As the news of the Jiangnan Cup spread across the internet, online sentiment was sharply divided into two camps.
One group, the "happy faction," felt relieved that their concerns hadn't materialized and that a global esports competition could proceed smoothly without any changes to the participants. They saw this as a stroke of luck and a cause for celebration.
However, this viewpoint was held by a minority. The majority of viewers and netizens were united in their anger.
Many took to the internet, lamenting, "Give me back my youth, give us back our WCG! Damn the Jiangnan Cup, you scoundrels won't replace our WCG."
Even these netizens were considered to be expressing themselves with considerable restraint. More viewers resorted to outright abuse, cursing the ancestors of the Jiangnan Cup organizing committee and lambasting the entire committee, Blizzard, and Jiangnan Group to the point where comment sections were almost shut down.
This wave of anger sent shockwaves through the entire esports scene; no one had anticipated such a furious outburst from the players.
The reasoning was quite understandable. The current mainstream esports audience grew up watching WCG matches, and WCG was practically synonymous with their lives.
Suddenly, a new competition emerged, seizing WCG's prestige. Naturally, these fans couldn't accept it.
Furthermore, this takeover was executed in such a shameless manner, coinciding with WCG's location, time, and, most crucially, its entire roster of participants.
The internet also revealed the Jiangnan Cup's stringent rule: participation in the Jiangnan Cup meant disqualification from WCG matches. This was a clear attempt to use such despicable tactics to kill the WCG they had watched and supported for so long.
At this juncture, the players' emotional attachment to WCG was still very strong. Although WCG had previously made questionable decisions, they couldn't tolerate WCG being treated this way and stood firmly by its side.
Consequently, the internet was flooded with criticism, with nearly 90% of netizens vehemently denouncing everything associated with the Jiangnan Cup.
To make matters worse, some extreme netizens even began threatening players, demanding they not yield to the Jiangnan Cup and absolutely refuse to participate in its matches. Otherwise, they declared, they would no longer recognize their world champion titles.
The public opinion across the internet had completely sided with WCG, giving Li Xiang and others, who had been deeply hurt, a profound sense of warmth for the first time.
So, the question arose: did this fervent online outcry have any effect?
The outcome remained unclear. However, two days before the Jiangnan Cup commenced, a founding assembly was held. Leng Zhimeng personally attended and presided over the meeting as its chairperson.
Virtually all clubs and players participating in WCG arrived as scheduled, attending this meeting.
The meeting began with customary pleasantries, reiterating various tournament benefits and, most importantly, initiating the registration process for the competition.
After the meeting concluded, players with invitations could register with the organizing committee. Upon registration, all participants would have their travel expenses reimbursed and could check into hotels officially arranged by the committee, enjoying the provided food. Everyone was eager to avoid any further delays.
However, much to everyone's surprise, midway through the meeting, Ms. Leng Zhimeng suddenly remarked with evident emotion, "Friends, it's not easy for all of you to gather here."
"In fact, the reason today's events have become so unpleasant and troublesome, forcing us, as original participants, to become organizers, is something we never anticipated."
"Yet, the Jiangnan Cup was thus born. Reflecting on the chaos of the past few days, I believe it is imperative for us to review the events that have transpired and draw relevant lessons."
"I believe the root of all current mistakes lies in our lack of an excellent, professional, and impartial organizational management body to guide and regulate the development of the entire esports industry. This is our most significant problem!"
"To address the symptoms, we must tackle the root cause. Considering this, our oo Games has decided to be the first to act, investing heavily to establish the International Esports Federation to undertake the regulation and management of all esports competitions as I've described."
"And the Jiangnan Cup will be the first event to be managed under the International Esports Federation. Only members of the International Esports Federation will be eligible to compete in the Jiangnan Cup!" Leng Zhimeng unexpectedly dropped this bombshell.
"What!" All the club and player representatives present were stunned, and a surge of anger at being deceived erupted. They had never known they needed to join an "International Esports Federation" to participate in the Jiangnan Cup.
Moreover, judging from the woman's words, this International Esports Federation would be an entity that could dictate terms to them and proactively manage the entire esports industry, causing their expressions to darken considerably.
Leng Zhimeng, however, paid no heed to their reactions and proceeded to outline the charter of the International Esports Federation.
According to Leng Zhimeng, this International Esports Federation would be akin to an organization like FIFA.
This Esports Federation would first oversee the Jiangnan Cup, a competition for the highest esports honor, held annually.
Concurrently, national esports tournaments held in various countries would also need to be brought under the management of the International Esports Federation. This was because only national-level esports competitions would be eligible to produce participants for the Jiangnan Cup.
Therefore, if a tournament was not incorporated into the management of the International Esports Federation, even winning it would not grant participation in the Jiangnan Cup.
Leng Zhimeng also clarified that "management" meant these competitions must be conducted under the supervision of International Esports Federation officials, strictly adhering to the various esports rules and regulations set forth by the federation. Should any violations be discovered, the International Esports Federation would have the right to halt the competition directly.
Beyond controlling the competitions, the International Esports Federation's greater authority stemmed from its control over the member esports clubs and their respective players.
Similarly, the International Esports Federation would release a comprehensive set of rules and regulations for managing clubs and players. If any club or player violated these rules, the International Esports Federation would have the power to issue bans on these players. Once a ban was issued, they would be virtually barred from participating in any competition governed by the International Esports Federation.
In essence, these management rules were largely based on the governing committees of various international sports. While not entirely unprecedented, it greatly displeased all the clubs present, as no one welcomed the idea of having a supreme authority imposed upon them.
"Everyone, I know you're not feeling good right now, but I want to say that without establishing such an international federated organization, esports will never become a truly internationalized sport. Therefore, we must have such an organization!" Leng Zhimeng stated resolutely. "By the way, Blizzard Games, oo Games, Unreal Studio, R* Studio, and over 20 other game developers have decided to join the International Esports Federation."
"This means all their game tournaments will only be permitted to be held under the arrangement and supervision of the International Esports Federation. Other companies and individuals are strictly prohibited from organizing competitions for these respective games, as it will be considered an infringement upon the International Esports Federation, and we will use legal means to protect ourselves!"
"..." If the attendees' hearts had been burning with anger just moments before, they were now completely doused with cold water. Leng Zhimeng had rattled off the names of over twenty game companies, nearly all of which held flagship games.
And all these companies, much like Blizzard, had effectively stifled the possibility of any other esports competitions at the source and legal level.
Moreover, 70% of the game titles participating in the WCG competition were under the control of these game companies. In other words, the International Esports Federation had seized the lifeline of all clubs at its very foundation. If they refused to join this International Esports Federation, it would be tantamount to losing their reason for existence.
What reason did they have for their anger to burn any longer?
Everyone immediately fell silent. Many who had intended to speak now refrained, fearing to voice their thoughts.
Simultaneously, many were filled with confusion. Why were these typically arrogant game companies suddenly so compliant, rushing to join this International Esports Federation?
Well, these individuals were completely unaware that about half of them were already majority-owned by Jiangnan Group, making them genuine game companies under Jiangnan Group's umbrella. How could they dare disobey their boss?
As for the remaining dozen or so game companies, although they were still independently owned, almost all their financial transactions flowed through the oo Games platform. While oo had never issued any explicit threats, when oo requested their participation in this International Esports Federation, they had no choice but to agree.
After all, esports didn't offer significant profits for these games. It was not a bad idea to obediently follow Jiangnan Group's lead. Furthermore, joining the International Esports Federation would provide them with a certain revenue share.
Although the amount wasn't substantial, who would turn down money?