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More than 20 years after the start of the adventure, Philippe Guigné, founder of the famous internet sailing game Virtual Regatta, is leaving the company after selling it in 2021 to online gaming specialist 52 Entertainment. In an interview with BoatNews.com, he answers questions on the company’s success, his plans, and his vision of digital in the boating industry.
How did Virtual Regatta come about? Can you tell us about its origins and rise?
It’s a long story. The company was born under the name Many Players. It all started with a vision of the time, which turned out to be incredibly accurate. Back in 2000, I believed that the Internet would democratize video games. Before, you had to buy cartridges and travel, and with the Internet, all you had to do was download it and you could be playing in minutes.
I’m a former professional sailor, I won the Tour de France in 1997 and I managed it in 1996, when Bruno Troublé took a sabbatical. And my second intuition, having worked as a sports event organizer, is that the Internet will make it possible to do so, without everyone having to go to the same place. This gave rise to e-Sport, which didn’t even have a name at the time…
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