Southampton have joined the esport revolution by signing gaming star Owen Venn.
Venn, a 22-year-old PS4 specialist, is to represent the Saints on a full-time professional basis and will play in FIFA 20 tournaments throughout the year, including the 2019/20 ePremier League.
The south coast club have a proud history for producing their own talent – and Venn was good enough to qualify for the eChampions League last season after making it to the semi-finals of the PS4 bracket of the inaugural ePremier League finals.
Venn, who will play under the gamer tag SaintsVenny, said: “I am proud to be signing for Southampton as their first ever official FIFA esports player.
“I have big ambitions for my career and feel that the club can offer me the support I need to take my career to the next level.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what we can achieve together.”
Southampton aim to assist their new champion achieve his full potential by allowing him to call on the club's in-house experts in areas such as sports psychology, nutrition and fitness.
Luke Nicholson, the director of marketing at St Mary's said: “As a club, we take great pride in our digital output and we are always striving to connect and engage with fans and different audiences in new and exciting ways.
“Becoming more involved in esports - which is an area that has seen tremendous growth in recent years - gives us another opportunity to do this.”
