Esports organisation Splyce is set to be fully acquired by OverActive Media, with both parties entering an agreement in principle.
In April of this year, OverActive Media invested $1.5m (£1.07m) in Splyce while it was operating under its old identity, The Ledger Group. This acquisition will “eventually merge the shareholder base under [OverActive Media] to form one of the most powerful and diverse ownership groups in esports.”
Splyce co-founders Marty Strenczewilk and Vincent Garguilo will report to Chris Overholt, President & CEO of OverActive Media, who will head the following operations of the new subsidiary. The organisation will remain located in Rochester, New York, while reporting to its parent company in Toronto.
In October, OverActive Media Group announced its Overwatch League franchise, Toronto Defiant. With Splyce acting as its operational partner, it’s just one of eight new teams that purchased an expansion slot.
Strenczewilk discussed the acquisition: “Esports is growing to the next level of a global sustainable digital sports business and it will require expertise from a diverse background of entertainment professionals. Overactive is building a world-class organization with staff from the traditional sports world that will supplement Splyce perfectly. We are thrilled to mix our strengths into one unified leading esports organization.”
Our journey over the last three years led us to this moment. We're just getting started. ? pic.twitter.com/awg2eHPqiM
— MAD Lions LoL English (@MADLions_LoLEN) November 21, 2018
On November 20th, Riot Games announced the 10 teams that would be in the League of Legends European Championship (LEC) – which was formerly known as the EU LCS – from January 18th, 2019. Splyce was announced as one of the long-term partners that had been accepted into the newly-franchised competition.
Overholt also commented: “Today is a game-changer for our two organizations, as together, we grow into one of the most dynamic and influential esports organizations in the world. We believe that this step gives our business scope and scale that allows us to grow our enterprise on a global level.”
Splyce fields teams in League of Legends, Overwatch, Call of Duty, Rocket League, SMITE, Paladins, Halo, and StarCraft II. It’s partnered with the likes of Turtle Wax, Foot Locker, Mountain Dew, CORSAIR, Turtle Beach, SCUF Gaming, CLTX Gaming, and Twitch.
Esports Insider says: OverActive Media had been getting more and more involved with esports following its investment with Splyce, including a heavy investment in the Overwatch League. Was this in mind, it’s not too surprising to see it fully acquire Splyce.