Svenska Spel, the state-owned operator in Sweden, has partnered with the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and the Swedish Esports Association (SESF) to sponsor the 2020 Swedish eHockey Championship. This event, which serves as the esports equivalent of traditional hockey, is played on EA Sports' NHL 20 and is set to take place between August and October. This marks the second year of the championship, organized by NHLGamer, which is the largest eHockey tournament organizer in Europe.
The tournament features both 1v1 solo matches and 6v6 team competitions over five weeks, highlighting top eHockey talent from Sweden. To participate, at least 50% of each team, including all captains, must be Swedish citizens. The finals of the tournament will occur on October 2 and 3 and will be streamed on Twitch, which is owned by Amazon.
Jimmy Sandberg, the sponsorship project manager at Svenska Spel, expressed pride in being the main sponsor for both the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and SESF, stating, 'Working together to marry traditional sports with e-sports is something we believe in.'
Christer Plars, the commercial manager for the Swedish Ice Hockey Association, emphasized the goal of attracting new fans interested in hockey and collaborating with Svenska Spel to boost interest in esports. He noted that providing an opportunity for people to engage in virtual ice hockey is important while traditional tournaments are on hold due to the pandemic.
The decision to cancel the remainder of the 2019-20 season came in March when the Swedish Ice Hockey Association halted all games in response to requests from the Swedish league, SHL, and its member organizations. This unanimous decision included the cancellation of games across all levels, including the country’s second- and third-tier tournaments and the SDHL, a premier women’s hockey league. Similar cancellations were seen across numerous ice hockey leagues worldwide during that period.
