Hoyts are proud to announce that they are an exclusive cinema sponsor and partner of the League of Legends Oceanic Pro League (OPL), the professional e-sports league in Oceania, and also the official Oceania viewing party partner for all major League of Legends e-sports events during 2016.

The partnership follows on from the success of previous e-sports viewing party screenings at HOYTS where sessions were completely sold out.

Damian Keogh, Hoyts Group CEO said, “Hoyts are excited to partner with League of Legends e-sports gaming to give our audiences a diversity of content, so they can experience more with their friends and family. The e-sports genre continues to grow within the Australian market, consumer demand is high and we want our guests to experience these events the best way possible, on the big screen.”

Mark Cox, Riot Games Oceania marketing director added, “We look forward to working with Hoyts and extending our e-sports viewing experience to the big screen for our players. Throughout the year, players will now be able to attend community cinema events across Australia and New Zealand to watch local and global e-sports broadcasts live amongst friends in an electric cinematic atmosphere that they wouldn’t necessarily experience at home”.

In October last year, 36 million unique viewers, plus over 1,500 Hoyts cinema goers across Oceania, watched the League of Legends World Championships final between SKT and Koo Tigers, held at Berlin’s Mercedes-Benz Arena – a record-breaking high viewership for any e-sports event.

In Oceania, e-sports is growing fast, with over 10,000 attendees at the OPL Grand Final at Sydney’s Luna Park in August last year and 1,500 people watching the livestream at Hoyts.

This year, Hoyts will exclusively screen 9 key events on the League of Legends calendar live in HD via satellite feed. Confirmed events to date are as below, stay tuned for more info and confirmation on events to come:

• OPL Split 1 Final – April 5, tickets on sale Tuesday 29 March
• International Wild Card Invitational (IWCI) – Date TBC
• Mid Seasonal Invitational (MSI) – Date TBC
• OPL Grand Final – August 13
• International Wild Card Qualifiers (IWCQ) – Date TBC
• World Championship Finals – Date TBC

Participating Hoyts cinema locations in Australia and New Zealand include; Broadway (NSW), Highpoint (VIC), Carousel (WA), Norwood (SA), Stafford (QLD), Sylvia Park (Auckland) and Riccarton (Christchurch).