Amsterdam-based SEG Esports, a division of international management agency Sport Entertainment Group (SEG), has announced a partnership with Vancouver-based esports performance firm Adamas Esports.
Esports Insider spoke to SEG Esports’s Division Director, Rowan Stroo about the importance and details of the partnership.
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Always looking to improve its services for its clients, Stroo told ESI that having noticed Adamas quickly becoming a staple of esports performance and coaching together with Client Services Manager at SEG, Sander Mijnhijmer, he reached out to Caleb Cousens, CEO of Adamas Esports.
Just this year, Adamas signed partnerships with British esports organisation Method and North American org Golden Guardians. In 2020, the performance firm inked partnerships with Brazilian org INTZ and Enthusiasts Gaming’s franchise teams, the Seattle Surge and Vancouver Titans.
“After several positive and inspiring conversations [with Cousens], we were sure we would make a great fit and we could add value on both sides,” said Stroo.
“We work with a lot of young talent,” he continued, “who might not get the full support from a professional [esports] team yet. This way, we can give them affordable access to high-quality services early in their career. For our more established players, we can get them the right help without having to rely on their team, this could include getting a ‘second opinion’ on what would be the best approach for an issue.”
Most importantly for Stroo, was the education SEG agents will receive from Adamas. Identifying and preventing issues from escalating to potential career-limiting or even career-destroying hazards, is in everyone’s best interests.
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“The wellbeing of our clients is one of our highest priorities,” said Stroo. “So a partnership of this kind is extremely valuable to us as it will allow us to accompany our clients on a 360 degree approach.”
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Included in the partnership, the esports performance firm will gain access to the SEG Esports Training Centre in the H20 Esports Campus, located twenty minutes north of Amsterdam.
The Training Centre operates as a Western European ‘home away from home’ destination for local and traveling professional teams to bootcamp before tournaments hosted on the continent or even compete remotely from within the facility, said Stroo.
Adamas will be able to provide their services on location to visiting teams and SEG clients as well, serving as the firm’s debut international physical facility in Europe. He said, “As tournaments are being announced for later this year, we’ve already had tremendous interest from teams from all over the world and are looking forward to announcing more on this soon.”
The SEG Training Centre will officially open sometime this summer.
Adamas specialises in holistic performance coaching, sports psychology, and exercise science applied to esports. Its programmes feature cognitive, emotional, and physical development training.
The partnership marks another first for Adamas, with the firm’s previous partnerships only being with competitive organisations.
Stroo hinted at a ‘very real possibility’ that the partnership with Adamas could extend outside of their esports clients. He said, “Adamas’ experiences and expertise in esports might prove valuable for all of our clients. With [Mijnhijmer] being involved from our earliest talks, he will — when the possibility and demand arise — introduce Adamas to other Division Directors and/or agents within other SEG divisions.”
SEG Esports represents professional athletes across esports titles VALORANT, League of Legends, Overwatch, and Call of Duty in Europe, North America, and Asia. Outside of esports, SEG represents talents in football, cycling and music entertainment.
Caleb Cousens, CEO of Adamas Esports, commented in the release: “The Adamas team is excited to work together with the esport division of SEG to provide their global athlete network the tools they need to win more tournaments, have longer careers and take their performance and health to the next level.”
Cousens is a guest columnist for Esports Insider.
Esports Insider says: Partnering with a health and performance firm is a great step forward of professionalism by the esports agency. Offering clients additional means to promote their health, performance, and longevity atop representation and management could go a long way extend the length of careers and contracts, which is a win for all parties.