Krafton and KeSPA team up to help grow school esports

• The Korea e-Sports Association and Krafton have put pen to paper on a new three-year deal
• The two companies will collaborate to help the growth of school esports
• Executives at KeSPA and Krafton share their excitement

The Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA) and Krafton, a leading South Korean video game publisher, announced a new three-year collaboration.

At the epicenter of the agreement is the promotion of esports in schools with the ultimate goal of helping esports gain more popularity in South Korea’s sports vertical.

The two team up to promote the growth of esports in South Korea

Announced on Monday, April 13, 2026, the collaboration between KeSPA and Krafton builds on the duo’s long-term successful agreements.

Previously, the two companies collaborated for PUBG esports events.

However, now, they will unite their forces to promote esports and foster new talent.

KeSPA and Krafton will help more students get into esports by offering player development and helping connect amateurs to professional players.

The collaboration will not only foster new talent but also help improve the esports ecosystem in schools across the country, promoting the activity’s growth.

Importantly, the two companies also unite to make esports a normal part of traditional sports in South Korea.

Park Soo-yong, Krafton’s Head of Esports PUBG division, spoke with excitement about the new collaboration, local media reports revealed.

"Based on the 7 years of trust that Battleground and the Association have had together, we are happy to take action to revitalize esports in schools," Soo-yong pointed out.

Moreover, the executive said: "We hope that a systematic environment will be created where students can learn a healthy sports spirit through esports and further grow into professional players."

Finally, Soo-young said that the two companies' efforts will focus on making the domestic IP, PUBG: Battleground, a normal part of the international esports scene.

Kim Cheol-hak, KeSPA’s Secretary General, was similarly excited.

"This agreement will represent a turning point for domestic esports sports to secure unrivaled status within the domestic and international institutional sports system," he said.

Moreover, Cheol-hak outlined that the landmark collaboration between KeSPA and Krafton will serve as the foundation for player growth and talent acquisition.

Finally, the executive acknowledged that the effort is expected to help with player development, enabling amateur players to grow reaching the national team.

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