Veikkaus has signed a significant contract with Finland’s most successful and internationally renowned esports organization ENCE esports
"The purpose of the cooperation is to support our new strategy and to address the player groups that are into esports in a way that they find interesting – especially engaging them in different ways. We want to be closer to our players and listen to them more carefully."
- Suvituuli Tuukkanen, VP, Brand and Marketing at Veikkaus.
Veikkaus has been investing heavily in esports ever since 2014. Esports have gained increasing interest in Finland and around the world over the past few years. The same trend is also reflected on Veikkaus. Betting on esports has increased significantly, just like the customer numbers.
Following their international success, ENCE has been a topic of lively discussion both in Finland and abroad over the past few months. It has grown into a phenomenon that keeps expanding.
"Many of our indicators have clearly shown how esports have turned into an event that attracts and activates Finns. ENCE has had a major role in that development. Thanks to the cooperation contract, we can serve the customers who are interested in esports even better, offering them both excitement and experiences."
- Suvituuli Tuukkanen
ENCE’s CEO Mika Kuusisto is very pleased that the negotiations with Veikkaus were finalized in a way beneficial to both parties.
"ENCE is a team of Finnish esports athletes, which has reached the world top level with purely Finnish blue-and-white efforts. We find it fantastic that we get to promote esports with Veikkaus, known for their strong Finnish values. That’s why we are especially excited about this cooperation contract."
- Mika Kuusisto, CEO of ENCE
Sponsor Insight carried out a survey on the popularity of different sports events in different age groups in spring 2019. Esports ranked the most popular event in the age group of 18-29 for the first time, outmatching even ice hockey. The survey showed that about half a million adult Finns are interested in esports. Every other man was interested in the event.
Veikkaus wants to be a pioneer of esports even in product development. We organized an Innovation Challenge Week at our head office in May, where a selected group of startups from around the world came up with new innovations linked to esports. At the same time, Veikkaus gathered various data concerning esports with the help of a customer panel. The respondents found top esports teams, betting, and playing together with friends the most interesting.
"In addition, almost half of the respondents said they wanted to develop as esports players personally. Many respondents also wished for more Finnish esports and statistics on gaming objects and tournaments. We will now be using that feedback, while working to create better service for Finns in cooperation with ENCE."
- Heidi Ioannidou, VP, Business Planning and Innovation at Veikkaus
"We find it fantastic that we get to promote esports with Veikkaus, known for their strong Finnish values. That’s why we are especially excited about this cooperation contract."
- Mika Kuusisto, CEO of ENCE
