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For Pablo Melgar, growing phygital sport is not only about organizing competitions, it is more about creating opportunities for the next generation. Through a pioneering Phygital School Games program, young people are discovering a new way to combine digital skills with physical activity, while schools, communities and public institutions are working together to build a sustainable future for the movement.
Many organizations begin by creating competitions. In Guatemala, under the leadership of Pablo Melgar and the Asociación de Deportes Electrónicos de Guatemala, they chose to begin somewhere different: in schools. The education system has become one of the WPC member’s biggest priorities, introducing children to phygital sport from an early age while creating stronger links between schools, communities and local institutions.
We spoke with Pablo Melgar about why education has become the foundation of their strategy, the lessons other World Phygital Community members can learn, and his vision for creating a global youth phygital movement.
Your organization has become one of the most active members of the World Phygital Community. What do you believe has been the key to building such strong momentum around phygital sport?
I believe that one of the key factors for the success of phygital in my country is that the passion with which the concept has been promoted in Guatemala has coincided with the community’s need to obtain alternative and innovative proposals to combine the digital world with the physical world.
One initiative that has attracted a great deal of attention is your work with schools. Can you tell us more about this program and why introducing young people to phygital sport at an early age is so important?
Since the first phygital event I attended back in 2023, I always believed that this idea should be introduced to children, to the grassroots. Phygital sport is the answer to several problems that society faces – the social distancing of children, sedentary lifestyle and boring practice of conventional sports. In addition, we generate our own phygital athletes from an early age.
Looking back at the impact of the school program so far, what have been the biggest successes or lessons that could inspire other WPC members to develop similar initiatives?
Phygital School Games is an extremely attractive program not only for children who want to get into phygital sport but also for the parents of those children and the government itself since it is aligned with state policies, including crime prevention, inclusion (through our Phygital Inclusive program) and active youth participation in social and sports programs.
This season you also introduced a Phygital Fighting activation, expanding beyond the more established disciplines. What inspired that decision, and how was it received by athletes and the wider community?
Phygital Fighting has been a discipline that has always attracted me. I was lucky to have the support of the local MMA community (House of Fighters and the MMA Regulatory Commission in Guatemala), who provided experience in organizing MMA fights and called upon the best MMA fighters in the country.The goal was to attract a new community to the phygital movement just as we attracted the Drone Racing community. With this, we raise our hand so that we can be taken under consideration to participate in more disciplines the next Games of the Future. Building a sustainable phygital ecosystem requires collaboration between clubs, educators, communities and private partners.
Which partnerships have had the greatest impact on your organisation’s growth?
We have been fortunate to have important support such as the General Directorate of Physical Education of Guatemala with whom we have promoted phygital school games and phygital inclusive in public schools not only in our country but soon across Central America. Private schools have also participated in our Phygital School Games tournaments, alongside sponsors who have believed in this movement. Soccer, basketball anddance clubs have all got involved as well asthe staff of the Guatemalan Electronic Sports Association who have supported the association to be, for the second consecutive year, in the top 5 global organizations within the WPC.
Your athletes have consistently performed at a high level and regularly compete internationally. How do you balance grassroots participation with developing elite competitors?
We are in that phase where the young athletes from our Phygital School Games program can participate in Phygital Rivals and compete with the best that we have presented year after year. It is a process, where we will create real phygital athletes who practice both modalities (digital and physical), and so we avoid athletes who are “just” digital or physical athletes.
Many organizations are still at the beginning of their phygital journey. If you could give one piece of advice to a new WPC member looking to grow the movement in their community, what would it be?
My recommendation is that they commit to developing the Phygital School Games program in their countries with the support of the government and local schools, without leaving aside the “professional” part of running Phygital Rivals competitions. They are two activities that can be carried out in parallel and, at some point, they will converge.
What are your expectations for your teams heading into the Games of the Future Astana 2026, and what would you consider a successful campaign both on and off the field of play?
In all the esports teams and phygital teams under my command, the main objective is to leave a good image of our country on and off the field. First, we are good people, and second, good athletes. The second objective is to qualify from the group stage and the third objective is to win in the events they are taking part in at the Games of the Future.
How have your teams prepared for the unique challenge of the Games of the Future, where athletes must perform at the highest level in both the digital and physical stages?
Since our first participation, we have tried to have a good balance between digital athletes and physical athletes. It has been difficult for us to find the key that will give us total success, but we hope to find it in this edition in Astana.
Looking ahead, what are your organization’s priorities over the next few years, and what excites you most about the future of the global phygital movement?
We are focused on being consistent in participating in the Games of the Future year after year. So far, we have achieved this and we seek to improve the organization of our Rivals and also expand to organize Phygital Origins tournaments. Then, we are very focused on the Phygital School Games program and the organization of our star event called Phygital School Festival, which we seek to organize an event on each continent annually. Let it be a worldwide youth phygital festival.
