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Mediarex, Kwan Partner to Bring GPL to India

GPL – Until today, you would’ve known it as the Global Poker League. When it comes to India, you will call it the Global Player League!

A press release yesterday announced the bringing of the Global Player League to India, to be facilitated by a multi-year agreement between Mediarex Sports & Entertainment and Kwan Entertainment. Mediarex is the parent company of the GPL, while Kwan is the largest talent management company in India.

Mediarex CEO Alex Dreyfus took to LinkedIn to announce the partnership:

“Kwan Entertainment and Mediarex Sports & Entertainment are excited to announce a multi-year strategic partnership that will see the two companies bring the Global Player League (GPL) to India. Catering to India’s 263 million active gamers, Kwan & Mediarex are committed to making GPL India a platform that is capable of connecting the nation’s esports and poker lovers to the rest of the world.”

Some may believe that esports and video gaming are overtaking poker and that’s why GPL decided to drop ‘poker’ from its name. While poker will continue to be a part of the league, it will not be the primary focus. When the GPL comes to India, it will be contested between 6 teams (and their captains) representing different cities of the country:

• Ahmedabad Alphas – Abhishek Rathod
• Bengaluru Hackers – Vidwath Shetty
• Chennai Sharks – Vikram Kumar
• Delhi Diehards – Muskan Sethi
• Kolkata Creators – Aditya Agarwal
• Mumbai Jetsetters – Kavin Shah

Recently, Chegdu Pandas were crowned champions of the inaugural GPL China and soon, we will have the inaugural GPL India as well. Newbie Indian leagues like the Poker Sports League (PSL) and the Match Indian Poker League (MIPL) might perhaps breathe a sigh of relief that the GPL will have its main focus on esports and gaming as this space is almost getting a bit crowded and to say nothing of GPL being the first brand to come up with an innovative league concept.

The official schedule of the first ever GPL India has not been announced as yet, but we believe that it is set to take place in the early half of 2018. The format is expected to be along the lines of the China edition and the winning team will get the chance to square off with other winners at the GPL World Championship. Keep watching GutshotMagazine.com for more updates on GPL India and other gaming news!

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