MVP092: How To Run Magic Tournaments Online With Melee.gg

Steve Port joins me on the podcast to discuss his latest project, Melee.gg and the future of Magic tournaments, online and offline. Learn how Melee.gg can allow your game store to run Magic tournaments more efficiently than ever, both in store and on Magic: Arena.Find out how the platform works, how you can run events with minimal staffing and still have a smooth tournament experience for your customers, and how the Melee.gg team is changing the way events are run.Melee.gg is a great way for game stores to run tournaments that was previously reserved for the likes of the Star City Games Tour and other premier organizers.Steve PortSteve’s introduction to competitive gaming was in the early 90's when he began organizing leagues for strategy games. This was followed closely by organizing sanctioned events for Wizards of the Coast.This early hobby quickly turned into full time employment as he acquired contracts with companies like Wizards of the Coast, Upper Deck, and Konami.From 2001-2015 Steve organized some of Magic’s largest tournaments while also starting and overseeing several companies connected to the tabletop gaming world.He's heading up Melee.gg with Jason Flatford, Brad Nelson, and Adam Shaw, each of which brings something unique to the team in addition to their shared passion for Magic: the Gathering.Steve was also one of my first interviewees on the podcast years ago. He appeared on episode 14 of the Manaverse Podcast back in 2015, and now he's back to give us the lowdown on Melee.gg and the future of running tournaments online.QuestionsHow did you get involved in Melee.gg?From a complete newbie perspective, how does the system work?How do you capture payments? Is there a limit? How are prizes (if any) distributed?What are some best practices for running great tournaments with the software?What's the biggest tournament you've seen on the platform so far?How should store owners be using the platform to run events?How can they get involved and become organizers?What's planned for the future of Melee.gg?Linksmelee.ggBecome an OrganizerMelee.gg Documentationmanaversesaga.com/join