FARMINGTON, Utah (December 16, 2021) – The Big Sky Conference has announced a partnership with the Electronic Gaming Federation, an organization that will help expand the league’s already-strong multi-year esports presence moving forward.
“Partnering with the Electronic Gaming Federation is a big step in the right direction toward advancing our vision for esports in the Big Sky,” Commissioner Tom Wistrcill said. “Expanding the competition library available to our 11 member institutions thanks to support from a major player in the industry will provide immediate and significant benefits to our esports athletes and their campuses.”
Established in 2015, EGF was founded on the mission to build, govern and support an amateur esports ecosystem which enables students to grow and develop through competition education and social impact.
“We welcome the 11 schools of The Big Sky Conference to the EGF Family starting this spring,” said Tyler Schrodt, CEO Founder of the Electronic Gaming Federation. “This partnership again expands the diversity of thought and participation and further proves that our unified and consistent model is key to expanding and growing esports and gaming on college campuses across the county.”
EGF hosts several events every year and are currently partnered with other Division I conferences like the Big East and the MAAC to provide championship-level competition. Additionally, more than 30 institutions are part of the federation, and the University of Montana was a member before the Big Sky joined as a whole.
The Big Sky will continue to sponsor League of Legends that will be in its third season of competition this spring. Montana State has claimed the League of Legends conference championship trophy in the first two seasons.
This partnership will allow the conference to expand the titles all 11 universities have access to, as both Rocket League and Overwatch are now part of the Big Sky esports rotation thanks to the partnership with EGF. Additionally, EGF will provide resources to all Big Sky institutions to help develop and elevate esport programs within the conference. Big Sky schools will have a voice in EGF’s governance structure, and the conference will continue to look at ways to incorporate an in-person championship experience for select titles and streaming opportunities with this partnership.
Big Sky teams will be eligible for EGF competition this upcoming spring.
EGF is currently running leagues for Rocket League, Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and FIFA 21 as well as CS:GO and Chess. All live streams being broadcast on
twitch.tv/officialegf.
About the Big Sky Conference
Founded in 1963, the Big Sky Conference is a NCAA Division I conference competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. With 165 athletic teams representing 15 institutions in 16 sports (seven men’s, nine women’s), the Big Sky prides itself on its “#ExperienceElevated” platform that emphasizes the unique traits and lifelong benefits that the conference and its member institutions provide to around 4,000 student-athletes each year.
The conference has 11 full members (Eastern Washington University; the University of Idaho; Idaho State University; the University of Montana; Montana State University; Northern Arizona University; the University of Northern Colorado; Portland State University; Sacramento State; Southern Utah University; and Weber State University) located in eight states across the western United States, plus two football affiliate members (Cal Poly and UC Davis) and two men’s golf affiliate members (Binghamton University and the University of Hartford). Conference members have won 12 NCAA championships, including seven in football by five different members as well as five titles by NAU men’s cross country over the past six seasons.
For more information, visit
BigSkyConf.com and the Big Sky’s accounts on
Twitter,
Facebook,
Instagram, and
YouTube.
About the Electronic Gaming Federation
Founded in 2015, EGF is the national governing body for formalized collegiate D-I esports and high school level leagues. EGF’s youth, high school and D-I collegiate leagues are inspired by the best aspects of traditional sports to create opportunities for students and schools to engage and advance. For more information or to inquire about collegiate participation, please visit EGF.gg , follow @officialEGF on Twitter, Instagram and Twitch and Facebook or contact
info@EGF.gg.