Orange County SC Kicks Off FIFA Squad with Virtual Pro Gaming
#WhereTheChampionsPlay – Soccer fans and gamers unite! Orange County SC enters the realm of eSports and makes USL and US pro soccer history by establishing the club’s first eSports team working with VPG. The team will play FIFA, which many consider the best Esport Game and create new ways for fans to connect.
USL’s First eSports Team
Soccer News: Soccer is a global sport that brings together fans, coaches, and players of all ages, ethnicities and cultural backgrounds. As the world’s favorite sport, it translates well from the pitch to the eSports world.
Becoming known as an innovative leader on and off the pitch, USL‘s professional soccer team, Orange County Soccer Club (OCSC), is kicking off its own eSports team.
Related Soccer News: ORANGE COUNTY SC SIGNS LOCAL FAN AS FIRST MANAGER OF NEW ESPORTS TEAM
A groundbreaking kick off in the digital world, OCSC’s virtual gaming squad will be a FIFA 11v11 team, competing in the Virtual Pro Gaming (VPG) league, and it is the first of its kind in US pro soccer and United Soccer League (USL) history.
How popular is EA Sports’ FIFA? Millions of soccer fans play FIFA. The world of eSports has grown fast, with people of all ages playing.
According to EA Sports’ Electronic Arts Reports Q1 FY19 Financial Results, there has been a sharp increase in participation in the current season of FIFA18 competitive gaming—80% more average viewers over last season. With the release of FIFA 19 fast approaching in late September, this rapid growth is only expected to continue.
In fact, over 20 million players have participated in this season’s competitive gaming, and OSSC’s owner & president James A. Keston is one of them.
“I have been playing FIFA games for more than 20 years on multiple platforms,” said Keston.
“As the world of video games increasingly evolves into both a group activity and a spectator sport, it seems like a natural progression for 11 individual gamers, each controlling one virtual player and communicating with one another, to truly act as a team,” said Keston. “With our new eSports team, anyone with a PlayStation 4 can now experience the excitement and teamwork that we at Orange County SC work tirelessly to cultivate every day as the only professional soccer team between Long Beach and Tijuana.”
Being part of a team is an exhilarating experience, online or in the real world. While the eMLS Cup only allows 1v1 action, VPG’s FIFA eSports let’s full 11v11 teams enjoy the action. OCSC’s online FIFA squad will be working with VPG, who uniquely provides players with the opportunity to participate as a team online. VPG’s platform dominates the FIFA 11v11 eSports market, with players in over 110 countries and 2,200 teams competing in the league worldwide.
The force driving VPG’s FIFA platform is Chief Operation Officer Danny Robinson who became a gamer at a very young age and is a passionate FIFA player. For VPG, partnering with OCSC provides a great entrance into the USA pro soccer landscape and should be a galvanizing force for other professional teams to join the eSports world.
“Generally, eSports teams don’t have established fan bases when joining the competitive gaming scene,” said Robinson. “However, professional soccer clubs like Orange Country SC have established fan bases and strong brand names. We all know that soccer fans are a different breed when it comes to fandom.”
“I am excited to connect soccer fans from Southern California, across the country and around the globe to Orange County SC,” said Robinson who hopes that when the FIFA 2026 World Cup comes to the United States, there will be a virtual 11v11 World Cup hosted by VPG as well.
In addition to cultivating teamwork, Robinson believes playing FIFA can benefit soccer players of all ages.
“As a gamer, I think FIFA helps players better understand the game of soccer,” said Robinson.
“FIFA helps increase a player’s soccer IQ.”
“Great vision is important in the eSports world as well. Players can see why a pass backward can actually open up better opportunities to move the ball forward — just like in real life on the pitch,” added Robinson.
To win the high-level Pro Club league and Cup games, gamers have to be able to work as a team and get on the same page. As with any professional soccer team, recruiting and evaluating talent can make or break the season.
Robinson offers the five important keys to being a playmaker in FIFA eSports.
- Keep possession of the ball.
- Know when and when not to sprint.
- Be vocal on the mic, and let people know what you are thinking.
- Have great positioning, so you are always available for a pass.
- Use the game’s Skills Mode to work on finishing. A playmaker becomes very dangerous when the opposing team respects their shot as well as their ability to create shots.
Want to be a part of the OCSC FIFA action? There will be tryouts!
Gamers who think they have what it takes to represent Orange County SC eSports will be able to take part in the team’s official tryouts in September. For more details, please visit OCSC’s eSport.
Once the squad roster is complete and VPG season is underway in October, the Orange County SC eSports team will play matches on a regular basis.
Matches will be streamed live via Twitch, Facebook and Twitter pages for free.
Orange County Soccer Club is Orange County’s only professional soccer team that is part of the United Soccer League (USL), the fastest growing Division II professional soccer league in the world.
