Summer competition gives youth around the world an exciting event to encourage creativity, design, and fun with others, despite social distancing 

(Orange County, CA – June 29, 2020) – NASEF (the North America Scholastic Esports Federation) is looking for the world’s best Minecraft teams to go head-to-head in the 2020 NASEF Minecraft Masters Global Competition. Teams of up to four students ages 13-18 years old are invited to enter and face-off against teams from around the globe in this exciting online competition. Click here for details.

The preliminary round will run from June 29 to July 17, and all teams will use their master Minecraft skills to compete for four top spots to advance to the Live Challenges. The final four teams will compete for top honors in three rounds of Live Challenges and the championship Masters event, which will be held on August 8, 2020. 

Students’ preliminary challenge will be to build an esports arena. Those that qualify for the finals must build the next creations in two-hour timed challenges which will be announced at that time. The following skills will be tested and demonstrated by participants:

• Design
• Redstone
• Commands/Command Blocks
• Code Builder

NASEF is encouraging all students to continue improving their Minecraft skills whether they qualify for the championship event or not. As an incentive for all participants, even those teams that don’t make it into the Final Four, an @Home Challenge will continue through the entire Masters competition. Students will continue to work with their teams to create designs for each new challenge as they are announced. They’ll have four days to complete the challenge and submit their entries. All who participate will be entered into a raffle for prizes.  

NASEF will kick off the entire event with a stream including details and advice about the Minecraft Masters on June 30 at 12:00 pm PT / 8:00 pm BT at both the Participate  and NASEF Twitch channels. All of the Final Live Challenges will be hosted by Participate and streamed in both places on July 25, July 26, and August 1, with the Global Minecraft Masters finale taking place on August 8. 

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.

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. 

There are many chances to win! Prizes will be awarded to the top four teams who qualify for the Masters round and the team that earns the overall Minecraft Masters title. Students can also win by being selected as the winning team for their country (regardless of placement in the final four) or by winning a raffle for entering the @Home phase of the series. 

NASEF’s scholastic esports program leverages massive student interest in video gaming for education on career and life skills. NASEF recently added Minecraft to its esports lineup to connect students’ love of the game with meaningful learning. According to eSchoolNews, students develop problem-solving and collaboration skills through Minecraft, as well as creativity and critical thinking. 

“It’s summer – time for fun! Kids who love building in Minecraft will absolutely love the opportunity to compete with others around the world to see which creations are best,” said Tom Turner, chief education officer for NASEF. “Esports is thriving while countless other summer activities are cancelled due to social distancing. NASEF and its partners around the world will bring kids online with their friends to enjoy the fun of creating and competing together.”

“International competition offers a way for youth to understand that kids are the same across the country and around the world! They’ll see that all the students are working in the same software program with the same goal, regardless of their background. That’s an awesome benefit, and it is part of NASEF’s commitment to educating youth about building community and celebrating diversity,” said Gerald Solomon, founder of NASEF and executive director of the Samueli Foundation. 

Like all NASEF programs, the Minecraft Masters Global Competition is provided free of charge. From tournaments to Beyond the Game™ challenges, classroom curriculum to afterschool programs, NASEF gladly and freely shares its breadth of knowledge, programs, and expertise. 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]. 

About the North America Scholastic Esports Federation

The North America Scholastic Esports Federation is working to ensure that ALL students possess the knowledge and skills needed to be society’s game changers: educated, productive, and empathetic individuals. NASEF is on a mission to provide opportunities for ALL students to use esports as a platform to acquire critical communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills needed to thrive in work and in life. The Federation’s core values are intertwined through all aspects of education and play: learning, opportunity, community, diversity, and respect.

Learn more at the NASEF website. See matches streamed live on our Twitch channel, and join online conversations on Twitter @NASEFedu, Facebook, and Instagram.

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