WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball" selected as a competition title for the Olympic eSports Series 2023!

Konami Digital Entertainment's " WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball" has been selected by the International Olympic Committee ( IOC) as a competition title for the Olympic eSports Series 2023. WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball" will be released on February 9, 2023 (Thursday) for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. The game is attracting attention as a full-fledged e-sports game at a price of 100 yen (tax included).

Nintendo Switch、PlayStation 4向け「WBSC eBASEBALL パワフルプロ野球」が発売！100円で世界中のプレイヤーと対戦しよう！

Power Pro has been selected for the Olympic eSports Series 2023!

The two most popular baseball games in Japan are the JIKKYOU PAWAFURU PUROYAKYU series and the PUROYAKYU SPIRITS series. Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. which handles both of these games, will be hosting a professional baseball eSports league in collaboration with the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization (NPB) starting around 2018. The fierce competition among e-sports players on real professional baseball teams is a perfect example of the potential of e-sports.

The latest title in the JIKKYOU PAWAFURU PUROYAKYU series, "WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball," has been selected as a competition title for the Olympic eSports Series 2023! The Japan Qualifier for Japanese residents will start on Monday, March 13, 2023, and the Global Qualifier for non-residents of Japan will start on Monday, March 27, 2023!

For more information on eligibility, qualifying and other details, please visit the official WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball website!

David Lapartian, Chairman of the eSports Liaison Group, IOC

The Olympic Movement brings people together in peaceful competition, and the Olympic eSports Series 2023 aims to continue this tradition while creating more opportunities for players and fans alike in an elite competition. We truly look forward to witnessing the world's best athletes compete on the global stage and to sharing and learning from each other about health, wellbeing, training and innovation.

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Michael Schmidt, Executive Director, WBSC

We are delighted that baseball will be part of this new Olympic experience and that we are once again working with KONAMI, one of the world's leading video game publishers, to bring baseball world-class eSports. The WBSC recognizes the tremendous potential of eSports to attract new audiences and is working tirelessly to develop and innovate in this area. Through this exciting new IOC event, we are ready to bring the best of virtual baseball to the Olympic eSports Series and the finals in Singapore.

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Hideki Hayakawa, President and CEO, Konami Digital Entertainment Co.

We are delighted to be able to contribute to the promotion of baseball through our participation in the "Olympic eSports Series" organized by the IOC. We have always supported the development of the WBSC's eBASEBALL community and will continue to work with the WBSC to promote the sustainable development of eBASEBALL™ by supporting the WBSC's vision to "increase the impact of eBASEBALL™ and the world of baseball and softball". We will continue to promote the sustainable development of eBASEBALL™ together with the WBSC.

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What is the Olympic eSports Series 2023?

The Olympic eSports Series 2023 is a virtual sports world championship organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in cooperation with the International Sports Federations and game publishers. The qualifying rounds for each event will begin in March 2023, and the finals will be held from Thursday, June 22 to Sunday, June 25, 2023, at the Suntec Centre in Singapore.

The competition titles are

• Archery: Tic Tac Bow
• Cycling: Zwift
• Sailing: Virtual Regatta
• Dance: Just Dance
• Chess: Chess.com
• Taekwondo: Virtual Taekwondo
• Tennis: Tennis Clash
• Motorsports: Gran Turismo
• Baseball: WBSC eBASEBALL Powerful Pro Baseball

There are nine events. Each event has a different eligibility and qualifying system, so please check the official Olympic website and each title's announcement for details.