Winners will be revealed live at EsportsNext Powered By GameSquare on April 29
The Esports Trade Association is proud to announce the finalists for the 2026 ESTA Esports Industry Awards across five categories. This year’s field represents the full breadth of what makes esports an industry worth celebrating — from business model innovation to grassroots community building, from scholastic education pipelines to campaigns that made the entire culture take notice.
Winners will be announced live at EsportsNext Powered By GameSquare on April 29.
Esports Innovation Award
The Esports Innovation Award recognizes an organization or individual that has introduced groundbreaking technology, services, or strategies that significantly advance the esports industry.
This year’s finalists are:
BETER— ESportsBattle Series
Pioneers of a fast-format, PvP-only esports content ecosystem operating more than 35,000 events per month, built from the ground up with integrity-by-design architecture and machine learning-powered data infrastructure.
BlueBottle GmbH Creators of LeagueBroadcast
The first tool that allows broadcasters to draw directly inside the League of Legends game world in real time, democratizing professional-grade broadcast tools for organizers at every level.
GameSquare
A publicly traded, vertically integrated esports platform combining FaZe Esports, Stream Hatchet analytics, and experiential programming into one of the most commercially sophisticated business models the industry has produced.
Esports Leadership Award
The Esports Leadership Award is presented to an individual who demonstrates exemplary leadership and has made a significant contribution to the growth and success of the esports industry.
This year’s finalists are:
Brandon Tschacher — Milwaukee Esports Alliance
The founder of Wisconsin’s most important esports ecosystem — building the Wisconsin Esports Summit, Cream City Convergence, and the state’s first collegiate esports conference from the ground up, without venture capital and without controversy.
Jeffery Harrison — East Baton Rouge Esports League
The architect of Louisiana’s first statewide scholastic esports federation, building equitable career pathways and competitive infrastructure for students across the state.
Jon Chapman — PlayVS
The CEO who scaled PlayVS to 68,000+ schools across North America, completed landmark acquisitions to unify the scholastic esports landscape, and removed financial barriers that had long excluded underserved communities.
Esports Community Engagement Award
The Esports Community Engagement Award celebrates an organization or individual for outstanding efforts in engaging and growing the esports community.
This year’s finalists are:
ASUS Republic of Gamers
The official PC provider of three major collegiate esports organizations, reaching 1,000+ institutions and tens of thousands of student-athletes through hardware partnerships and the ASUS ROG Play of the Week recognition series.
Electronic Arts — Apex Legends Global Series
The team behind the ALGS Year 5 Championship in Sapporo, Japan — a city-wide, fan-first experience that embedded esports across transit hubs, produced a custom musical anthem with in-game audio design, and drew 38,000 attendees across four days.
Gold Star Gamers
A trauma-informed, 24/7 esports community serving 3,500+ children of fallen military personnel — whose peer mentor model has produced documented life-saving interventions and sustained partnerships with USAA, Microsoft, Verizon, and Bungie.
Esports Marketing Excellence Award
The Esports Marketing Excellence Award recognizes a team or individual for exceptional marketing campaigns that have elevated brand presence, engaged audiences, and driven significant growth in the esports sector.
This year’s finalists are:
Electronic Arts — Apex Legends Global Series
A globally localized marketing operation delivering richly differentiated campaigns across the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and Saudi Arabia — earning Cynopsis Top Woman in Media recognition for its lead.
FlyQuest — “League is Dead” x Von Dutch
The team behind “League is Dead” x Von Dutch — a sold-out luxury fashion campaign that generated 205 million impressions, earned coverage in Complex, and was organically adopted by NFL athletes and Olympic gold medalists without a single paid placement.
XP League Frisco
A grassroots franchise that expanded its community reach through multi-platform digital strategy, live broadcast-style content, and a podcast that bridges local youth programming with industry-wide operators.
Esports Scholastic Impact Award
The Esports Scholastic Impact Award recognizes an organization or institution that has made significant contributions to esports education — developing curricula, conducting research, or building programs that create lasting pathways for the next generation of industry talent.
This year’s finalists are:
Cleverlike Studios
A game-based education pioneer with over 80 million content plays, two decades of classroom impact, and a “Game-based Creation” philosophy that turns students from passive players into designers of the competitive experiences they then inhabit.
PlayVS
The team behind Gaming Concepts, the first standards-based academic esports curriculum — downloaded 400,000+ times across 40+ countries and backed by the first peer-reviewed doctoral research proving esports improves student GPA and attendance.
Syracuse University
A Power 4 institution that has built the esports industry’s most complete scholastic-to-career pipeline — a first-of-its-kind B.S. degree program, three world-class facilities, 50+ paid student employment opportunities, and a home for New York State’s largest high school esports championships.
Join Us on April 29
Winners will be announced live at EsportsNext Powered By GameSquare on April 29. Registration is open now at [esportsnext registration link].
The ESTA Industry Awards celebrate the organizations and individuals who are building the future of esports — and this year’s finalists represent some of the most compelling work the industry has produced. We look forward to honoring them on April 29.
About the Esports Trade Association
The Esports Trade Association (ESTA) is the leading trade organization for the esports industry, dedicated to advancing the business, integrity, and growth of competitive gaming. Learn more at esportsta.org.