The official logo of Road to Asian Games Tournament. /Asian Electronic Sports Federation
The selection of esports athletes for the 2022 Asian Games is about to begin in 45 countries and regions on the continent, CGTN Digital has learned.
A tournament called "Road to Asian Games" (RDAG) will be held by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Asian Electronic Sports Federation (AESF) to determine who can represent their country or region to participate in the pan-Asia sports fest, which for the first time counts esports gold medals in the tally.
AESF President Kenneth Fok said the RDAG Tournament will "determine team selection" for Asian countries and regions across various esports titles.
AESF said on its website that the tournament will also determine the official rankings of Asian countries and regions.
The titles include League of Legends, DotA 2, FIFA Online 4, Hearthstone, Arena of Valor Asian Games Version, Dream Three Kingdoms 2, PUBG Mobile Asian Games Version and Street Fighter V.
The OCA signed a strategic partnership agreement with Chinese internet giant Tencent on Thursday to promote the development of esports in Asia.
The signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding between the OCA and Tencent, January 20, 2022. /OCA
OCA Director General Husain Al-Musallam said he's confident that Tencent will help "create more exciting possibilities for the digital electronic sports industry in Asia."
Tencent's Steven Ma promised that the Shenzhen-based company will work with Asian countries and regions to create an esports culture with Asian characteristics and promote the prosperity and development of the esports industry in Asia and around the world.
Esport is big in Asia. According to market researcher Niko Partners, the continent occupied more than half of the $1 billion global esports market.