 | |
| Company type | Collegiateesports organization |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games Esports |
| Founded | September 2, 2013 Austin, Texas, United States |
| Founder | Adam Rosen Tyler Rosen Chris Kelly |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Area served | North America |
| Products | Events: Heroes of the Dorm |
Number of employees | ~10(2015) |
| Website | www |
Tespa (formerlyTexas eSports Association) is a North American collegiateesports organization headquartered in the offices ofBlizzard Entertainment inIrvine, California. Founded in 2012 as a collegiate gaming club at theUniversity of Texas, Austin, Tespa expanded nationally in 2013 as an event support network for college gaming organizations. In 2014, the company announced an official partnership with Blizzard Entertainment,[1] hosting online leagues forHearthstone,League of Legends,StarCraft II,Heroes of the Storm, andOverwatch.
Tespa was founded in 2012 by classmates Adam Rosen, Tyler Rosen, and Chris Kelly as the Texas eSports Association, an on-campus gaming organization at theUniversity of Texas, Austin. After gaining national attention with its Lone Star Clash tournament series forStarCraft andLeague of Legends in 2012,[2] Tespa expanded first to otherTexas gaming clubs, then nationally[3] to colleges likeUniversity of Nevada, Reno andUniversity of California, San Diego in 2013.
In 2013, Tespa announced an official partnership withBlizzard Entertainment to provide licensedStarCraft,Hearthstone andHeroes of the Storm in-game rewards to college gaming clubs.[4][5][6] In early 2014, Tespa and Blizzard Entertainment hosted the $5,000North American Collegiate Hearthstone Open series, culminating in a live grand finals event at theTwitch stage atPAX East andPAX Prime.[7]
In early 2015, Tespa and Blizzard Entertainment announced a $450,000 championship series for the unreleased Blizzard gameHeroes of the Storm, offering a fully paid tuition for the winning college team.[8][9] Over 6200 players from 462 schools participated in the online bracket, culminating in a live grand finals event at theShrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California.[10] The tournament, named Heroes of the Dorm, was the first esports event ever broadcast live on a national television channel.[11] Heroes of the Dorm generated widespread controversy onTwitter and other social media sites, garnering vocal support and heated criticism from American sports teams, sports personalities, and news networks.[12][13][14][15]
On January 28, 2016, Tespa and Blizzard Entertainment announced a second season of Heroes of the Dorm, offering an increased scholarship prize pool and a return to ESPN's broadcast network.[16][17][18][19][20]
Compete is Tespa's proprietary tournament administration and support service, created in 2014 as the bracketing platform for theNorth American Collegiate Hearthstone Open.[21][22] Since its launch, Compete has evolved to support programs ranging from online qualifiers such asRiot's hallmark collegiate program, North American Collegiate Championship,[23][24] and long-form leagues including the Collegiate Hearthstone Championship.[25][26]
