The next big thing on ESPN is… Microsoft Excel

As a former “Excel monkey”, I am extremely tickled by the fact that what used to be analyst bravado about Excel skills (being able to create big spreadsheet models without touching the mouse was a big thing) is now a sport with viewers.

But it’s a testament to how powerful and versatile spreadsheets are. And how many people know what it is.

The joke in SaaS is that every SaaS product is basically competing with Excel. Well, apparently, Excel’s competing with e-sports and games now too!

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This year, there’s a new wrinkle: it’s an elimination race. Every five minutes, the player with the fewest points will be eliminated until there’s only one Excel-er remaining. “We have already shot the game,” says Andrew Grigolyunovich, the founder and CEO of the Financial Modeling World Cup, the organization that oversees the event. It’s now being edited down for ESPN consumption, he says, and the whole match will come out on Friday as well. “It’s a really fun, exciting event.”

Excel’s esports revolution is coming back to ESPN this week
David Pierce | The Verge