VfB Stuttgart is planning to return to e-sports. The new chairman of the board of the Bundesliga football club, Alexander Wehrle, said on Thursday that the Swabians want to participate in the Virtual Bundesliga from the 2023/2024 season.

There is a large intersection of people in the younger generation who are interested in e-sports and football, said Wehrle and spoke of the so-called "Generation Z". The best way to reach them is via electronic communication channels.

The VBL is therefore "also a great opportunity to bring young people to VfB and football via e-sports," explained Wehrle, who has already gained experience with the topic at his former club 1. FC Köln. In addition, the Stuttgarters hope for additional revenue potential.

The Canadian Football League (DFL) is currently considering whether to introduce e-sports as the third competition pillar next to the first and second Bundesliga from 2023 onwards. "This is what we will and must deal with," Wehrle said. The VfB had ended its previous e-sports commitment in the summer of 2020 after three years and justified this with the financial burdens in the corona pandemic.