First-Ever Player-Elected Council to Advocate on Behalf of Pro Gamers on Policies, Rules, Player Transfers and More

NEW YORK CITY (September 14, 2016) – Today the World Esports Association (WESA) introduced the inaugural members of the organization’s “Players Council,” including Viktor Jendeby as Council Chairman.

WESA will be the first esports institution to feature an operating Player Council. The Players Council members include representatives for each of the teams represented by WESA, including Fnatic, Natus Vincere, EnVyUS, Virtus.Pro, G2 Esports, mousesports and Ninjas in Pyjamas. Each team elected their own team representative, who will advocate on behalf of all of the pro gamers in the association, empowering players when it comes to a wide range of decision-making in regards to tournaments operated under WESA regulations.

Viktor Jendeby was unanimously elected by the players as the WESA Players Council Chairman. In this role, Jendeby will represent the Council and all of the organization’s players on the WESA Executive Board. This role will give the players important insight and input into decision making at the highest level, as well as the ability to help shape the formation and adjustment of rules and policies which directly affect players’ careers.

“I was honored to be elected by my team to represent their interests within WESA, as well as my competitive peers to serve as the Chairman of the Players Council,” said Jendeby. “I’m looking forward to work with Commissioner Hershman and the fellow Executive Board members to ensure all players in WESA get the representation they deserve.”

Inaugural WESA Player Council members include:

Jérôme Sudries (G2 Esports)

Chris J De Jong (Mousesports)

Sergey Ishchuk (Natus Vincere)

Adam Friberg (NiP)

Wiktor Wojtas (Virtus.Pro)

Nathan Schmitt (EnVyUS)

Viktor Jendeby (Fnatic)

“I am thrilled that the Players Council has been formed and that there are so many top players willing to take an active role in helping shape this burgeoning industry,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Chairman and Commissioner of WESA. “I have maintained that transparency in everything that WESA is doing is critical to its success, and giving the players a seat at the table is an important step in fulfilling that promise. I am confident that under the leadership of Viktor, the players will now be able to actively contribute to helping esports continue to develop.”

WESA was founded in May 2016 by eight of the world’s most popular esports teams (Fnatic, Natus Vincere, EnVyUS, Virtus.Pro, G2 Esports, Faze, mousesports, Ninjas in Pyjamas) and ESL, the world’s largest esports company, who shared a collective vision to further professionalize the sport by introducing elements of player representation, standardized regulations and revenue sharing for teams. Based on traditional sports association models, WESA also aims to create predictable schedules for fans, players, organizers and broadcasters by engaging all appropriate stakeholders. The ESL Pro League for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is the first professional esports competition that will be played under WESA regulations.