ICON Esports has acquired fellow Australian esports organisation Chiefs Esports Club.
The two brands will be combined to further strengthen the position of Chief Esports Club’s presence in the Oceanic region.
All of the current teams between the two brands will compete under Chiefs Esports Club moving forward; Team ICON will dissolve as a competitive brand and leave ICON as the parent company of the newly-acquired organisation.
A new ownership group has been assembled to run the new-look company, including: Nick Bobir, Director and CEO of ICON, Frank Li, Director of ICON & CEO of Chiefs Esports Club, Michael Stewart, Operations Manager of ICON and Chiefs Esports Club, and Joshua Harvey, CMO of ICON and Chiefs Esports Club.
Frank Li, Founder and CEO of Chiefs Esports Club discussed the acquisition in a statement: “The esports and gaming industry is rapidly growing and fast moving, and it was vital that we found the right partner to help us match the growth along the way and amplify everything we do to the best of our abilities. ICON had the perfect match of first hand experience in the space as well as expertise from outside of the industry that is necessary to take us in the right direction. A strong vision for the future was very important to me in choosing the right party and I believe we have found it in ICON.”
The Chiefs Esports Club brand will field rosters in League of Legends, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Rocket League, Fortnite, and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.
Adrian Whittingham, Shareholder in ICON also commented on the venture: “The Chiefs are recognised as one of the pre-eminent esportsorganisations in the region and have an enviable track record of success. Frank has done an excellent job as founder of the Chiefs, working with talented and passionate athletes, winning multiple titles and building a strong and very loyal support base. We look forward to continuing this success and having Frank work with Nick and the team in the other business initiatives at ICON.”
ICON was formerly known as Tainted Minds, having been rebranded in February and relocating its headquarters to Sydney, Australia.
Esports Insider says: This move can be seen somewhat as a monopoly of the most prominent Australian organisations in esports. Consolidating ICON and Chiefs is an inspired move and it’ll be interesting to see how it affects the latter from the public’s perspective moving forward.