NEXT STOP, TURIN: DRONE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2019 CALENDAR ANNOUNCED


The Drone Champions League, the recognized championship for professional drone racing teams, will complete a six-stop, five-race season across Europe and Asia in 2019.

Eight elite international teams are deep in preparation for the next DCL showdown, a rapidly approaching debut in Turin on 12-13 July that will mark the first-ever drone racing in Italy.

Liechtenstein, 21 June 2019 – The fourth season of the Drone Champions League kicked off with high drama in February, as more than 100,000 visitors to the International Games Festival in Cannes, France had the chance to witness the 2019 DCL Draft Selection from among 58 top international talents, who qualified for the draft by playing DCL The Game. Then, only a month later, the racing started on a high when Switzerland’s world-famous Snowpark Laax hosted the DCL opener at an altitude of more than 2,200 meters, with eight teams battling in a surreal frozen landscape.

Now, South Korea’s VELOCE RACING, Britain’s XBLADES RACING and the Swiss McDONALD’S WILDCARD TEAM are tied with the early-season lead as the pilots get ready to take their drones to the Italian premiere in Turin. The drones will soar in the DCL Grand Prix Torino on Friday and Saturday, 12-13 July, at the historic river embankments of the Murazzi del Po. In a first, throughout the event spectators will also be able to immerse themselves in a Drone Village at the adjacent Corso Cairoli, featuring a technical expo, local street food, merchandise shops, music and opportunities to explore the role of a drone pilot in racing simulators and with DCL The Game.

“Turin has a deep heritage of hosting cutting-edge events, from the sporting scene to the art world. It’s renowned for the passion of its people, and for being Italy’s capital of innovation, which makes it the perfect partner for the DCL,” said Drone Champions League CEO Herbert Weirather. “Our teams and our organization are thrilled to introduce this exciting sport to Italy, and we invite everyone to come and experience two great days of public activities and professional racing like they’ve never seen before.”

Paola Pisano – Deputy Mayor for Innovation and Smart City – City of Torino commented “Turin is a city that has always been close to innovation and technology, born as a city that brings and develops innovation. Today, with the Drone Race, the city wants to show how new technologies can be a support not only to the local ecosystem and to new opportunities on the territory, but also a new innovative way to create events and attract tourism in the city. I am sure that everyone in Torino will have the opportunity to have fun and discover more about aircraft technology.

Since 2016, the Drone Champions League has brought together the world’s best drone pilots, who compete on eight international teams in some of the world’s most jawdropping real-life settings, from The Great Wall of China to the Champs-Elysées and from icy mountaintops to spectacular caverns. Each DCL race is broadcast live, worldwide on TV and online. DCL The Game is available now in demo phase, with full rollout for PC, Mac and PS4 launching in November 2019.

After Italy, the DCL moves to a September showdown at the Red Sea in Neom, Saudi Arabia, a new city on the world map that embraces both technology and tourism. Then, in October, it’s back to Europe for the championship’s home Drone Prix in Liechtenstein, a return to the Regierungsplatz in the capital city of Vaduz. The season will climax in December with the DCL Grand Prix in Asia.

See the drones take off in Turin and catch up with the 160 km/h season. For information on how to watch in person or live on TV and online: www.dcl.aero

And live your own drone racing experience with DCL The Game, available now in demo phase, with full rollout for PC, Mac and PS4 launching in November 2019: www.game.dcl.aero

###
Drone Champions League Calendar 2019
22-24 February: Draft selection, Cannes, France
29-30 March: Laax, Switzerland
12-13 July: Turin, Italy
12-13 September: Neom, Saudi Arabia
18-19 October: Vaduz, Liechtenstein
13-14 December: Asia

About the Drone Champions League
The Drone Champions League (DCL) is the recognized championship for professional drone racing teams: an innovative race series that blurs the lines between virtual and reality to serve up a new era of sports entertainment. Since 2016 the DCL has drawn the world’s best drone pilots, who qualify for each race in DCL The Game and then go on to compete on eight international teams in some of the world’s most spectacular real-life settings, from buzzing global capitals to surreal natural wonders.

Each DCL race is broadcast live, worldwide on TV and also online. From the Great Wall of China to the Champs-Elysées – where 180,000 spectators lined the boulevard – the LED-lit racing drones dart through the custom tracks head-to-head, flashing by fans at speeds of more than 160 km/h as the pilots fly them using virtual reality goggles. First to the finish wins, and with margins breathtakingly tight, contact happens. The daring maneuvers of bold pilots can boost drones to victory or send them tumbling.

DCL The Game offers complete engagement with the sport and a high-speed experience in your own home. Players of all experience levels fly more than 30 drone racing tracks, including 1:1 virtual replicas of the original DCL tracks, with contenders in the highest mode battling for places in the actual DCL Draft Selection. DCL The Game is available now in demo phase, with full rollout for PC, Mac and PS4 launching in November 2019.

DCL partners include Red Bull, Breitling, Eyetime and Trilux. For more information: www.dcl.aero and www.game.dcl.aero.

Related articles