Iona college students got together at the Hynes Gym on Oct. 7 to form and talk about the “League of Legends” esports team on campus. The team is being run by EJ Ferraro, who is the assistant athletic director/campus recreation at Iona.

The meeting was meant to get more people interested in joining a team that has already started playing together.

Iona’s esports team is called Gaelic Goons and their goal is to be recognized as a club while building a strong gaming community.

“We would want to make it an actual, recognized club,” Ferraro said during the meeting. “The goal of the team is to be competitive, but it is not all about winning. It is about building a community as well.”

The Gaelic Goons talked about the recent games of “League of Legends” they played, and the different strategies and team compositions they used.

Most of the students met through their participation in other clubs. This shows that there are many students that love to play these games and are interested in joining a team such as this one.

The Gaelic Goons features a mixture of sophomores, juniors and seniors who are serious about leaving their mark here with this team, according to Ferraro. Students are using their own PCs and copies of “League of Legends” since the school has not funded this venture yet.

“In the long term, I want them to be playing more games,” Ferraro said.

“League of Legends” is one of the most popular and competitive multiplayer games out there. “Overwatch,” “Player Unknown Battleground” and “Dota 2” are just a few of the other games the Gaelic Goons could play on the competitive level in the future.

This group can be the start of something big -video game wise -at Iona. Esports has gained a major following over the years, and people playing on professional esports teams are getting paid almost as much as athletes in other sports.

The Gaelic Goons has the potential to show why esports can be a great club to have on campus. They will be having meetings in the coming weeks to talk strategies.

Students can contact Ferraro at [email protected] with any questions.