WYLDE recently established Ireland's first-ever eSports Academy, powered by Virgin Media, right here in Republic of Work. With professional eSport athletes based around the world, and - most importantly - right here in Ireland. WYLDE is a global powerhouse in the realm of eSports. WYLDE players participate in FIFA, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege, Rocket League, Valorant and other eSports titles, while their content creators feed their channels across social media, Twitch and Discord, with exciting gaming content. 

Usain Bolt, the world's fastest man, is one of WYLDE's co-owners, and he is very excited about the Academy in Ireland, saying that "this partnership with Virgin Media is a great fit, as our players and gamers all over Ireland will benefit from the superfast, reliable broadband" at the WYLDE Academy in Republic of Ireland.

To find out more about the eSports sector and WYLDE, our marketing executive Colin O’Brien sat down with one of WYLDE’s professional players, Ciaran ‘Mr Welly" Walsh. Ciaran is part of the WYLDE FIFA team, and also represented Cork City in the eLeague of Ireland competition. 

Now let’s get into the important part, the Q&A itself:

Q - Can you explain what you do in one sentence, for people that have no idea about gaming?

A - I stream daily on Twitch, and create content daily but the main thing I do is compete in the FIFAe competitions, all eyes are now focused on qualifying for the FIFAe World Cup.

Q - What’s your favourite thing about being in the academy?

A - Being able to compete with the other top-quality FIFA players we have, Tyrone Ryan and Michael Fisher and bounce ideas and tactics off each other.  I love being able to compete at a high level, and not having to worry about the WiFi going down because of our super-fast connectivity provided by Virgin Media. 

Q - Did you always want to be an eSports athlete when you were growing up? 

A - It wasn’t really a thing when I was kid, so like most people, I wanted to be a footballer, but once I learned about the esports world, all my focus turned to that. 

Q - Have you ever been in a co-working space like this before? And, are you happy to have Republic of Work as the Cork location?

A - No I have never been in a space like this before, but I am delighted to have Republic of Work as the Cork location because of how easily accessible it is, everyone is so friendly and helpful here. Also I’m a massive tea drinker and having an endless supply of Barry’s tea is fantastic!

Q - How do people get into what you are doing? 

A - If you play FIFA at a high level yourself, for example, playing in the elite division on FIFA and playing at a high level of FUT Champions, then it’s all about putting yourself out there by entering various tournaments and competitions, and giving yourself the best opportunity to get spotted. 

Q - Do you think Cork could be the esports capital of Ireland? 

A - Certainly we have the infrastructure and the talent here at ROW and the Academy to make it happen, plus it’s a great point for everyone to meet and be able to test ourselves against each other. Already WYLDE teams are flying in from around the world to train here, and a number of training bootcamps are scheduled for the coming months, so it’s already putting Cork on the global esports map I think.

Q - What does a typical day of training look like for you as an esports athlete? 

A - My days can be very repetitive as you’d imagine, but on a typical day I wake up and head out for a walk to clear my head, I come home and have breakfast, then the fun begins! I spend hours and hours training online against other pro players. Then I head down to the Leisure Centre and go for a Steam and Sauna, come back and have dinner and then I’d get back online to train again and make content.

Q - Who is the best on Team WYLDE? 

A - That’s an easy one, it’s me, but I have to say that Tyrone and Michael are also very good. 

Q - What is your favourite formation on FIFA 23 and why? 

A - It has to be the 4-2-2-2 as it’s just the meta at the minute. 

Q - Best player you have packed on FIFA 23? 

A - Inform Wissam Ben Yedder.

Q - Favourite player on FIFA 23?

A - The Hero, David Ginola. 

Being able to observe what esports athletes go through on a daily basis as they train for major international competitions truly demonstrates why they’re athletes. It was interesting to sit down with Ciaran to learn more about what's happening in the esports world. The Academy is a great example of how far esports has come in Ireland, and provides huge insight into this sector nationally and internationally. Virgin Media's most recent advertising campaign, which portrays Gamers as Athletes, with WYLDE at the heart of this activity, showcases how these players are world-class athletes and require the training, skills and infrastructure that you’d expect of any professional player.

We'd like to end by wishing team WYLDE all the best in their preparation for the FIFA World Cup and any other contests or tournaments they may have in the future.