Recently Opened Esports Arena Is a Win on Campus

Article by Jens Mikkelsen. Photo by Jens Mikkelsen.

The Huskies Esports Arena had its grand opening in St. Cloud State University’s Atwood Memorial Center in 2023 and has been proven to be a big win for students.

Evan Sufka, who goes by the gamer name Evankwondo, is a member of the Smash Brothers team and comes to the esports arena four times a week and every Wednesday to play in a tournament.

“The arena brings a lot of people here,” said Sufka. “20-30 people to come out here every week, and that’s a blast, you make many friends.”

The space is used for Super Smash Bros Ultimate, competitive varsity Rocket League, and Valorant teams to compete nationally. But it can also be used for individual and casual gaming.

“We have a competitive varsity team so we definitely use it for that, but it has also been a good sport for students to play casually and for clubs to set up fun events as well,” said Justin Bragg, St. Cloud State University’s Director of Esports.

Esports aren’t just gaining traction at St. Cloud State. They’re gaining popularity on campuses across the country. “There are about 600 schools that have varsity programs and that number is increasing,” said Bragg. “We use esports as a tool to get students to come to SCSU.”

One team coach said the space isn’t just attracting gamers, that he and his friends hang out at the arena between classes and even study in the area.

“Kids will come down everytime they do a tour they’ll bring them down here and they’ll see that we have all these computers that they can use every day,” said Sufka. “You can play whatever game you want, and that is a nice incentive to come here. We do have probably the best esports arena, from what I’ve seen in Minnesota. We have people down here every day playing.”

The Huskies Esports Arena is scheduled to host two big events coming up in March. The Minnesota Varsity League esports state finals will take place March 1-2. It will also host the Northstar regional tournament March 8-9.

The arena is located at the far-east end of the lower level in Atwood.