. At the end of the match in the physical phase, both markers are added, thus designating the winner of the confrontation.
Guatemala participated through the Holcattes Club in two of the 21 modalities that came into action for this edition (soccer and basketball). The Mayan team faced the Liga Pro club (Russia) and the Antananarivo club (Madagascar) in basketball, losing in both matches. While in the soccer category, the Holcattes lost to the champion Phoenix (Russia), beat FC Van (Armenia) in the second game and lost to R10 (world soccer star Ronaldinho’s club).
In short, this event leaves the Guatemalan Electronic Sports Association a path full of opportunities to develop in Guatemala. Although the first category included in the event in Kazan was open men’s, the ADEG will seek to go deeper: to children/youth sports.
The strategy now consists of developing the Phygital School Games. Given that there is still some friction in a sector in accepting the practice of electronic sports among Guatemalan youth, the physical side opens a great door of opportunities for us to reach that segment.
It was a tremendous experience lived in the Phygital Games of the Future. The originality of the competition format aroused the interest of both fans who witnessed the matches, as well as the athletes themselves who, for the first time in their careers, experienced something so dynamic and attractive.
*President of the Electronic Sports Association of Guatemala
“The combination of physical and digital sport opens up many opportunities.”
#sports #project
