NEW YORK: In a new partnership, the Drone Champions League (DCL) will stream its live Drone Grand Prix coverage exclusively through interactive streaming service Twitch.
Beginning with the season opener on 18-19 July, Twitch streams will serve up the World Championship of professional drone racing teams – all live as it happens.
Twitch is a live, interactive streaming service with a broad range of content that spans gaming, sports, entertainment, music and more. The core mechanics of what makes the service unique are live streaming content, real-time interactions and a powerful community. On average, there are 1.5 million people tuning in to Twitch globally at any given time, and that number continues to grow – particularly in the current situation. In 2019 Twitch saw, on average, more than 4 million unique streamers each month, for a total of 10 billion hours watched.
Now starting its fifth season, the Drone Champions League draws the world’s best drone pilots, who compete on eight international teams in eye-popping tracks at renowned global destinations. The innovative series, which was also the inspiration for DCL – The Game, has always blurred the line between virtual and reality; but 2020 will be a landmark as its first entirely Virtual Season. And 2021 will mark another milestone, as DCL’s outlook envisions four to five races in genuine outdoor settings and between 15 to 20 virtual races – fully merging the two worlds.
Drone Champions League CEO Mike Höhsl says, “DCL really hits a sweet spot. The visuals, speed and talent on display as top pilots go head-to-head have already made us popular and hold potential for so much more. We’re excited about our ambitious targets, and we’re very happy to partner with the experience and professionalism of Twitch to help us reach an even bigger audience and grow our sport.”
Farhan Ahmed, Strategic Partnerships manager at Twitch explained, “We’re delighted to partner with the DCL and look forward to watching them build community around their content. We’re really excited to see a sport embrace both the virtual and live and bring that into a competitive format.”
DCL is also proud to have long-term broadcasting partners like Singtel, Truevision, J-Sports, NowSports, ORF and Elevensports, among others, on board for its Drone Grand Prix video highlight magazines.
