Xtrim wanted to take sponsorship further by giving a more relevant role to a gaming talent in real-life sports. That's why in The Ultimate Coach we partnered with one of the country's top pro-gamers and leveraged all the skills developed in video games to incorporate them into a first division team coaching staff, enhancing the strategy of a first-division team and giving the fandom new hope for a team that was on the brink of relegation last season.

In Ecuador, Emelec's E-sports Club stands alone, providing monthly salaries to its e-sports athletes for training and club involvement. This highlights a glaring reality: among over 14,000 professional gamers in the country, only six receive regular compensation, dampening the spirits of the gaming community and signaling limited career opportunities in this field.

Xtrim, aimed to emphasize the importance of this profession in the real world and ignite a cultural shift in both traditional football and the emerging E-sports landscape. The Ultimate Coach embodies our brand's commitment to the future of gaming, adding value to this discipline while enhancing the performance of a top-tier team through advanced video game technology integration.

After two decades, Club Sport Emelec found itself on the brink of relegation in the Ecuadorian football championship. Meanwhile, Emelec's EA Sports team flourished in a separate domain, clinching victory in the E-Liga Pro and securing a spot in the E-Libertadores.

Xtrim, the internet service provider linking Ecuadorians to opportunities and a proud sponsor of Emelec, sought to boost the morale of the fanbase amid the team's challenging phase. Yet, we saw a unique chance: to merge both worlds of the team, crafting a new reality to alter its fate.

Thus, our primary aim was to harness the progress of Emelec's EA Sports team and showcase its real-world effectiveness on the football field. We aimed to translate virtual success into a tangible catalyst for positive change in Emelec's journey, blending the digital and real-life realms into a potent synergy changing the sports culture in Ecuador.

Emelec currently boasts the second-largest fanbase in the country. Recognizing this, Xtrim understood that a simple sponsorship would likely go unnoticed among numerous brands competing for attention. Therefore, our approach needed to delve deeper; we aimed not only to support a team but also to change their fortunes in the 2024 season. By altering these outcomes, our technological contribution to the team would elevate our brand's relevance, positioning us as more than just an internet provider but as a digital player. This initiative appealed to two key audiences: the gaming community and football enthusiasts united by a common passion. This aimed to promote the gamers inclusion to real life professions and an innovation in ecuadorian soccer culture.

We recruited Sebastian Esparza, E-Emelec’s gaming champion, to join Emelec's coaching staff. He meticulously analyzed data from his FC24 matches, gaining insights into each player's tactics, movements, and strengths, simulating real-world scenarios for Emelec. Esparza collaborated with Emelec's head coach, Hernán Torres, during the LigaPro 2024 tournament to develop strategies enriched with data from the video game.

The traditional coaching approach relies on analyzing past matches, leaving room for error. Typically, team improvement is measured solely by match outcomes. However, integrating video game technology allows for assessing various game scenarios, empowering the coaching staff to analyze lineups, tactics, and playing styles without compromising performance.

In a world where artificial intelligence learns faster and processes vast amounts of information, we aimed to humanize data and turn our gamer into a source of information.

The Ultimate Coach has been in use since the start of the E-Liga-pro season, (February 26th, 2024). Sebastián Esparza, our gamer, uses FC24 to analyze potential rivals, playing around 100 matches against each to pinpoint Emelec's weaknesses. Afterward, he plays 200 more matches, testing lineups and adjusting tactics. FC24's technology evaluates team aspects, with Sebastián dedicating over 83.33 hours in 10 days for data collection and optimization. Hypermotion captures real-life player movements, enhancing game realism. The new Precision Pass mechanic allows precise passes, aiding Sebas in trying new tactics which later are discussed with Hernan Torres, Emelec’s head coach to co-create a new strategy.

Results in team performance:

Spending 83.28 hours on FC24 before each game is creating a unique reality

+ 21% boost in goals scored

+ 14.2% more big chances per game

+ 6.1% higher ball possession

+ 17.4% more duels won per game

(According to Sofascore compared to last season in four matches after the implementation of Ultimate Coach)

2023 : https://www.sofascore.com/es/equipo/futbol/emelec/5255

2024: https://www.sofascore.com/es/equipo/futbol/emelec/5255

Brand results:

-Change in Behavior: Two new sport Clubs (Patria and Barcelona) are now requesting Xtrim’s sponsorship and to implement the Ultimate Coach initiative.

-After the ultimate Coach first match Emelec’s fans and haters went crazy generating $75K in Free Press.

Implementing Ultimate Coach presented formidable hurdles. Initially, we faced internal resistance within Emelec, necessitating a shift in mindset to integrate a gamer into one of the most popular teams’ coaching staff, in Ecuador.

Establishing synergy between the coach and gamer was challenging due to technical learning each of them had to learn. However, positive match outcomes and recommendations catalyzed a cultural transformation.

Subsequently, winning the trust of Emelec's fans became imperative. Regardless of match results, accountability fell on Xtrim’s initiative and the gamer. Yet, our triumph laid in elevating the club's performance, fostering pride among the fans.