Maryville MPress

Maryville to Compete in St. Louis Esports Tournament

Building on St. Louis’ reputation as a celebrated sports town while showcasing the city as one of the most vibrant technology hubs in the U.S., St. Louis will host the inaugural Gateway Legends Collegiate Invitational.

Maryville’s League of Legends Esports Team is one of 16 top collegiate esports teams from across the country to compete in the tournament.

The tournament will take place July 2, 3 and 4 at Ballpark Village in downtown St. Louis. In addition to live gameplay, the Gateway Legends will feature celebrity casters, esports panels, educational sessions, live music and more. The event is free to attend, although seating in Ballpark Village is first come, first served.

“Our esports program gets to compete in events all over the world so we are used to the big stage,” said Dan Clerke, Maryville’s director of esports. “Gateway Legends is especially important to us, as it’s the first of its kind in our own backyard. We want to represent St. Louis, in St. Louis, to the best of our ability.”

Maryville’s dominating esports program boasts three League of Legends national championships and recently claimed its first Overwatch national championship. Clerke has worked with Gateway Legends organizers since early 2020 to bring the tournament to life. After the inaugural event takes place, Clerke plans on building several local esports initiatives that St. Louisans can look forward to every year.

Gateway Legends is the first in-person, collegiate esports tournament of 2021. The tournament is produced by the Fair St. Louis Foundation and sponsored by The Centene Charitable Foundation. Nerd Street Gamers will oversee tournament operations, and Riot Games is the developer of League of Legends.

“As a corporate citizen of St. Louis, Riot Games is excited to see the tremendous growth in esports in the metropolitan area over the past few years,” said Bridgette Horack, Karma Ambassador at Riot Games. “Through this event, we hope that the community will learn more about the opportunities esports can provide students in high school and at the collegiate level in a non-traditional sport. We’re looking forward to the Gateway Legends Collegiate Invitational and wish all the players the best of luck out on the Rift.”

Thank you to KMOV for your coverage of this good news!

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