Around the world, kids have been building esports-focused creations using Minecraft to enter NASEF’s Global Minecraft Masters competition. The top teams were just announced, and the final four that will progress to the exciting livestream competition include:

• AisEgypt from Esports Partners; Egypt
• Spartans from The British Esports Association; UK
• Garage Builders from The US Embassy, Benjamin Franklin Library, American Spaces; Mexico
• Hal Tech2 from the Scholastic Esports Federation in Israel; Israel

Congratulations to the finalists! They now move on to the Live Challenges, where organizers will reveal the design to be created and teams will compete live, online, in a two-hour test of their Minecraft skills and creativity. 

Live Challenge Round 1 will be streamed on Saturday, July 25 at 10:00am PDT | 5:00pm UTC/GMT for two hours. Live Challenge Round 2, also a two-hour challenge, will be held the next day, on Sunday, July 26 at 10:00am PDT | 5:00pm UTC/GMT. The Live Challenges will be streamed at both the Participate  and NASEF Twitch channels.

Not only will the teams named above compete for the international title, there are @Home challenges that are open to all students in the participating countries! For the @Home series, teams must still register in advance of each challenge. There are two categories, one for youth that are 13-18 years old at the time of registration, and a Juniors division for those under age 13.

Teams will create the same type of design as the Masters but will have longer to complete the build, and their entries will be submitted using Flipgrid. 

Visit MinecraftMasters for details about all the possibilities.

"Though many students are currently on summer break, those involved in academic esports and gaming have been eager to do more. By providing live challenges students around the globe will get to see first hand how other teams build, think strategically, and collaborate while engaging in @Home challenges that put their own skills to the test. Team work, digital citizenship, design thinking, and perseverance are tools that all students will be demonstrating either on screen or off,” said Erik S. Leitner, coordinator of Minecraft Masters and a STEM+Computer Science Instructional Facilitator at Broward County Public Schools. 

The Minecraft Masters Global Competition is being offered by NASEF along with its partners: MonClub esports in France, SEFI in Israel, JHSEF in Japan, the US Embassy in Mexico, Benjamin Franklin Library and its American Spaces across Mexico, esports partners in South Africa, and the British Esports Association in the United Kingdom. 

Students in grades K-12 in all these locations are invited to join the fun of the Minecraft Masters competition to practice their design skills. Winners have a chance to win prizes including Competitors qualify for a variety of prizes including trophies; Xbox One S systems; Minecraft: Master Collection Game and Minecraft Story Mode: The Complete Adventure; Windows Kano PCs; Minecraft LEGO® Creation Sets; HyperX headsets; and mentorship experiences with Minecraft Education Edition Creative Experts. 

Like all NASEF programs, the Minecraft Masters Global Competition is provided free of charge. From Esports tournaments to Minecraft events and Beyond the Game™ challenges, classroom curriculum to afterschool programs, NASEF engages youth in programs that connect meaningful learning with play. Educators and esports program directors around the world who are interested in getting advice or joining NASEF in creating scholastic esports programs should email [email protected].