Esports Leaders Honours in Cologne spotlights backstage talent

The inaugural Esports Leaders Honours took place on June 19, 2026, in Cologne as part of Global Esports Industry Week. The ceremony was staged at the Hyatt Regency with a final segment held at Cologne City Hall. Winners were announced live at the event and published on the organisers’ social channels. Categories for the awards were Esports Leader of the Year, Product Innovation, Standout Advertising Campaign, Access & Grassroots Champion, Rising Star and Industry Development of the Year. A special Local Hero honour for the German edition was chosen by E-Sport-Bund Deutschland.

The Esports Radar, part of The Insights Group, organised the event. The programme accepted public submissions and, for this first edition, final decisions were made internally by the organisers. Sam Cooke, chief executive of The Insights Group and lead curator of the honours, described the purpose of the list as recognising people and organisations who work off stage. Cooke noted the team plans to seek broader international coverage and to review judging and category scope for future editions.

Shortlisted nominees represented several regions. Rising Star finalists included The MongolZ. Grassroots and access nominees included SAGES Africa and Friendly Fire, a Croatia-based organisation. Initiatives cited for community building included KRED Norge in Sarpsborg and NOVO in Italy. College Esports News was recognised for collegiate coverage. Désiré Koussawo was highlighted for advocacy and events spanning France and parts of Africa. The organisers acknowledged that a small curation team limited their ability to represent the full global spread of the sector.

Holding the final segment at Cologne City Hall brought civic participation to the event. Local diplomats, politicians and Cologne’s mayor, Torsten Burmester, attended. The ceremony received support from KölnBusiness. Delegations from destinations that have developed esports strategies, including Raleigh, North Carolina, and Malta, were present. Malta and a multi-year studio partnership with BLAST were among the nominees for Industry Development of the Year.

Global Esports Industry Week ran from June 18 to June 21 alongside IEM Cologne. The organisers indicated they will consider changes to judging, entry processes and category definitions to increase international representation in future editions.