Australia’s first Esports High Performance Centre will open this month at the famous Sydney Cricket Ground, providing a place for esports development alongside traditional sports teams in cricket, Australian rules football, rugby league and soccer.
This facility will house the League of Legends Oceania champion LG Dire Wolves and mixed gender Counter-Strike team Supa-Stellar and will have access to technology and sports science, including eye trackers and performance analysis through a partnership with the University of Technology, Sydney.
“It will be a game changer to have Australia’s leading Esports professionals in a dedicated high performance centre in the same precinct as the best athletes and officials from the SCG and Allianz Stadium’s traditional sports,” Jamie Barkley, Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust Chief Executive, said in a statement.
“Our venues are rapidly expanding their technology offerings and partnering with professional Esports entities and establishing the state of the art training centre presents an exciting opportunity.”
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LG Dire Wolves owner David Harris believes that the facility will bring esports closer to a traditional sports environment and culture for training, helping close the gap in esports with top regions and enabling Australia to become globally competitive.
As he told Mashable, “We’d like to think this is similar to the Australian Institute of Sport, which gave the region an edge for an extended period.”
The centre will also act as a training base for visiting teams and will be a place where budding professional gamers can improve their skills.
“Some international and local League of Legends esports teams already tap into traditional sporting organisation training facilities, but the SCG High Performance Centre will be one of a kind in the Oceania region,” Daniel Ringland, Head of Esports at Riot Games Oceania, said in a statement. “I’m excited to see how the centre will help the LG Dire Wolves elevate their game and raise the playing level for the OPL.”