Horizon League and 313 Presents Announce Motor City Madness Esports Championship to be Held in Advance of 2018 Little Caesars Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship

DETROIT – Leading up to the 2018 Little Caesars Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena, the League and 313 Presents on Friday announced the formulation of the Motor City Madness Esports Championship, featuring 16 online NBA 2K18 tournaments to be played in the month of February, along with a live championship event to be held at Little Caesars Arena on the eve of Motor City Madness.

Online tournaments will be played from February 20-25 on the GamerSaloon tournament platform. During the weekend of February 24-25, 12 tournaments will be played, 11 of which will be on the Xbox One system. The remaining four tournaments will take place from February 20-21 and will be split between the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 systems. Each tournament winner will advance to a live championship event at Little Caesars Arena on March 1, which will be broadcast live on Twitch. Each championship event participant will receive a one-night hotel stay and the top-four finishers will compete for $5,000 in cash prizes.

Participants for all 16 tournaments will register online with an entry fee of $25. To register, visit 313Presents.com/NBA2K. The registration fee also includes a one-day general admission ticket to Motor City Madness, valued at $15 for the general public.  

GamerSaloon will provide the technology for the live event, and manage the other tournaments. Wasserman will provide strategic advisement.

Spectator tickets for the championship event will cost just $10 per person, which also includes entry to all four basketball games on Friday, March 2, the opening day of the Horizon League Championship.

“We recognize esports is an exciting industry which is experiencing tremendous growth,” said Horizon League Commissioner Jon LeCrone. “We believe this initiative will further our efforts of being a leader in innovation.”

“We’re excited to participate in this event by holding the championship event at Little Caesars Arena heading into a great week of Horizon League basketball,” said Tom Wilson, Olympia Entertainment President and CEO and Interim President of 313 Presents. “GamerSaloon has put together a great campaign for participants and fans.”  

“We are looking forward to hosting the preliminary NBA2K tournaments, and bringing the first-ever esports event to Little Caesars Arena in advance of the Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship,” said Ari Dolgin, Director of Business Development for GamerSaloon.  

“We are delighted to be working with the Horizon League, Olympia Entertainment and GamerSaloon to bring this exciting event to Detroit and Little Caesars Arena,” said Tag Garson, Senior Vice President for Wasserman.

Below is the tournament schedule (all times Eastern):

Online Qualifier #1: Wildcats Bracket (Xbox One): Tuesday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m.
Online Qualifier #2: Cougars Bracket (PlayStation 4): Tuesday, Feb. 20, 8 p.m.
Online Qualifier #3: Hawks Bracket (Xbox One): Thursday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m.
Online Qualifier #4: Greyhounds Bracket (PlayStation 4): Thursday, Feb. 22, 8 p.m.
Online Qualifier #5: Raiders Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #6: Norse Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #7: Flames Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #8: Golden Grizzlies Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 3 p.m.
Online Qualifier #9: Panthers Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 3 p.m.
Online Qualifier #10: Phoenix Bracket (Xbox One): Saturday, Feb. 24, 3 p.m.
Online Qualifier #11: Jaguars Bracket (Xbox One): Sunday, Feb. 25, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #12: Penguins Bracket (Xbox One): Sunday, Feb. 25, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #13: Titans Bracket (Xbox One): Sunday, Feb. 25, 1 p.m.
Online Qualifier #14: Vikings Bracket (Xbox One): Sunday, Feb. 25, 3 p.m.
Online Qualifier #15: Bearcats Bracket (Xbox One): Sunday, Feb. 25, 3 p.m.
Online Qualifier #16: Storm Bracket (PlayStation 4): Sunday, Feb. 25, 3 p.m.

Tickets for the 2018 Little Caesars Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship can be purchased at HorizonLeague.com, the Little Caesars Arena Box Office, the Little Caesars Arena Ticket Sales and Service Office (313-471-7575), or by calling or visiting their favorite school’s box office.

Ticket prices for Motor City Madness, which will take place March 2-6, begin at $15 per day and will feature all 20 Horizon League teams competing in 18 games over a five-day span. The tournament will culminate with a pair of championship games on Tuesday, March 6 with automatic berths to the NCAA Basketball Tournament at stake. Tickets purchased for each day are valid for all games on that day.

About the Horizon League
The Horizon League is an NCAA Division I athletics conference comprised of 10 member institutions located throughout the Midwest’s major metropolitan cities. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the League and its members strive to be highly competitive athletically while committing to the total development of its student-athletes and creating a lasting impact on campus and in the community. For more information, visit HorizonLeague.com.

About 313 Presents
Headquartered in the heart of The District Detroit, 313 Presents is a joint venture between Olympia Entertainment and Palace Sports & Entertainment, offering fans, artists, booking agents and touring attractions an unmatched platform of premier entertainment destinations. 313 Presents is responsible for delivering unforgettable fan experiences via best in class booking, production, accounting, marketing and public relations services for world-class entertainment events, concerts, family shows and community functions at Little Caesars Arena, Fox Theatre, Comerica Park, DTE Energy Music Theatre, Meadow Brook Amphitheatre and Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill. 313 Presents also manages booking, marketing and production of events for City Theatre.

About GamerSaloon
GamerSaloon was founded in 2006 to facilitate video game tournaments for cash prizes. With over 1 Million registered members and 10+ years of operational experience, the GamerSaloon platform has awarded nearly $50 Million in prizes. GamerSaloon offers cash prize tournaments in all the popular skill-based video games, including Madden 18, NBA2K 18, FIFA 18, and Call of Duty WWII. Tournaments range in size from over one hundred players to just two, and cash prizes for each tournament can exceed $1,000. Esports events include online tournaments, live events, live-streaming leagues, and social engagements.

About Wasserman
Wasserman is a culture-centric agency, serving the best talent, brands and properties in the world.

Founded in 2002 with roots in sports and entertainment, Wasserman has evolved beyond those categories. We are an agency not just of advisors, but creators, developers, influencers and innovators who work across music, art, entertainment, social, tech, content and beyond.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Wasserman also operates in Carlsbad, Dubai, London, Miami, The Netherlands, New York, Portland, Raleigh, São Paulo, and Toronto.

Get to know us better at TeamWass.com and @Wasserman.