The expansion of Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu stadium will include an eSports arena, the club have revealed.
Despite major moves from a variety of high-profile soccer clubs both in and beyond Europe, Real Madrid have not yet ventured into the growing industry of eSports.
However, the competition space included in the stadium’s new design could change this.
A digital preview video of the planned upgrades pictures two eSports teams, Furious Gaming and Isurus Gaming, in competition.
The project, which is to commence in 2019 and is expected to cost $617 million (£473m), will see the 70-year-old iconic venue given a thorough overhaul. It is thought that the revamp will generate an extra $176m (£134m) annually, with an events space also to be built as part of the renovation work on the 81,044-seater ground.
In May, the Spanish club was forced to deny that it was entering the world of eSports, after a false post on Chinese social network Weibo claimed that Madrid were looking to join FIFA Online 4 - a free-to-enter tournament focused on attracting Asian fans.
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