For years, the World Series of Poker has been putting out exciting live poker action year after year – thanks to their collaborations with companies like 888 Poker USA to help bring poker into the mainstream. We thought we’d bring you the scoop on WSOP since we cover some of the biggest gaming events so you don’t miss any of the action!
The 49th Annual WSOP is being held at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada from Tuesday, May 29, 2018 to Tuesday, July 17, 2018. This year they are bringing more than just poker mainstream, eSports is slated to be a big feature at this years event and gamers around the world couldn’t be more excited!
This year gaming fans can play some of the most popular online games at the event such as this summers blockbuster hit Fortnite, along with others like card game heavyweight Hearthstone, and sports fans can compete against each other in FIFA – these will all be in designated gaming areas located on the stage in the back of the Pavilion room (the room of many faces).
WSOP The Event
If you’ve ever been to a WSOP event you know it’s a mammoth undertaking – it’s simply a huge event. People come from all over the world to show off their poker skills – and to learn some new tricks!
This year many companies like 888 Poker are giving away chances to go to the WSOP Main Event – such as their “$12,600 special package” – so be on the lookout for chances to win those – you could also claw your way to the top of the rankings and get invited! And you’ll want to be at this years event since they have added nine new tournaments, including the first fresh event featuring the $10,000 Super Bounty Turbo, but if you are a pro you may be looking forward to the $100,000 Super High Roller as one of the most sought after tournaments outside of the Main Event this year.
In addition to the other interesting changes we’ve mentioned the Rio will be the improving the dining options – foodies rejoice! This is great news since historically players have been known to complain about WSOP’s dining choices (or lack there of). Hopefully they can do something with the prices, but the selection should definitely be kicked up a notch.
Competitive Gaming & eSports in Rio
This year The WSOP is sharing the stage with eSports during it’s 50 days of competition. Which is a great idea since the competition can only focus on one thing for so long without attention spans waning – what holds attention spans the best? Video games, and lots of them! Who doesn’t want to take a break from poker and play some Fortnite? or Hearthstone? Let’s do it! This not only keeps the fans more engaged, but the players as well – everyone should be firing on all cylinders rather than getting tired and needing a break from poker. We’ve talked about where esports was going in the past so this new undertaking comes as no surprise – apparently esports is headed towards Fortnite, at every event!
Poker pros looking for a win in Fortnite!
This eSports collaboration all comes thanks to UMG, who has been a huge reason that esports competitions have grown so much since they started back in 2008. There’s no wonder how they did it since to date they have hosted more than 18 million matches!
Dave Antony, CEO of UMG said in a recent press release that “Last year we watched our initiative to grow esports in Las Vegas grow by leaps and bounds, Bringing the UMG Esports Stage into the World Series of Poker events is an amazing next step in continuing this initiative into 2018 and beyond. UMG will utilize its groundbreaking event management app to help organize the event and to constantly update participants of upcoming play and special events at the UMG stage.”
This is just the beginning of the crossover between poker and esports gaming. You’d be surprised how many poker players are actually gamers as well!
