Category Archives: esports

Successful finale of Hack Your Future: 300 students present innovative solutions for companies in North Holland

Thursday saw the first edition of Hack Your Future took place at H20 in Purmerend. Three hundred students from six schools across North Holland competed for the prize by presenting creative and future-oriented solutions to real business cases submitted by regional companies.

Hack Your Future – Design the company of the future is a unique challenge in which students—individually and in teams—develop working methods, visions, and concepts about what companies and workplaces might look like in 10, 25, or even 50 years. Participants used tools such as Minecraft, Canva, and other digital resources to present their ideas in innovative, visual, and practical ways.

During the finals, which were broadcast live on YouTube, students gave their presentations to a professional jury and audience on the impressive stage of the H20 event location. The cases came from companies in the North Holland region, ranging from housing and education to sustainable product concepts and gamified workplaces.

Winners and recognition

The jury selected the following 10 teams as winners:

- Coornhert Lyceum – 3 groups
- PSG technasium – 3 groups
- Lely Lyceum – 3 groups

Ben van der Leeden – independent participation

The overall victory among the more than 50 cases submitted, including the audience award and first prize for concept presentation, went to Ben van der Leeden— a participant who visualized the E|sports tech campus case in an exceptional way with a Minecraft presentation. His design was praised for its innovative integration of gaming and work concepts and received special attention from the jury.

Reactions and future prospects

The final of Hack Your Future marks an important moment in connecting education, entrepreneurship, and regional labor market development. Young talent was given the opportunity to connect with companies, demonstrate valuable presentation skills, and gain practical experience with real-world business challenges.

Client ST.AN (Stichting Arbeidsmarktstrategie Noord-West Holland), organizer Nederlandse Zaken, and H20 Esports look back with pride on the first edition and emphasize the importance of such collaborations to inspire young people and prepare them for tomorrow's labor market.

Thanks to the participating schools: Coornhert Lyceum Haarlem, PSG Technasium Purmerend, Lely Lyceum Amsterdam, Don Bosco College Volendam, Da Vinci College Purmerend, Vonk Lyceum Noord-Holland.

On to a new edition in the fall of 2026! You can register via https://h20.gg/hack-your-future

Great events in November at H20

In the past period, H20 . Organizations from a wide range of sectors have used the event location for meetings, knowledge sharing, and networking opportunities.

For example, Rowing Club Nereus held a five-year anniversary gala at the location. During this evening, an extensive dinner was provided for 500 guests, followed by a festive conclusion. The event location offered space for both the dinner and the subsequent program.

On Monday, November 10, 2025, Rabobank held a meeting for entrepreneurs on energy solutions, focusing on grid congestion, energy costs, and sustainability. The program consisted of workshops and an information market at the event location in Purmerend. The meeting offered entrepreneurs insight into opportunities and practical applications, with contributions from speakers from Liander, and was aimed at supporting the energy transition.

In addition, several meetings were held in collaboration with Nocore FacilityApps. For example, on November 25, 2025, the Clean Connect Event 2025 was organized, aimed at customers in the cleaning industry. During this event, themes such as digitization of work processes, AI, and product innovations were central, including integration with Facility Apps.

Finally, the event location was used for an international gaming event in collaboration with Monster Energy. The event, which included Call of Duty , brought together participants from all over Europe. With support from the H20 press network and the Rabo Esports Stadium Amsterdam, the event received coverage in the Noordhollands Dagblad, while the event was also visible worldwide through Monster's channels. The social and connecting component showed that gaming, just like sports, brings people together.

These events demonstrate how H20 is utilized as a versatile event location for a wide range of gatherings.

Curious about upcoming events? Click here!

H20 and the National Video Game Museum join forces for unique arcade game experience

H20 and the National Video Game Museum join forces for unique arcade game experience

Purmerend/Zoetermeer - H20 and the National Video Game Museum are joining forces for a strategic collaboration that will make gaming in all its forms more accessible, visible and impactful. With the arrival of over 40 unique arcade cabinets to H20, the rich history and diversity of video games will be given a prominent and permanent place within one of the most progressive gaming environments in the Netherlands.

Since 2019, H20 has been ensuring that gaming is made interesting through all forms of entertainment so that groups of people will visit, H20 aims to convert visitors to inspiration, sports, tech and education. H20's slogan. "Gaming Impacting the World" is thus given a powerful new interpretation. The five pillars of H20 - Event Venue, Education, Entertainment, Esports and Estate - are further strengthened with the addition of arcade gaming. Arcade games are approachable, relatable for all generations and therefore a perfect stepping stone to the broader world of gaming and digital skills. This expansion creates new opportunities for visitors to learn, enjoy and develop through gaming.

As of December 1, it is operational for all audiences, individuals, families, schools and business teams alike can use the experience in different packages.

For Hasan Tasdemir, founder and director-director of the National Videogame Museum, the collaboration primarily means a substantive strengthening:
"The arcade collection will have a visible place within an innovative environment where education and entertainment come together. This expands not only our scope, but also our shared goal of showcasing the cultural value of video games."

Matthijs Vink, founder and CEO of H20, emphasizes the strategic added value:
"This collaboration fits perfectly with our aim to make gaming widely applicable. Arcades are a fantastic way to introduce everyone - from young to old - to the power of gaming. It is a valuable addition to our ecosystem."

With this move, H20 and the National Video Game Museum solidify their position as frontrunners in the gaming industry, where professionalism, innovation and social relevance are central. The collaboration underlines that gaming is not just a form of entertainment, but a source of inspiration, development and connection.

H20 Event Location in the inspiration magazine of Events.co.uk!

H20 Event Location in the inspiration magazine of Events.co.uk!

We are proud to share that H20 Event Venue has been featured in the latest Dare to Celebrate magazine from Events.co.uk. In the article "From idea to impact - this is how to design a theme concept that touches" it discusses how a strong theme concept makes an event memorable and impactful, and our venue is mentioned in it as an inspiring example (page 8).

This recognition highlights our commitment to experience, creativity and event organization. It confirms that H20 Event Location is a place where concepts come to life and events make a real impression.

Our mission is clear:

Creating events that touch and inspire guests,
Provide a venue that is versatile and innovative,
Making every experience a memorable moment through attention to detail and perception.

Thank you to our team, our partners and all the visitors who make this possible. Together we make every event a special experience.

Check out the article, inspiration magazine and our website here:
🔗 Events.com
🔗 Dare to Celebrate
🔗 eventlocation.h20.gg

Max Koelemaij: The New Esporter of FC Volendam!

FC Volendam, H20 Esports Campus and Bundled Esports have had their eye on Max Koelemaij in their search for a suitable esporter for the Volendammers. The 19-year-old from Utrecht will represent the Volendammers during the 2025-2026 eDivision season.

Koelemaij is delighted to represent FC Volendam: "When I was told through management, Bundled, that FC Volendam was coming as an option, I got excited right away. Also because of the cooperation with H20, with whom I have worked before." The Utrechter is no stranger to the esports world: "I have been an esporter for over four seasons. Two seasons ago I achieved ninth place at the World Cup and last season I was crowned regular season eDivision champion with FC Utrecht." In any case, Koelemaij has no lack of ambition: "I hope to finish first in the Finals with FC Volendam - so not just in the regular season, but to become a true Dutch champion."

"We have been watching his performance with interest for quite some time," he said.

"FC Volendam is proud to welcome Max as the club's new esporter" begins Nino Sneek, employee Commercial at FC Volendam. "We have been watching his performances with FC Utrecht in the eDivisie and at the World Cup with interest for quite some time, where he showed he has a lot of talent and dedication." Sneek continued: "With his arrival we take a nice step in the further development of our esports branch. We are looking forward to a successful season and a pleasant cooperation with Max."

Matthijs Vink, owner of H20, also reacts happily to the appointment of Koelemaij: "Attracting Max fits the core values of H20. We want to offer young talent the chance to become the best. H20 has a background in top sport and from our ambition we want to help develop talent towards the top."

Vink is also happy with the cooperation with Bundled: "We have a lot of respect and appreciation for what Bundled has achieved in the esports world in recent years. In addition, we believe that you get further together. The combination of FC Volendam, Bundled and H20 should ensure that Max can perform optimally. We look forward to this eDivision season and also organize fun activations for and in the region."

Text and photos: FC Volendam

Will you participate in the 1st Dutch HADO Championships?

On October 16, 2022, the H20 Esports Campus together with HADO Netherlands will organize the first NK HADO in Purmerend. HADO is a techno sport that can be seen as digital dodgeball. In Japan already a big sport from 2014 and also in Europe it is starting to become a big sport. Next November 5 is the European Championship HADO in France and the Netherlands may represent itself there with a team. The winner of the NK will go to France paid for by HADO to play for the European Championship.

Never played HADO before?

H20 organizes introductory afternoons for all tenants, partners and schools at the H20 VR Game Center. Here you will be guided by a trainer who will give you the experience of HADO. If you like it, you can sign up with a team and even play in the NK. A team consists of a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 6 members.

These trainings and participation in the NK are free of charge. The trainings will take place on Wednesday afternoons from 1 pm - 5 pm. A training session lasts 1 hour, so if you can manage to free up a spot in your schedule, it is definitely worth it. The first day of training will take place on Wednesday, September 21.

If you have signed up with a team for the NK, we organize training nights on Wednesday evenings from 5:00 to 8:00 pm. These training sessions are for everyone to get better at HADO. Here you and your team will come up with tactics and strategies together to become HADO champions. H20 also offers these training sessions for free at the H20 VR Game Center.

Got interested? You can sign up for training by emailing dave@h20.gg. Put in this mail how many people you are coming with, which tenant, partner or school you are coming from and what time you want to come. If you don't have a team and would like to join, or you just don't have enough people, also just send an email. We'll see if we can pair you up.

If you want to sign up for the NK right away, do so at this link https://forms.gle/bN981F1neatwRb8s6, for training you can also mail to dave@h20.gg.

If you don't want to compete with your team you are welcome to come and watch the NK on Oct. 16, 2022. The tournament starts at noon.

For more information on HADO: https://hado-sports.com/nl

Hado, the sport of the future, comes to H20 Esports Campus in Purmerend

HADO, the new sport of the Netherlands, is coming to the H20 Esports Campus in Purmerend. HADO is the first sport in the world that combines traditional sport with gaming through Augmented Reality (AR).
The sport is immensely popular in more than 35 countries worldwide and is already played by millions of people in Japan, the United States, Germany, France and Spain, among others. HADO now sets foot on Dutch soil and is ready to be the first AR sport to conquer the Dutch market. From early December 2021 HADO can be played, in combination with various activities, in the VR / AR centre of H20 that will be opened soon. Do you want to become one of the first HADO masters of the Netherlands? Then come and join us at H20, we are looking for talented players who want to start training right away!

Sport of the future

HADO was conceived in 2014 by Japanese-born Hiroshi Fukuda. As a child, he dreamed of throwing "hadoken" (powerful energy balls) like his favourite character Ryu from the game Street Fighter and defeating opponents. With HADO, Hiroshi realised his dream. In a short time HADO has become the international sport of the future. Professional competitions are organised worldwide, including an annual European Cup and the World Cup in Tokyo. The unique and accessible concept offers players a perfect mix of sport, game and strategy. HADO uses revolutionary technologies to combine movement with gaming elements. This makes HADO a pioneer in the field of recreational and professional sport.

H20 Virtual & Augmented Sports

Dirk Tuip, founder at H20: "Right at the start of H20 we wanted to do something with VR/AR gaming and esports. We set this in motion with the help of our partner HP/Omen. However, this often remained a piece of entertainment, whereas we give gaming and the technology that drives it more substance. We want to offer a physical experience that you can't have at home, preferably with several people at the same time. And we love competition. HADO has all these elements!"
Tuip continues: "HADO is truly the sport of the future. HADO has many characteristics of gaming, new technology and competition, which makes it a perfect fit for our campus. Besides that, we, as former handball players, found it extra cool that HADO is like a 3.0 version of handball. HADO will be incorporated into our gaming and esports activities as part of our 'explore esports' programmes. Also, real fanatics can train and even compete in events and tournaments."

Ecosystem

Michiel Verhage, co-founder of HADO Netherlands: "Michael Reibestein and I both have a passion for sports, gaming and technology. Our goal is to encourage a healthy lifestyle by combining sports and gaming with technology to stimulate the youth to keep moving. We want to realise this with HADO! After our first HADO game we were hooked and started a partnership with meleap inc., the creator of HADO, to make HADO big in the Benelux. We are doing this by building an ecosystem around this new sport by rolling out courses throughout the country with the help of licence holders, organising (inter)national competitions and hosting events."

Collaboration H20

The cooperation between HADO and H20 is the basis for the introduction of HADO as a sport in the Netherlands. Both parties have the intention to make H20 the HADO centre of the Netherlands where national tournaments and competitions will take place with the ultimate goal to organise the European Cup in the Netherlands. Besides that, H20 sees a lot of possibilities to exploit a HADO track successfully, but they also want to organise events in the Rabo Esports Stadium. This way HADO and H20 can show in a spectacular way what is possible with HADO.
Come and see for yourself! Game on!

Netherlands' biggest game talents started with unique esports talent development programme of H20 and TAG

The first group of game talents who want to become professional esports have started today with the H20 Esports TOP Program. The H20 Esports TOP Program is the first independent esports talent development program of The Netherlands. From more than 100 entries are 10 talents selected who want to get the best out of themselves. H20 Esports Campus develops this program together with strategic partner Talent Academy Group and several partners like Senaptec, Gladiator Sports, BodyResults and NLSportpsycholoog. The ambition is that this talent programme for game talents will be repeated after the summer (Winter Edition) and will run twice a year for the biggest game talents of the Netherlands.

Using experience from top sport

Dirk Tuip, former athlete and founder of H20 Esports Campus: 'We are very happy that we have started this programme. The knowledge and experience that we have built up with our team and partners in the sport we can now use to facilitate talents in the next steps of their development. This is based on Total Athlete Development. Our team and partners consist of a nice mix of people who have experienced what it takes to reach the top.

Before the start of the programme, the participants underwent a quick test.

From more than 100 entries, 10 talents have been selected from various esports titles. Over the next few months, four two-day bootcamps will help them improve. All factors that contribute to a better performance (except the game itself) will be addressed during this programme. Think of reactivity, physical fitness, nutrition, mental development and performance, presentation and promotion, etc.

The participants of the first H20 Esports TOP Talent Program listen to Dirk Marcellis in the Rabo Esports Stadium

You have talent. Success is earned

Dirk Marcellis, former professional footballer and coordinator of the Talent Academy Group (TAG): "A great programme awaits the talents. Everything is aimed at developing everyone's talent and putting the ambition of the talent first. We help and facilitate them with the challenges they face and create the conditions for success. It is great to see and hear what dreams the selected participants have and it is fantastic to be able to contribute to that. Together with the entire TAG team, we are looking forward to helping them in the coming months.
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Note to editors:
For more information on H20 Esports Campus, visit www.h20.gg or contact Sjaak Kuil at sjaak@h20.gg.
About H20 Esports Campus:
H20 will be a platform for Developing the Next Generation through gaming, esports and creative tech. Esports is a strong growth market with which youth and young adults feel strongly connected. The H20 Campus brings worlds together and explicitly connects with personal development, competition and education. Gamers, esporters and influencers are the developers of the future.
About Talent Academy Group:
Talent Academy Group has been a leader in elite sport, entertainment and business for 17 years. Achieving optimal performance behaviour is central. The performance coaches of TAG do this at individual, team and organisational level. In its own way, TAG always contributes to an optimal performance climate in which every professional can perform healthily.

OMEN Gaming Club in the H20 Rabo Esports Stadium in Purmerend opens every day from 2 October

Until now, it was mainly group activities that could be booked in the Rabo Esports Stadium, part of the H20 Esports Campus in Purmerend. But the largest esports centre in the Netherlands opens every weekend in September. This weekend, for the first time, you can come and play, race and chill in the new Omen Gaming Club. And you can watch the semi-finals and finals of League of Legends on a mega LED screen. From 2 October, the Omen Gaming Club will even be open every day.

"After months of delay due to construction challenges and Corona, it is finally here," says manager Sjaak Kuil. "During the summer we started the group activities. Now it's time for the next step. The OMEN Gaming Club will be set up within the Rabo Esports Stadium just like a sports club or fitness club. So there will always be supervision present and you can become a member. A Valhalla for interested people of all ages. Members can participate in a variety of activities such as coaching sessions, training sessions, online and offline tournaments, events and more. And it will also be a friendly club where young people can socialise with each other."

Gaming with high-end equipment.

Everyone can game on the latest high-end desktop PCs, Playstations and racing simulators! This is made possible by our partners OMEN, ACER, Game Seat and PlayStation. We focus mainly on competitive gaming titles such as League of Legends, CS:GO, Rocket League, Fall Guys, Fortnite, PUBG. But Brawl Stars, Roblox, Minecraft and many other games are of course also available. During the months of September and October we have an opening promotion where you can play 3 hours of games for only 4 euros. Check www.h20.gg for more information. Don't miss out on this opportunity, will you?

Responsible gaming and talent training
The club is for young and old. Of course we keep it responsible and that is why you can play a maximum of 3 hours a day. Sjaak: "There are still few places where parents and children can go when it comes to gaming. We want to be a place where counsellors can point out the rules of conduct to young people. We use a lot of knowledge and experience from sports, so regular exercise and good nutrition are very important to us. More is not always better. Also, really great talents can get extra support in a special Talent Development Programme that is currently being developed."

Opening hours
In September 2020, the Omen Gaming Club will officially open every weekend with the following opening hours:

Saturdays from 14:00 - 21:00
Sundays from 14:00 - 21:00

From Friday 2 October, the Omen Gaming Club will be open 7 days a week with the following opening hours (start 2 October)

Monday 16:00 - 22:00
Tuesday 16:00 - 22:00
Wednesday 16:00 - 22:00
Thursday 16:00 - 22:00
Friday 16:00 - 24:00
Saturday 12:00 - 24:00
Sunday 12:00 - 22:00

Sjaak concludes: "I would say join the Omen Gaming Club now, part of the H20 Esports Campus, the largest Esports Gaming centre in Western Europe! We hope to welcome many young people to the Rabo Esports Stadium soon!"

Movamento Fysiotherapie opens new office at H20 Esports Campus Amsterdam

Movement specialist Movamento, with several physio practices throughout the Netherlands, starts a new branch at the H20 Esports Campus in the Amsterdam area. The sixth office of owner Jelle Heisen will focus on the guidance of gamers and esporters. With this step the ambitions of H20 Esports are underlined to facilitate talents of a future in a responsible and safe way.

Jelle Heisen
Dirk Tuip, founder of H20: "I've known Jelle for a long time, both from my time as an active top athlete and from the last two years when we worked together in the Expert team around the handball ladies. Here I have been involved as coordinator of the national team. Jelle is the regular physiotherapist of the ladies who became world champions last December. Our vision on top sports is similar, and we want to use this vision within esports.

Jelle Heisen, owner of Movamento: "H20 has a great ambition and that appeals to me. I can't wait to use the insights and knowledge I gained in my life at Ajax, the Dutch Handball Federation and within our physiotherapy. We have had some pretty big challenges with COVID in recent months, but we do see this as an opportunity to use our experience in this new industry."

Vision Movamento on ergonomics within gaming
Heisen continues: "As physiotherapists, we see the impact it has if there is a hitch somewhere in a movement. The goal of3rbeteren. The optimal performance for each individual at each level is the starting point to work with! We see that more and more people are sitting down a lot for their work. In gaming and esports this is of course a topic and we want to do something about this preventatively and in case of injuries."

Using knowledge of esports and Virtual Reality in healthcare
There is still a lot of undeveloped territory in the field of gaming and esports and we are very motivated to tackle this within the H20 Esports Campus. Our knowledge to prepare the body optimally, in combination with good ergonomics, can make the difference in top esports. We will also use the knowledge and experiences from esports in healthcare. Developments such as Virtual Reality and the use of data will be used to innovate healthcare.