Unknown, unsigned and unpopular, 16-year-old Thabo “Yvng Savage” Moloi showed up to the Montecasino Piazza in Johannesburg with a look of astonishment on his face. He was there to compete in his first FIFA event, so seeing a crowd of more than 1,000 people, with some of the country’s most popular celebrities and footballers in attendance, left him awestruck.
“There was so much going on in the venue,” Yvng Savage said of the environment at the 2018 VS Gaming FIFA Festival, which included arcade machines, rock climbing walls, an indoor football court and a stage surrounded with huge lights. “I was blown away that this whole thing had been set up for a gaming event.”
While the event made an impression on Yvng Savage, he was actually the one who everyone was talking about once it ended.
By the 27th minute of the final match of the PS4 tournament, the scene on the pitch looked one sided. Zuhair “zaZe” Ebraim, champion of the previous VS Gaming Festival, couldn’t keep up with Yvng Savage’s quick passes. Yvng Savage even capped off his powerful performance with some showboating — using Cristiano Ronaldo no less — to celebrate a two goal lead. Yvng Savage won his first tournament that day, but it was only the beginning o his climb to prominence.
In the years since then, Yvng Savage went from an unknown entity to Red Bull’s first ever African esports athlete. After that, Thabo and his teammate, Julio “BeastBianchi ” Bianchi, became the first African esports athletes to make the Forbes Africa 30 under 30 list.
“My journey has definitely been a rollercoaster,” he said. “Winning that first FIFA tournament was honestly a life changing moment for me.”
No greener pitches than South Africa
Yvng Savage plays for Goliath Gaming while living in South Africa. His nation is home to some of the most dedicated professional FIFA players in the world. It is the only Sub-Saharan African country verified for the FIFA Global Series.
“The FIFA players here are just a great representation for the nation,” said FIFA commentator Sam “Tech Girl” Wright.
South Africa has a massive football culture. Many kids grew up on the pitch, but when they couldn’t pursue their dreams of playing with the likes of Orlando Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs, they picked up controllers to follow a similar path. For both BeastBianchi and his manager, Michele Brondani, their early attempts at footballing careers drew them to the FIFA community.
“Football is special here,” BeastBianchi said. “The progression from the real-life pitch to the virtual pitch was seamless. Competitive FIFA has presented opportunities and friendships.”
This helped FIFA blossom into a culture of its own in South Africa. What started as a smaller scene has spread through word of mouth and social media, growing into something much bigger due to the first VS Gaming FIFA Festival in 2017.
