The booming esports industry influences all aspects of video gaming, and with EA Sports’ FIFA franchise representing the largest sports simulation title in the world, the publisher needed to be a frontrunner in the competitive gaming space. Ahead of the release of FIFA 18, EA expanded its established Championship Series to include the FIFA 18 Global Series, a live-streamed esports competition that was designed to increase viewership of gameplay on Twitch and engage the esports community through elevated broadcast experiences.

To make it happen, the brand enlisted an all-star roster
of FIFA 18 players and YouTube creators to guide viewers through all aspects of the broadcast. Like social media “Feature Match” polling that allowed fans to vote on which matches they wanted to see next, or “Twitch Drops” that gave digital viewers and on-site fans a chance to win prizes for tuning in to the live stream. Adding to the excitement, the brand equipped select players with heart rate monitors, and during high-stakes matches, displayed an on-screen graphic that showed the heart rates of opposing players. Throughout each broadcast, members of the talent team relied on EA’s touch screen analyst telestrator, a tool that allowed them to add augmented reality overlay graphics and motion graphics to highlight key moments in gameplay. Meanwhile, a “Community Couch” served as a central broadcast hub that played host to a rotating cast of esports competitors and special guests.

In the end, EA Sports earned an 80 percent increase in live, year-over-year Twitch viewership and secured 108 hours of air time. Game on.