The entertainment district Exhibition Place in Toronto is about to receive a new venue dedicated to Esports. Next to the soccer stadium BMO Fields, with 30,000 seats, the OverActive Media’s project might count with 7,000 seats.
Its purpose is to host all sorts of events, such as awards, conventions, concerts, but most importantly, Esports events. After all, the group responsible for it is investing the huge sum of US$500 million in creating a reference in terms of Esports entertainment. It should also serve as a home for the two OverActive Media teams, Toronto Ultra (Call of Duty) and Toronto Defiant (Overwatch).
When Will the Esports Venue Open?
According to CanadianArchitect, the new entertainment venue by OverActive Media should be ready by 2025. However, caution is advised as the project is still waiting for final approval by the city of Toronto. Since there are other Esports venues out there – such as the Blizzard Arena in Los Angeles – the chances that such a solid project will be approved are higher.
The fact that Esports is a growing multimillionaire industry will most probably not escape the city of Toronto. Therefore, 2025 or a bit later, the new arena should be ready to host up to 200 events every year, generating excellent revenue for both the city of Toronto and the involved parties.
The Facility Design
Designed by Populous, responsible for three other top-notch stadiums such as the London Olympic Stadium of 2012, the venue should become a world-leading center of Esports, planned to be a best-in-class building in terms of performance.
They released a short introduction video, uploaded to YouTube, showing the futuristic structure of the new complex, which is a wonder by itself.
What to Expect?
Chris Overholt, interviewed by the TorontoSun and current CEO of OverActive Media, said that Toronto is “the fourth largest market in North America.” Their purpose is to attract attention and the Esports public to the big city, with the ever-increasing hype around Esports. At the same time, serving as a home for the two teams participating in official leagues will help OverActive Media support its athletes and make them known.
The Future of Esports
It is not possible to tell just yet if Esports arenas will start to overcome soccer stadiums in terms of popularity and size. The fact is that they are in the process of becoming equal in several terms, as the new Toronto complex by OverActive Media clearly shows.
Esports athletes earn millions of dollars, similar to the best soccer or basketball players, and they are the idols of the new generation. Soon, there will be many venues like those of Blizzard and OverActive Media.
Whatever the future seems to reserve for the players and fans of Esports like Call of Duty and Overwatch, it is a fact that Toronto is on the right track to becoming an Esports center.
