ECA's origin story
Meet Ólafur Steinarsson
Growing up as a hobbyist gamer, I always knew I wanted to work in the gaming industry. After working at CCP Games in Iceland, and Riot Games in Dublin, I returned to Iceland in 2018 and saw that the local esports scene was declining. This led me to create the Icelandic Esports Association, which focused on building a supportive grassroots ecosystem for kids to find coaching and support around their esports aspirations. Today, over 3,000 kids are training esports in person with a group of peers, an educated coach, and improving their physical, mental, and in-game abilities while pursuing the games they love.
Inspired by the success of the Icelandic Esports Association, and my personal experiences of not having my parent's support for a hobby that shielded me from dealing with bullying and the loss of my father, I founded the Esports Coaching Academy with a vision that anyone that is interested in gaming should be able to receive support and pursue their passion in a structured and approved way.
At ECA we are on a mission to bring the Icelandic success of structured youth grassroots esports to the world.
