London, Tuesday November 14th – Last night saw guests from the world of gaming, entertainment and sport come together to celebrate the second annual NOW TV Esports Industry Awards. With over 600,000 votes cast in total this year, the awards recognise outstanding achievements in Esports over the last year, in an industry that continues to grow in strength and appeal.
A stellar quartet of hosting talent – Julia Hardy, Nicki Shields, OJ Borg and Adam Savage presented the winners with their well-deserved awards. Leading the field were winners Megan “RheingoldRiver” Cutrofello as Unsung Hero of the Year, and Belgian television presenter, reporter, Esports player Eefje “Sjokz” Depoortere as Personality of the Year. A shining achievement for both, and the first women to scoop NOW TV Esports Industry Awards.
Spencer “Gorilla” Ealing emerged victorious as NOW TV Esports player of the year in association with L’Oreal Men Expert. He is currently also Fifa World champion; the first UK player to take the crown since 2005.
Esports Play of the Year – Matthew ‘FormaL’ Piper
David Turner, Retail Marketing Controller at headline partner NOW TV, commented: “Last night was more than just a recognition of those who have made major contributions to the world of Esports; it demonstrated the passion and dedication that all those involved in the sector have and why Esports will continue its meteoric growth and appeal.”
Tom Mercey, Director and Co-Founder of the EIA said: “Global recognition and awareness of Esports has absolutely exploded over the last twelve months and that has been reflected in the amazing support we’ve had for our awards this year.” He went on to add “We created the awards to celebrate everyone who contributes to making Esports such a global phenomenon and we’re thrilled to have been joined by so many leading lights of the industry this year as well as celebrities from the world of music, film and TV”
About Esports Industry Awards
Founded in 2015, the NOW TV Esports Industry Awards had an 18-month journey to its inaugural event. The NOW TV Esports Industry Awards is dedicated to showcasing top class performance and innovation from, amongst others, the players, teams, media, hardware providers, games, events, and personalities within the scene. Giving credibility to this process was fundamental for all involved and the integrity of every step was closely monitored by our NOW TV Esports Industry Awards committee. We work closely with our headline, category and event partners to bring the very best annual event which puts those at the heart of the industry in the limelight.
The NOW TV Esports Industry Awards returned to celebrate the ‘best of the best’ in the industry, on November 13th 2017, at the Brewery – London.
About the hosts
JULIA HARDY: Hardy has been signed for a second year for Radio 1’s monthly video games show and has a great deal of experience in hosting TV shows and events. Her CV includes presenting duties for the BAFTA Games Awards for Challenge TV, hosting the Worldwide Minecraft Convention, presenting Videogame Nation and reporting on gaming and technology news for Sky. Julia continues to partner with mainstream brands such as her long term collaboration with Very.co.uk and has a new series launching soon on AOL, as well many TV shows in development with various networks.
NICKI SHEILDS: Nicki has been the host presenter and pit-lane reporter for the FIA Formula E Championship since 2014 – the all electric racing championship on city street circuits round the world. Nicki is a huge Esports fan and hosts the e-racing series at Formula E race weekends, plus the Visa Vegas e-race which had the biggest prize fund in e-racing history of 1 million dollars. She is also the anchor for CNN series ‘Supercharged’, a technology and motor show, and also CNN’s ‘Going Green’ eco show, along with commentating on Formula 1 on ESPN. Nicki is a familiar face hosting live events, credits include The Gadget Show Live, Goodwood TV, Confex 2014 & 2015, ICE Totally Gaming, VitaFoods, Marketing Week Live, Autosport International Show, ITV’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, Revival after going green and the Bounce children’s festival.
OJ BORG: OJ Borg is a broadcaster, filmmaker and owner of an original Amstrad CPC-464. With a Colour screen. Having realised early on that he was no good at proper jobs OJ has worked on numerous TV and Radio shows over the years. From extreme gadget testing for Gizmodo on BBC America to hosting shows for ESL, OJ lists his major achievements as having not mortally offended anyone in the Esports world yet & never having been beaten on Speedball 2.
ADAM SAVAGE: Adam has spent the last 12months hosting the Activision UK games blog, producing and writing Endemol Shine’s Legends of Gaming Live, hosting and producing Dan TDM’s Live show at Multiplay’s Insomnia Gaming Festival as well as making a return to TV screens in Sky’s The First Hour on GINXEsportsTV. However, Adam has also brought his presenting experience to the forefront of major Esports events and championships as a Main Stage Host and player interviewer.
Working alongside commentators and analysts, Adam has worked with Gfinity on the Halo World Championship Qualifiers Series Live from Wembley Stadium as well as ESL UK across their Premiership CS:GO & League of Legends campaigns and Halo Fall Season Finals. He also brought viewers at home the very latest from the Call Of Duty World League Finals at COD XP on behalf of Activision in LA last summer and has recently worked with London MCM ComicCon across the ESL UK Premiership Hearthstone Finals.
