Los Angeles-based amateur esports platform PlayVS announced Wednesday that it plans to expand its competitive esports programs into middle schools across the U.S. at the start of the Fall 2024 season.
“With 36,000+ middle schools in the U.S., the expansion more than doubles PlayVS’ potential reach,” the company said in a release. “Now, more than 68,000 total schools in the U.S. can offer esports programs to their students.“
PlayVS said in its announcement that its middle school leagues will ”be cooperative and free-to-play,” and that the atmosphere will be a “casual setting without the pressure of intense competition.”
“Being part of a team is one of the most valuable things you can do during your formative years as a student,” said Jon Chapman, CEO of PlayVS. “We already see the incredible benefits of esports at the varsity level, be it as simple as increasing participation in an after-school activity, or as powerful as inspiring students to become game designers or pursue STEM careers. Our expansion to middle schools will help empower a new generation of students through teamwork, skill development, and a sense of community.”
The company did not reveal which games will be available for competitive play, though we imagine given the age of students these games will have an ESRB rating of E or T for Teen.
Middle school leagues will feature a two-week preseason and an 11-week regular season, which is two weeks longer than the high school leagues. Teams will go head-to-head across the three month period, with an “end-of-season win-loss record as proof of their performance.”
In November 2023, PlayVS announced a shift in its business model that saw the company eliminate fees for students and high schools in the U.S. and Canada who want to participate in its esports ecosystem. Prior to this change, the company was charging around $80 USD per student, per season. Instead, the company moved towards a sponsorship/partnership model to defer costs to schools in its ecosystem.