How did the EBGL come to be?

Everything you need to know about the EBGL.
Post Reply
User avatar
MikeI
League Founder, Organizer
League Founder, Organizer
Posts: 1257
Joined: Wed Dec 19, 2018 10:30 am

How did the EBGL come to be?

Post by MikeI »

Starting as a small, 5 person role-playing game group that played regularly on a dining room table in the early 2000's, the Edmonton Board Gaming League grew into what it is today because of a basic need to play more types of games, with more people, more often.

After a couple years our little gaming group grew to about 8-10 people, took over a dining room and a living room with folding tables, and started meeting more regularly to play various card and miniature games. At the time the organizer (Mike I) even unofficially called the group the "Martyrs Gaming Club" - an homage to an online guild many of our players were also in.

By late 2005 we had ~14 regular players, expanded into a full sized basement with 3 tables, and even started to keep score for fun. Before we knew it, our 17-18 regular players were too big for a house venue and it became time to take the gaming group to the next level.

In May, 2006 the EBGL was officially named and formed by two organizers (Mike I and Shawn R). In the same year the club purchased the ebgl.org domain and created/launched its own website. It took about a year to sort most of the club rules and membership processes out, but by 2007, we were ready to have our first actual "League Season", where games were voted in and player scores were recorded.

Over the next couple years we continued to grow the membership base by advertizing at local gaming stores and community gaming events (such as Mission: Fun & Games' GameAlot), received store sponsorship, negotiated an official venue, and established a solid presence in the Edmonton Area - at least by those who were into gaming.

In 2010, we had successfully broke the 30 active members mark with approx 35 events organized per year, were giving away over $500 in prizes, and even helped bring the Great Canadian Board Gaming Blitz to Edmonton. We even had spent some time play testing prototypes and providing feedback to Valley Games. At this time we also decided it was time to bring on a 3rd organizer (Rob D) to help keep the League running smoothly.

In 2012, the EBGL had grown to over 40 active members (plus another 50 or so currently inactive for various life reasons). The club was giving out over $1000 each year in prizes and awards and were starting to get invitations by other organizations and companies to host games or talk about our organization.

In 2015, the EBGL had capped out at 50 active members (plus another 200+ or so currently inactive for various life reasons). The club was giving out over $1500 each year in prizes and awards. We were recognized by the Edmonton Next Gen Society as a "Cultural Leader" in Edmonton, had partnered with the Edmonton Oilers/Oil Kings, and continued to receive invitations to various Capital Region events and charities. St. Albert's GameAlot event had become our largest sponsored charity event, where all of our members are encouraged to teach games for an entire weekend to the public.

In 2018, the EBGL roster continued to be completely "full", and we have become well known for how organized and inclusive we are. Registration periods were reduced to June and December to better manage registration volumes and wait lists. As our growth limits have been reached (particularly based on gaming space), our ongoing goal became to continue being the best organized, most inclusive, and lowest cost adult board gaming club in Canada. With new events such as "Luck Fest" and the "ThematiCON", the EBGL continues to break ground on ways a League can have fun and take advantage of different types of games and styles of play.

In March of 2019, the entire world was impacted by the COVID-19 global pandemic and our organization had no choice but to immediately go on hiatus for nearly 2 full years.

In late 2022, we emerged from our COVID hiding spots, expanded our organizational committee, and have committed to bringing back the EBGL stronger than ever in 2023. If you're interested in joining a great, well-organized adult gaming group with a solid balance of competition and fun, the EBGL may be perfect for you! Registration for our new 2023 season ended on Oct 26th due to us reaching our roster capacity in just 4 days from our launch date. Besides our initial intake, registration is usually open (briefly) in June and December to fill any vacancies on our roster so be sure to monitor the website and Twitter for updates.

Register for league play today!
Post Reply