Game publisher Giants Software announced that American corporation John Deere will be joining the Farming Simulator League. John Deere is one of the leading agricultural, construction, forestry, and lawn care equipment manufacturers. This announcement comes just weeks after German video game publisher Astragon Entertainment also revealed it would be patroning a team for the league.
The upcoming Farming Simulator League will consist of 10 European events between 2019 and 2020. The League will have a USD $280K total prize pool and also key events held at some of Europe’s biggest gaming conventions.
John Deere in Farming Simulator League
The newly formed esports team includes seven Farming Simulator players from Germany. With this news, there will also be new company-designed and branded vehicles added to the existing fleet in the game. The John Deere team will play their first match at FarmCon 2019 in July.
“The reasons for John Deere’s entry into e-sports are obvious: first and foremost the attractiveness of the detailed Farming Simulator within the agricultural sector and far beyond,” wrote Ralf Lenge, the Manager of Public Relations at John Deere. “This is accompanied by the high level of acceptance of John Deere products in Farming Simulator and the ever stronger interlocking of the real with the digital world.”
John Deere joins other farming equipment manufacturers like Lindner, Horsch, Krone, and Bednar. These companies have also been revealed as patrons for teams. Other patrons include Logitech G, Intel, Corteva, DLG, Noble Chairs, and Nitrado. Other than the aforementioned prize pool, there will be a €100K prize for the championship finals at FarmCon 2020. This expansion for John Deere and other farming equipment manufacturers is a great way to increase their presence in the esports community.
What do you think about the Farming Simulator League? Have you ever played the Farming Simulator game, and if so, what do you think about it? It seems the majority of the player base is in European countries. Will more non-gaming related industries launch their own esports tournament leagues in the future to grab a slice of the pie? Keep up with all of the latest esports news and content here at Daily Esports.
