By Shivam | Oct 12, 2026
KRAFTON India Doubles College Campus Tour to 256 Colleges, Taking Competitive Esports to More Campuses Across India
The 2026-27 edition will reach 256 colleges across four zones, building on the previous edition's reach of 128 colleges and engagement with over 75,000 students.
Bangalore, October 12, 2026: KRAFTON India today announced the launch of the 2026-27 KRAFTON India Esports College Campus Tour, which kicked off on October 10 from IIT Kharagpur and IIT Varanasi. The new edition will reach 256 colleges across India—twice the number covered in the previous edition—taking competitive esports to more student hubs nationwide. Running from October 2026 through March 2027, the tour will see 64 colleges participating across each of the North, South, East, and West regions.
The expansion builds directly on the overwhelming response to last year's tour, which covered 128 institutions and engaged more than 75,000 students. This season, KRAFTON India brings BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA (BGMI) and Real Cricket tournaments to double the campuses, giving student athletes a recognized platform to compete, represent their institutes, and experience structured esports firsthand.
Festival Integration & Ecosystem Collaboration
To ensure seamless community involvement, the tournaments are being organized in collaboration with Nodwin Gaming and Upthrust Esports. Competitions will be held alongside annual college festivals, making participation straightforward and community-driven. Local college festival committees will spearhead event execution with logistical backing from tournament organizers, while KRAFTON India supplies the dedicated prize pool.
“Last year, we saw how much interest there is among college students for competitive gaming, with the Campus Tour reaching 128 colleges and engaging over 75,000 students. This year, we are taking that a step further by reaching 256 colleges across the country. We want to give more students the chance to experience competitive gaming at their own campuses, compete with other colleges and, for the strongest teams, progress to the next level. With BGMI and Real Cricket, we are looking forward to another exciting season across campuses in India.”
— Karan Pathak, Associate Director - Esports, KRAFTON India
Pathways to the Pro Circuit
Beyond local campus bragging rights, the tour introduces a clear competitive roadmap for aspiring players:
- Campus Qualifiers: College-level brackets identify the top squads representing each respective campus.
- Zonal Rounds: Campus champions from North, South, East, and West battle against regional rivals.
- Grand Finals: The top regional squads clash for supremacy at the culmination of the zonal circuits.
- College Campus Championship: A marquee 16-team national tournament. The eventual champions will earn a direct invitation to the invited stage of KRAFTON India's official esports tournaments in 2027.
Spanning six months from October 2026 to March 2027, the tour acts as a major grassroots pipeline, bridging the divide between casual collegiate gaming and professional esports competition in India.
About KRAFTON, Inc.
Headquartered in Korea, KRAFTON, Inc. is a global game developer and publisher dedicated to pioneering unforgettable worlds for players everywhere. Founded in 2007, KRAFTON brings together a diverse portfolio of studios including PUBG STUDIOS, Striking Distance Studios, Unknown Worlds, Neon Giant, KRAFTON Montréal Studio, Bluehole Studio, RisingWings, 5minlab, Dreamotion, ReLU Games, Flyway Games, Tango Gameworks, inZOI Studio, JOFSOFT, Eleventh Hour Games, OmniCraft Labs, Olivetree Games, Loonshot Games, and 9B STUDIO. Each is united by a commitment to bold imagination and breakthrough game-making. KRAFTON's franchises and titles include PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS, PUBG MOBILE, PUBG: BLINDSPOT, inZOI, Subnautica, MIMESIS, Hi-Fi Rush, Dinkum, TERA, My Little Puppy, and more. Guided by its vision to pioneer the path to players' dreams, KRAFTON is focused on building franchises that last and delivering experiences that resonate with players around the world. For more information, visit www.krafton.com.
About KRAFTON India
KRAFTON India is responsible for delivering premier mobile gaming experiences in the country, led by its flagship title BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA (BGMI), which has surpassed 260 million downloads. Its diverse portfolio also includes titles such as Road To Valor: Empires, CookieRun India, and Real Cricket, catering to a wide spectrum of Indian gamers. KRAFTON India has also played a pivotal role in shaping the country's esports landscape through marquee tournaments such as BGIS and BMPS, setting new benchmarks for development of grassroot talent, competitiveness, and fan engagement, while helping establish esports as a mainstream sporting and entertainment category in India.
Beyond publishing games, KRAFTON India is committed to strengthening the digital entertainment ecosystem. Since 2021, the company has invested over $250 million in Indian startups across interactive entertainment, gaming, esports, and technology. Additionally, KRAFTON has also launched the ₹6,000 crore KRAFTON India Unicorn Growth Fund with Naver and Mirae Asset to support high-potential startups. The company also actively supports game development talent through the KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator (KIGI), currently in its fourth cohort, enabling emerging developers with funding, mentorship, and strategic guidance. Recently, KRAFTON launched the KIGI Academy, a new industry-academia initiative designed to build India's game development talent ecosystem, in association with IIT Chennai.