GCU Esports society collaborate with Riot Games as part of worldwide partnership

The GCU Esports Society, also known as the Caledonian Chargers, have been selected to collaborate with the Riot Play Club programme to help maximise and promote their society.

The Riot Play Club programme is a community initiative created by Riot Games; an American game developer specialising in popular Esports games such as League of Legends and Valorant.

The Riot Play club is a community programme designed to widen the access of local Esports events, competitions, social events and in-person games nights.

The programme has extended to include universities in the UK and Europe, allowing societies to host events and activities for fans of Esports to get involved in.

GCU’s Caledonian Chargers, with the help of Riot Play Club, can now organise larger scale events and competitions for their society members as well as members of the public. The partnership provides societies with Riot Games merchandise, prizes, promotional materials and more.

For the Caledonian Chargers, the Riot Play Club programme is a massive opportunity. Caledonian Chargers Vice President Joshua Conett explained: “The Riot Play Club Programme was set up last year in 2024 as a way for local venues to host community-based events to get more people involved in Esports at a smaller level, rather than the big arenas. You've now got community centres who have exploded in popularity now because they've introduced Riot Play Club.

For Caledonian Chargers, this is the first time they’ve first time that they’ve ran the programme in Scotland, which is really cool and it helps put us on the map. Before, there were only around eight venues who ran it and it was mostly in England.”

President of Caledonian Chargers Elise Cunningham believes that the Riot Play Club programme has come at the perfect time. She explained: “Having Riot Games attached to the society is such a boost for us and will really help draw people in. You might walk around and see members wearing Riot merchandise and they’ll wonder “How are they linked to Riot Games?” because of how recognisable it is as a brand.”

She added: “We have a lot of different Riot Play Club event socials; some are online, some are in person, so it’s very much open to people if they would like to attend or not. Our server is like a big group chat, so it's about establishing that connection between people.

I think especially since the pandemic, a lot of people picked up games without having an interest in it before and I think that's where this boom really comes from. By getting involved, it really helps us establish grassroots networks, which I think is really cool.”

With a busy few months ahead, the society wants to reassure potential members that everyone is welcome, regardless of their experience or abilities. Elise said: “The one thing I like about the society as well is that again, especially when they're hobby-based, anyone can join them. It’s not a case of having to be at a specific level; we're all at different level and you don't need to enter with like a prerequisite.

The society is made up of people from different disciplines as well; you'll get Marketing, Media, Psychology, Biomedical Sciences, a total mix of subjects!

I think people have made some really strong friendships and connections in this society and it's super rewarding to see. The partnership with Riot Play Club is a fantastic opportunity to keep that going.”

By Rachael McAlonan

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