New next-generation fantasy football experience lets users make real-time decisions during live NFL games

Pre-register on primetimefantasy.com for iOS & Android

MONTRÉAL /CNW/ – Ubisoft, a leading video game publisher, the National Football League and the National Football League Players Association announced today NFL Primetime Fantasy, a new free-to-play fantasy football card-style game where players make real-time decisions alongside their friends during live NFL regular season and playoff games. The worldwide launch is scheduled for early November 2024. Users who pre-register to participate in the beta will receive the early access bundle for free at launch, which includes a classic+ card pack and 100 adrenaline points.

NFL PRIMETIME

“This exciting collaboration with Ubisoft opens up fresh territory in the gaming world for the NFL,” said Ed Kiang, vice president of video gaming at the NFL. “NFL Primetime Fantasy marks the first NFL-licensed mobile game tied to our live games, driving fans closer to the sport than ever before. With this new addition to our expansive gaming portfolio, we demonstrate our dedication to offering non-traditional video gaming experiences for our fans.”

Available on Android and iOS devices, NFL Primetime Fantasy puts the decision-making in the hands of the users, allowing them to experience what it’s like to call the shots during live NFL games. These game-time selections will ultimately affect their fantasy points outcome. While playing NFL Primetime Fantasy users can expect:

• “LIVE” Fantasy Sports Action – Users can tap into their football instincts during live NFL games by anticipating big moments or swapping out players from their bench at the right time to boost their fantasy scores past the competition.
• Elite NFL Talent – The game allows users to grow a collection of the best NFL players and build their dream fantasy roster. They can level up their collection through gameplay, enhancing the bonuses of the NFL player cards to unlock their full potential.
• Weekly Events from Kickoff through the Super Bowl – Whether it’s following their favorite team during the regular season or jumping into the action for the first time during the playoffs, users can lock in a fantasy lineup of the best players on the field and climb the leaderboard.
• Friendly Competition and Global Leaderboards – NFL Primetime Fantasy is the first ever fantasy sports experience where users can create a team together with their friends and compete in a playoff tournament.

“At Ubisoft, our passionate team constantly seeks new market opportunities. We’re thrilled to partner with the NFL and NFLPA for the first time, leveraging our gaming expertise to bring fans an innovative experience with NFL Primetime Fantasy.” said Brenda Panagrossi, the US general manager at Ubisoft. “By gamifying live stats, we turn real-time game data into interactive, engaging content, offering a new way for NFL fans to connect with the sport they love. This collaboration marks an exciting step in delivering a new immersive gaming opportunity.”

“NFL players make the game exhilarating, and now fans can immerse themselves in the excitement of live action with Ubisoft’s NFL Primetime Fantasy,” said Matt Curtin, president of NFL Players Inc., the marketing and licensing arm of the NFLPA. “This innovative game lets fans use their favorite stars and make real-time decisions that impact their fantasy outcomes, bringing them closer to the game and the players they love. We’re thrilled to see players become a pivotal part of this fantasy sports experience.”

This unique live gaming experience was conceived and developed by a passionate team of NFL fans and fantasy sports enthusiasts at Ubisoft, led by Ubisoft Saguenay.

NFL Primetime Fantasy will debut during the 2024 NFL regular season. To pre-register and try out the game during its early testing phase, go to http://primetimefantasy.com

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For more information about other Ubisoft games, please visit news.ubisoft.com.

About Ubisoft

Ubisoft is a creator of worlds, committed to enriching players’ lives with original and memorable entertainment experiences. Ubisoft’s global teams create and develop a deep and diverse portfolio of games, featuring brands such as Assassin’s Creed®, Brawlhalla®, For Honor®, Far Cry®, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon®, Just Dance®, Rabbids®, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six®, The Crew® and Tom Clancy’s The Division®. Through Ubisoft Connect, players can enjoy an ecosystem of services to enhance their gaming experience, get rewards and connect with friends across platforms. With Ubisoft+, the subscription service, they can access a growing catalog of more than 100 Ubisoft games and DLC. For the 2023-24 fiscal year, Ubisoft generated net bookings of €2.32 billion. To learn more, please visit: www.ubisoftgroup.com.

© 2024 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. NFL Primetime Fantasy, Ubisoft, and the Ubisoft logo are registered or unregistered trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.  

SOURCE Ubisoft

CityPickle to Expand Pickleball Club Concept Combining Indoor Courts with Full Bar and Restaurant and Activations in Iconic Public Spaces

NEW YORK /PRNewswire/ — The Avenue Sports Fund today announced it has made a significant minority investment in CityPickle, the urban home for pickleball. The new capital will support CityPickle’s plans to expand the locations of its permanent, indoor pickleball club concept in addition to strategic activations at iconic landmarks in metropolitan areas.

Pickleball has been the fastest-growing sport in the United States over the past four years. According to estimates, nearly 40 million people nationally have played pickleball at least once in the past 12 months. CityPickle focused initially on New York City and the Greater New York market, where research suggests 5 to 6 million people played pickleball in 2023, despite limited supply for courts.

Co-founded by two female entrepreneurs, Mary Cannon and Erica Desai, in the summer of 2021, CityPickle is addressing the supply-demand imbalance for courts in dense urban areas by building pickleball clubs that combine indoor, bookable courts with a full bar and restaurant—making it the ideal destination to spend quality time with friends, colleagues, and family. The brand also installs seasonal courts at high-profile locations. CityPickle offers a variety of playing options to book, including: court reservations, clinics, open play, one-on-one coaching, private and corporate events.

In fall 2023, CityPickle opened its first permanent pickleball club in Long Island City, New York and is the seasonal partner of Wollman Park Partners, which operates the iconic Wollman Rink in Central Park. CityPickle at Wollman Rink is the largest pickleball installation in the Northeast with 14 permanent courts, providing 182 hours of play a day. CityPickle operates other seasonal pickleball experiences including a seven-court, indoor location at Brooklyn’s Industry City in addition to activations at Hudson Yards, Union Square Park, and Philadelphia’s City Hall. In June 2024 it was announced CityPickle has been selected by NYC Parks to revitalize Anchorage Plaza, the 60,000 square foot space under Brooklyn Bridge, with pickleball courts, public art, community programming, food trucks and more and will debut in Spring 2025.

“There is a significant opportunity to provide permanent and pop-up pickleball locations to service the growing and passionate demand for this sport,” said Marc Lasry, Avenue Capital’s Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder. “CityPickle, led by co-founders Erica Desai and Mary Cannon, has established a special brand that is relevant to urban locations nationwide. We are excited to join with the CityPickle team to support its expansion strategy.”

“We are thrilled to have the Avenue Sports Fund join our team at CityPickle as we further our mission to spread the joy and community of pickleball in New York City and other metropolitan areas,” said Mary Cannon, CityPickle Co-founder. “We’ve experienced an overwhelming demand for more access to pickleball and are looking forward to expanding our ability to offer a best-in-class experience to the rapidly growing player population alongside our new partners at Avenue Sports Fund,” added Erica Desai, CityPickle Co-founder.

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About Avenue Sports Fund
Launched in 2023, Avenue Sports Fund provides capital solutions to a wide variety of established teams and leagues across the globe, as well as investments in emerging sport properties to capitalize on areas of exponential growth. The Sports Fund also invests in sports-related media and entertainment rights, real estate, and other adjacent businesses. Avenue Sports Fund, led by Marc Lasry, is a fund of Avenue Capital group, a global investment firm focused on making opportunistic credit and other special situation investments across the United States, Europe, and Asia. Avenue, founded in 1995 by Mr. Lasry and Sonia Gardner, draws on the skills and experience of over 60 investment professionals and more than 180 employees operating from its headquarters in New York and offices in Europe, Asia and Abu Dhabi. Avenue has assets under management of approximately $12.5 billion.

About CityPickle
CityPickle is the urban home for pickleball. CityPickle opened its first, permanent pickleball club in Long Island City in 2023, which combines indoor, bookable courts with a full bar and restaurant, making it the ideal destination to spend quality time with friends, colleagues and family. CityPickle is also Wollman Rink in Central Park’s official seasonal partner where it operates the largest pickleball installation in the Northeast with 14 permanent courts and 182 hours of play a day. CityPickle operates other seasonal pickleball experiences like a seven-court, indoor location at Brooklyn’s Industry City in addition to activations at Hudson Yards, Union Square Park, and Philadelphia’s City Hall. CityPickle will continue to partner with high-profile destinations in cities as it strategically develops new club locations.

SOURCE Avenue Capital Group

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) today releasedEASPORTS™NHL® 24, now available worldwide on PlayStation®5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation®4 and Xbox One. Fueled by EA’s Frostbite™ engine, the all-new Exhaust Engine introduces the Sustained Pressure and Goalie Fatigue systems for lifelike hockey intensity that bring the rush and fatigue of on-ice high-pressure to life. The revamped NHL 24Physics-Based Contact mechanics offers realistic player contact and body checks, elevating the feel of the gameplay experience.

Hockey fans cherish the sport’s raw intensity. This year, with new features like the Exhaust Engine and Physics-Based Contact, we’re capturing that essence,” said Mike Inglehart, Creative Director at EA Vancouver. “NHL 24 allows players to feel the thrill of the sport, and we’re eager for fans to experience its gritty physicality.”

NHL 24 is packed with new features including:

• Completely Revamped Gameplay Experience: EA SPORTS NHL has never felt this intense, with all-new gameplay mechanics that dial up the pressure, physicality, and control of authentic on-ice action. The brand-new Exhaust Engine – powered by Frostbite – includes the Sustained Pressure and Goalie Fatigue systems, rewarding extended offensive events and attack zone time, adding a dynamic new layer of authenticity and excitement to the game. Players can pass anywhere at any time with Vision Passing and Total Control Skill Moves makes using highlight-reel moves more intuitive and accessible. These are just a few of the exciting gameplay layers added to NHL 24, and players can learn more by checking out the 15-minute deep dive trailer here, and more about gameplay here.
• The Most Dynamic World of Chel Yet: Players will be able to connect in more ways than ever before with enhanced Cross-Play‡, which will lead to better matchmaking to players across platforms. Improvements to Creation Zone will give players more customization, while an update to the EASHL Playoffs introduces an authentic, streamlined do-or-die 16-game path to the title, allowing players to earn ranking points as they make their way through the bracket. NHL 24 also introduces World of Chel Battle Pass, and players can play their way through action-packed seasons at free and premium level. Learn more about the upgrades to World of Chel in the deep dive video here, and more about the game’s modes here.
• Experience Historic Hockey Moments in Hockey Ultimate Team™: NHL 24debuts HUT Moments, allowing players to recreate, share, and track iconic hockey plays using a real-time system that updates player progress based on items, teams and on-ice actions. NHL 24 also introduces a new real-time objective-tracking system, enabling players to keep active track of their objectives and stay focused on the exciting on-ice action. Learn more about Hockey Ultimate Team by watching the over eight-minute deep dive here.
• Modernized Presentation: With NHL 24, players will experience deeper on-ice immersion through the inclusion of Flex Moments, providing 75+ new goal celebrations, camera angles, lighting and customizable celebration controls that will allow players to map their celebration to their controller. NHL 24features enhanced crowd reactions to bring to life the intensity of hockey, and Dynamic Rink Boards expand the augmented reality broadcast and communicate key on-ice moments. Learn more about the all-new presentation in NHL 24 in the nearly eight-minute deep dive video here.

Developed by EA Vancouver and EA Bucharest, EA SPORTS NHL 24is rated E10+, and now available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, as well as PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The EA SPORTS NHL 24X-Factor Edition* includes the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 or Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game, three days of early access, 4600 NHL Points, exclusive Cale Makar player item, HUT Power-Up Icon of choice and WOC Battle Pass XP Modifier x5. For more details visit: https://www.ea.com/games/nhl/nhl-24/buy.

EA Play** members can get more out of NHL 24 with three days of early access, and member-only rewards throughout the season. Visit the EA Play website for more information.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for all our Trailers and Videos. Join the EA SPORTS NHL community on TikTok and Instagram. You can also follow us on Twitter @easportsnhl to stay up to date on the latest news.

Source: EA Sports