If you’re a fan of e-sports and are looking for the most popular esports arena in Seoul, Nexon is your best bet. This arena host matches for extremely well-known titles such as League of Legends, Starcraft II, and Heartstone. The arena houses players in soundproof booths, with the action being displayed on sizeable overhead display panels. Nexon Arena has a seating capacity of up to 400 people, with many of its matches broadcasted on SPOTV, a television channel by and for fans of esports.
History
In 2013, Nexon Arena was the first eSports dedicated arena opened by a video game developer. Its opening was announced after the 2013 FIFA Online 3 League had reached its conclusion. The announcement showcased the arena as the prime headliner for events of titles such as FIFA Online 3 and StarCraft II. After its link to KeSPA’s support in 2014, the Korean Dota 2 league was created, four seasons of which were housed and broadcasted from the Nexon Arena. Nexon became the main venue for StarLeague in 2015, the second individual league for StarCraft II in Korea. In that same year, the International eSports Federation held the E-Sports World Championship 2015 in Korea, with Nexon Arena as it’s a prime venue for the events. Legends were let go too, a retirement ceremony was held for Lee “Flash” Young-ho, one of the most popular Terran players after he’d announced to be putting a permanent halt to his esports career.
Nexon took off in 2016, once it had obtained the broadcasting rights to League of Legends. LoL Champions Korea hosted and broadcasted its events from Nexon. It was until the end of the 2016 pro-league that KeSPA announced discontinuing LoL post that season, leaving StarLeague we the sole StarCraft event that Nexon could broadcast.
Finally, in 2018, Nexon Arena became the prime south Korean venue for the Hearthstone Championship Tour, which allowed Nexon to regain a bit of traction in the eSports community.
Nexon Arena and The Gaming Industry
Over the past four years, Nexon has opened up to 820 regular leagues as an attempt to develop the global export industry, with 205 leagues every year on average. In doing so, the arena not only features NEXON’s games but also globally acclaimed titles, which is integral for the development of the industry as a whole. They have been successful so far, with the audience attendance for Nexon being 240,000 for four years, with them hosting 170 non-Esports events as well. Nexon Arena has become a positive space for gamers from across the globe to come together and experience events that Nexon actively hosts every year in harmony.
Donations
Nexon Arena donates all its profits from sales and promotions to society, in December 2015 alone they had given about 100 million won.
By 2016, they’d installed a donation machine in the arena through which the public can donate up 1000 won with either a T-money Transportation Card or NFC. The amount gathered over the year was then provided to PURME Foundation NEXON Children’s Rehabilitation Hospital to establish an infant centered treatment space.
Conclusion
Nexon Arena has become a haven for esports fans worldwide, from it being the first dedicated esports stadium in the industry run entirely by game developers. It is truly a space made by supporters of esports, for fans of esports. In addition to making sizable donations, Nexon has played a vital role in bringing gaming legends together and propagating the industry.
