Sport
The Asian Chess Federation partners with Checkmate
The strategic partnership sees Checkmate become the Asian Chess Federation's official online tournament platform, data and broadcast partner.
The Asian Chess Federation (ACF) is the international governing body of chess across the Asian Continent. Its membership comprises of 52 national associations across Asia , the Middle East and Oceania. Its headquarters is in Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates and its President, is His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan.
VADR is an executive production firm that produces and promotes new media, sports and entertainment. It first ventured into esports in 2015 when it launched Let's Play Live and subsequently grew it into Australia and New Zealand's largest independent esports tournament platform and linear and online broadcaster.
Checkmate is a new web3 initiative by the VADR team focused on producing and broadcasting linear and online tournaments for a new generation of players. At its heart is a skills-based platform that allows players to compete and win cash prizes, credits, and in-game assets and an XR-led, esports-first international chess series.
His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Bin Shakboot Al Nahayan , President Asian Chess Federation (ACF), commented:
It is estimated up to 700 million people play the 1500-year-old skill-based game. COVID-19 had a marked impact on its increasing popularity along with the release of Netflix hit mini-series 'The Queen's Gambit' in 2020. This growth has seen a significant increase in chess being streamed online by influencers, major esports teams signing professional players and record online viewership numbers.
It is estimated that up to 420 million of these players are aged between 18-34, which is the same demographic that has also seen brands increasingly flock to esports. Online chess, however, has several advantages over other esports, including higher female participation, greater brand hygiene and the ability for international competitions to be played online as it is asynchronous (turn by turn). The growth and popularity of online chess has also been positive for over-the-board chess, as recently demonstrated by over 2000 players from 185 countries competing at the FIDE Olympiad in India earlier this month.
A key focus for the Checkmate team since they started their planning was to improve the integrity of online Chess matches. The advent of online play, AI and Chess engines has been a boom for the game, but it has also been a major barrier to competitive online play due to the misuse of these technologies for cheating.
" s", said McRae.
Checkmate's take on chess will launch in Q1 2023 on Web and Mobile.
Interested parties can sign up at www.checkmate.live to hear further announcements.
The Asian Chess Federation, commonly known by the acronym ACF, is the international governing body of chess across the Asian Continent. Its membership comprises of 52 national associations across
Asia , the Middle East and Oceania.
www.asianchess.com
VADR is an executive production firm that produces and promotes new media, sports and entertainment.
www.vadr.media
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Photo 1: His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Bin Shakboot Al Nahayan , President Asian
Chess Federation
Photo 2: David Jenns , Principal (Left), White Wolf Strategies,
Hisham Al Taher , Secretary-General, Asian Chess Federation
(Centre), John McRae , Founder and Managing Director, VADR Media (Right)
Photo 3: Hisham Al Taher , Secretary-General, Asian Chess Federation (Left),
John McRae , Founder and Managing Director, VADR
Media (Right)
Image 1: Asian Chess Federation logo
Image 2: Checkmate Hero
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Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1888846/Photo_1.jpg
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