ESPN may be moving away from its coverage of esports, but that doesn’t mean other sports outlets are too. An upcoming Rocket League tournament is set to be broadcast on BBC Sport, marking the channel’s first esports broadcast of 2021.
Rocket League‘s first tournament of the year, the Rocket League Championship Series X, will go live Saturday, January 9. Players will be able to watch the tournament on BBC Sport online, the BBC Sport app, and BBC iPlayer. This won’t mark the first time the BBC has given a home to Rocket League tournaments. In 2020, the channel broadcasted the game’s European Spring Series.
Past being the first tournament broadcast on the BBC this year, the RLCS X is also changing how fans get to watch and interact with competitive Rocket League. According to a press release, the tournament series, which began this past Summer, is taking an open, event-based approach. Prior tournaments have used league play formats with bi-annual seasons. This circuit will end with the Rocket League World Championship. Last year’s championship game was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with developer Psyonix pumping an extra $250,000 USD into the prize pool. The current prize pool for this year’s Rocket League World Championship is one million dollars.
Who to watch for on the BBC
Currently, the RLCS X Winter Split will feature Guild Esports, a team co-owned by famous former soccer player David Beckham. Other confirmed teams include Team Singularity and Wolves Esports. Past these standouts, the usual large eSports teams will be represented at the RLCS X, including Dignitas and Team Liquid. A full list of the series’ competitors can be found here.
The show will be live to watch on Saturday, January 9 and Sunday, January 10 starting at 3:30 PM. Once again, the matches will be broadcast on the BBC Sport website and app, along with the BBC iPlayer.
