“We are excited to partner with Stride once again to present an exceptional series of live online gaming activities on Xfire,” said Mike Cassidy, CEO of Xfire. “We are dedicated to enhancing the Ridiculously Long Lasting Stride Xfire Cup 2007 by broadcasting the tournament matches live to our worldwide community of over 6.5 million gamers.”

“Stride is excited to partner with Xfire to bring gamers a unique and original experience,” said Lynne Vandeveer, Marketing Director for Stride. “We are excited to build on the fun we had last year and play in a space that is relevant and engaging to our consumers.”

Eight professional gaming teams will compete in the “Stride Xfire Cup 2007.” A panel of e-sports experts including representatives from Electronic Sports League, GameTrailers.com, GotFrag.com, MeetYourMakers.com and Spike TV’s “Game Head” has selected seven of the participating teams. Chosen teams include CompLexity, EFG, EG, Hyper, Jax Money Crew, Team3D, and Verge. The eighth and final team will be determined by the votes of the Xfire community. Voting for team selection will continue through March 21 at http://www.xfire.com/stride.

The tournament, which will be broadcast and shoutcast on Xfire through a partnership with EGLN, will begin on March 29 followed by the quarter-final event on April 5 narrowing down to the semi-finals on May 4. Teams will pick up between $500 and $1,000 for each victory. Commencing with a live, twelve-hour blow-out final event on June 21, the “Stride Xfire Cup 2007” will wrap up with the winning team taking home $12,000. Second and third place teams will be awarded $5,000 and $3,000 respectively.

Xfire users who want their own piece of the action can participate in the “Ridiculously Long Lasting Gaming Events” which happen in parallel to each cup match. There gamers will have the opportunity to play pick-up games with the professional teams and have the chance to win thousands of dollars in prizes including a year’s supply of Stride gum, hardware, games or even their very own private lessons with the pros.

“‘The Ridiculously Long Lasting Stride Xfire Cup 2007’ will give online fans a unique gaming experience, access to high-profile gamers and an opportunity to get recognized for their performance said Jay Krihak, Partner, Group Media Director at MEC Interaction. “Last year we received great feedback from participants and this year we look forward to continuing the tournament momentum with fresh and exciting elements.”

For more information on the “Stride Xfire Cup 2007,” visit http://www.xfire.com/stride.

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