WATCH: Meet the Goliaths of gaming in the South
Goliath Gaming, a local gaming team playing out of Meyersdal, has been making waves in both the local and international scene.
We met with Goliath Gaming’s founders Ashton Muller and Michele Brondani, technical manager Thulani Sishi, and one of their star Fifa players from the South Thabo Moloi to find out more about Goliath Gaming and what it takes to be successful in this up-and-coming sport.
Goliath Gaming was founded in June 2017 by Ashton and Michele, who both come from a background of playing competitively for other teams.
“We were all sitting around a dinner table with my parents and chatting about how the South African scene needs to catch up to the international scene,” explained Ashton.
“Then, they asked why we don’t start our own team. We all thought it was a bit of a joke but the next day, we got together with all the partners and it started.”
According to Michele, the idea was to flip how it was previously done in South Africa upside down. “We wanted to be the first to offer full employment contracts and make it a proper career opportunity,” said Michele.
Geared for bigger things
Since their start with only 10 players, they moved to 24 players before starting to zone in on the more elite titles in South Africa with 14 players.
Goliath Gaming competes in Counter-Strike, Fortnite, Street Fighter, Tekken, StarCraft and Fifa.
With competitive gaming booming across the world and in South Africa, the Goliath Gamers explained what it takes to compete in the high octane world of competitive gaming.
“I like to compare it directly with other traditional sports,” said Thulani. “The only different thing is the physical aspect. When training, you follow the lines they do but because it is so new we are still finding out what the best practices are.”
According to them, even the physical aspects are now being looked at for the gaming with Goliath having their own yoga instructor and sports psychologist to help look after the physical and mental well-being of their players.
“I think the most important asset a gamer can have is being mentally strong. That is what separates a good player from a great player,” said Michele.
Goliath has been experiencing great success across its platforms. One of their young up-and-coming players Thabo has been performing extremely well in his chosen game.
This includes playing on the international Fifa scene as well as taking tournament wins under his belt. He is also the first e-sports athlete in the southern hemisphere to be sponsored by Red Bull.
“When you get to the tournament, once I’m in the zone, no one can stop me,” said Thabo. “When you’re in the final and everyone is supporting you, it is amazing.”
To find out more about Goliath Gaming or to keep up to date on their games and competitions, you can follow them on all social media platforms @GOLIATHGAMINGZA or visit their website.
