Bytheway expects English clubs to sign up their own FIFA players soon

Wolfsburg's main signing of the Winter transfer window joins them from Wolverhampton - but it's a 22-year-old video-game player rather than a Championship star that they've snapped up.

The Bundesliga club have hired 22-year-old Englishman David Bytheway as an 'official FIFA player' in a step away from the field and into the arena of eSports.

Bytheway, like real-life players Andre Schurrle and Julian Draxler, will wear Wolfsburg gear and he is set to represent them in tournaments and streamed matches online.

Wolfsburg have hired Englishman David Bytheway as their 'official FIFA player' in a step into eSports

Bytheway is one of two FIFA players who have been hired in what is a big move for a rapidly-growing market

In doing so, Wolfsburg hope to make themselves on of the early leading clubs in the rapidly-growing eSports market. A world championship for the game League of Legends last year saw 334million people tune in to watch.

EA Sports title FIFA is also hugely popular, and Bytheway believes Barclays Premier League clubs could follow his new team in hiring gamers to boost their presence online.

'It's absolutely massive for me the fact that a team like Wolfsburg have gotten involved with gaming,' he told the BBC.

'It was just something I was doing at home to start with, just playing my friends and wanting to be the best out of them, and all of a sudden I'm a part of a football club.

'In five years time when we look back at this we'll think, "Wow they really started something here".

'Less than a year I hope, before the first Premier League team does this as well.'

Bytheway's life playing FIFA for Wolfsburg is likely to be a little different to that of players like Andre Schurrle

Watching eSports online is a fast-growing industry with fans tuning in online to watch FIFA matches

Bytheway will not be required to move to northern Germany just yet and his day-to-day schedule includes playing between four and six games of FIFA each day.

The Wolverhampton gamer has travelled as far as Rio de Janeiro to compete in tournaments in the past and his live streams of matches attract regular viewers.