The Netherlands’ first dedicated esports stadium is coming!

In Europe, there are several big esports nations – the UK, Germany and France… the Netherlands doesn’t quite measure up. Still, like anywhere else, there are lots and lots of esports fans and thus, there is also demand for the relevant infrastructure.

In other words – esports arenas and stadiums. The first of its kind – a dedicated esports stadium that is – is about to be set up in Amsterdam. It’s not a new build, but rather a conversion of existing buildings. The newly titled Rabo Esports Stadium Amsterdam is set to open before the end of the year.

For the location, a former school and sports hall are being converted. A total of 10.000m2 are being converted into a campus for all things esports, gaming and tech. Sponsored by Rabobank and H20 esports, the idea is that a major stage will be set up with all the trimmings – the news were announced during Gamescom in Cologne.

The new stadium will have many uses, but one of the founders of H20, Dirk Tuip, said this in an interview: “With H20, we realize a dream that we have been working on for years. H20 esports wants to create an ecosystem for ‘Developing the Next Generation’ through gaming, esports and creative tech. The esports market sees a strong growth, which youth and young adults feel strongly connected to. With H20 Campus we bring worlds together and we explicitly connect ourselves with training and education. Gamers, esporters and influencers are the developers of the future.”

In other words, the point of the stadium is to give a central location for different groups and members of the esports and gaming world to come together and to interact. From startups to established organisations, the Rabo Esports stadium is supposed to provide a stage for everyone. This will also include some tech-related companies and startups.

Of course, the esports location is also supposed to bolster the local economy, making Amsterdam a more popular and appealing location for businesses in the gaming sector. Located in a pretty popular zone of Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, this is far from an unreasonable expectation, as similar stadiums in other countries have, in fact, driven economic growth quite strongly.

Interest in the stadium is going strong already – some 75 days next year are already booked for events and activities, despite the location not even being finished yet. In fact, the shared booth of H20 esports and Rabobank at Gamescom proved quite popular and garnered a lot of interest.

It stands to reason that the new Rabo Stadium will be the first but not the last of its kind in the Netherlands, and likely also other countries – it’s really a recipe for success!

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