Fairfield University Unveils New Esports Gaming Lab

Fairfield University Unveils New Esports Gaming Lab

Fairfield’s innovative esports gaming lab is the future home of the University’s competitive esports teams and Gaming Club.

Fairfield University has unveiled a new esports gaming lab in the University’s RecPlex, which will be home to the University’s competitive esports club teams and the Gaming Club, a non-competitive social club for gamers. Award-winning global IT solutions provider Future Tech Enterprise, Inc. partnered with Fairfield’s facilities and IT teams to deliver technology consultation, equipment evaluation and procurement, and final installation for the new lab, which is equipped with Lenovo’s Legion brand of gaming laptops, desktops, keyboards, monitors, headsets, and accessories.

Installation of the new facility began prior to the campus shutdown in March due to the pandemic, and was completed in July. Fairfield’s Gaming Club has been instrumental in bringing egaming to the University, and has worked with the Recreation Department to host and attend various tournaments and events in recent years, plugging students into the egaming ecosystem on campus.

Egaming, also referred to as esports, is organized, competitive video game playing between individuals or teams. Tournaments are held globally, and esports is now the second most-watched “sport” in the U.S., after football. As its popularity grows in the higher education sector, 200 colleges and universities now feature egaming facilities, and some offer egaming scholarships.

“We are excited to incorporate the egaming lab into the RecPlex this fall,” said Director of Recreation Eli Olken-Dann. “Not only will this attract more students to our facility, but it will add another layer of engagement and competition to our recreation offerings.”

Fairfield University is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Esports League. MAAC schools will compete in a regular season competition online that will begin in October, capped by a conference championship. In addition to Fairfield, current MAAC schools with esports teams include Canisius College, Marist College, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.

“Esports is a great way to drive student engagement and connections, as well as attract prospective students,” said Bob Venero, P'24,'21, president and CEO of Future Tech Enterprise, Inc. “It is also an industry that continues to grow and offer up new job opportunities for students in almost any discipline including advertising, design, finance, marketing, and technology.” Future Tech works closely with many of the world’s leading gaming equipment manufacturers and is an IT partner-of-choice for leading universities and Fortune 500 companies in the aerospace, defense, energy, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail sectors.

Interested in joining the Fairfield Gaming Club? Visit FGC Life@Fairfield Portal and click “Join,” or join Fairfield’s Discord Channel and follow on Twitch

For students interested in competing on the esports club teams, contact Director of Recreation Eli Olken-Dann at eolken-dann@fairfield.edu.

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