Each and every month, dozens of partnerships and sponsorships are announced in esports. It’s hard to keep track of every development if you don’t follow Esports Insider religiously, but even then, there’s a lot of content to consume.
To make things easier, Esports Insider has hand-picked a selection of the most impressive, surprising, and noteworthy deals that were announced in August 2020.
T1 expands Twitch streaming alliance in multi-year deal
T1 Entertainment & Sports, the joint venture established between SK Telecom and Comcast Spectacor, signed an expanded streaming deal with Twitch.
The exclusive multi-year agreement, which previously focused solely on T1’s League of Legends team, will now apply to all of the organisation’s players and content creators.
LCS dines with Buffalo Wild Wings partnership
Riot Games announced the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) has partnered with major restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings.
This partnership makes Buffalo Wild Wings the official sports bar of the LCS, giving BWW access to LCS trademarks for advertising with games being broadcast through BWW’s OT Network, an in-bar channel delivering exclusive content.
Honda confirmed as first LCS in-game banner partner
Honda will be the first brand partner of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) to move into the game itself, Riot Games announced.
The goal was to replicate the stadium signage commonplace in traditional sports stadiums. On launch, Mastercard and Alienware were the first two partners signed up for the new banner ads. Most regions were left to their own devices when it came to putting brands on the banners.
TD Bank enters esports with Toronto Defiant sponsorship
OverActive Media announced that it had signed an agreement to make TD Bank the official bank of its Overwatch League franchise, Toronto Defiant.
This is the first esports partnership for TD Bank, also known as Toronto-Dominion Bank, which is one of the largest banking groups in Canada and also operates in the United States.
VIE.gg acquires naming rights in expanded Dignitas deal
North American organisation Dignitas expanded its deal with publicly-listed esports betting company VIE.gg.
As per the new terms of the agreement, VIE.gg acquired the naming rights to Dignitas’ Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster; the team will now be known as ‘Dignitas VIE.’
VIE.gg is sponsoring Dignitas’ jersey for CS:GO in addition to owning the naming rights, with its logo front and centre – just above a large “DIG” emblem – with red accents. In addition, the bookmaker will produce “strategic digital and physical activations” with Dignitas aimed at the New Jersey marketplace, a location it first targeted in June.
Call of Duty League finds mobile partner in Sony Xperia
Activision Blizzard tapped Xperia by Sony to serve as the official mobile partner of its franchised Call of Duty League.
The partnership was activated on August 21st when Call of Duty League on-air talent – prior to the third day of the playoffs – competec against each other on Call of Duty: Mobile, as part of the ‘Mobile Special Exhibition.’
League of Legends esports enters multi-year deal with Cisco
Riot Games announced that it had partnered with multinational technology conglomerate Cisco for League of Legends esports.
The multi-year partnership will see Cisco become the official enterprise networking partner of League of Legends esports. Cisco will provide Riot Games’ flagship title with several upgrades, including an update to ‘The Realm,’ the private game server used for the League of Legends World Championship, Mid-Season Invitational, and All-Star Event.
Allied Esports and GRID establish multi-year betting licensing agreement
Esports entertainment company Allied Esports entered into multi-year a licensing agreement in partnership with esports data provider GRID.
The agreement will see GRID’s data solution integrated into the event, delivering real-time data to bookmakers and sports betting platforms. It also marks the first time Allied Esports will offer the use of its data and video rights to enhance consumer betting.
Pittsburgh Knights partners with SeolHaeOne Prince parent company APE
SeolHaeOne Prince parent company Absolute Power eSports (APE) entered a partnership with North American organisation Pittsburgh Knights.
The multi-year deal will see Pittsburgh Knights and APE “establish operations in South Korea and United States,” with the teams looking to acquire a spot in the new LCK.
League of Legends Esports partners with Spotify for music hub, podcasts
Riot Games unveiled a partnership with Spotify to make the audio streaming service the exclusive audio streaming partner of League of Legends Esports.
The multi-year partnership will be centred around League of Legends’ three annual international events: Mid-Season Invitational, the All Star Event, and of course, the World Championship.