Last month saw a multitude of esports mergers and acquisitions, both from endemic and non-endemic entities. In addition, esports entities such as Freaks 4U Gaming, FaZe Clan and Edge Gaming were strengthened through investments.
Esports Insider has compiled a list of August 2021’s key investment stories. To read more about a story below, click the link in the corresponding title.
Spotlighted Story:
Kambi Group acquires esports data firm Abios for up to £22m
Sports betting service provider Kambi Group has announced the acquisition of esports data and technology company Abios for SEK150m (~£12.57m) in cash.
In addition, up to SEK120m (~£10.05m) will be paid in earnouts related to product development and Abios’s ‘future revenge performances’. As a result, the acquisition could eventually total SEK270m (~£22.63m).
Ninjas in Pyjamas joins the LPL, merges with ESV5
Swedish esports organisation Ninjas in Pyjamas (NIP) has announced a merger with the Chinese esports brand ESV5, creating ‘NIP Group‘ in the process.
As a result of the merger, Ninjas in Pyjamas will return to League of Legends by joining Riot Games’s Chinese franchised league, the LPL. The merger sees LPL team Victory Five be rebranded as Ninjas in Pyjamas for the 2022 season.
Costão do Santinho Resort unveils £41m gaming venue
Brazilian resort Costão do Santinho has invested BRL$300m (~£41m) to create HubCG, a new gaming venue located in Florianópolis, Brazil.
The new venue is expected to start operations in January 2022. The project is created and led by businessman Fernando Marcondes de Mattos, the founder of Costão do Santinho, and Professor Carlos Alberto Schneider from the CERTI Foundation.
Freaks 4U Gaming secures £12.7m investment from Co-Investor Partners
Global gaming and esports marketing agency Freaks 4U Gaming has announced a €15m (£12.7m) investment from Co-Investor Partners.
As a result, Co-Investor Partners has become a minority shareholder of the company. According to a release, the funding will be used to drive the company’s growth and expansion plans.
FaZe Clan secures investment from Cox Enterprises
North American esports organisation Faze Clan has announced a strategic investment from media conglomerate Cox Enterprises.
The investment deepens the existing partnership between the two entities. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.
QLASH announces launch of equity crowdfunding campaign
European esports organisation QLASH has announced the launch of its equity crowdfunding campaign on the Seedrs platform.
Through the crowdfunding round, QLASH seeks to accelerate the development of its QLASH Community event participation platform.
Edge Gaming Raises $2m for training academy
Israel-based startup Edge Gaming has raised $2m (£∼1.44m) in its round of pre-seed funding.
The funds raised will be used to create and develop a dedicated training academy platform for esports teams and players.
Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard debuts JLINGZ esports
Developer Ubisoft has announced that professional footballer Jesse Lingard has acquired UK-based esports organisation Audacity Esports.
As part of the deal, the Rainbow Six Siege roster — temporarily named Team JLE — will be rebranded to JLINGZ esports and compete in the next season of the UK and Ireland Nationals (UKIN).
ARterra Labs raises investment in seed funding round
North American NFT startup ARterra Labs has raised an undisclosed amount during a seed fundraising campaign ahead of the launch of ARterra Platform.
The seed round was led by investment company Woodstock Fund, with participation from Youbi Capital, LD Capital, 42 Fund and Baikal Blockchain Research Laboratory.
Stephanie Rice, Matthew Dellavedova and ONE Sports join Talon Esports
Southeast Asian organisation Talon Esports has announced that Australian agency ONE Sports and Entertainment, Olympic gold medalist Stephanie Rice, and NBA Champion Matthew Dellavedova have joined the organisation.
Rice and Dellavedova, alongside ONE Sports’s CEO Bruce Kaider, will serve as brand ambassadors, investors, and performance advisors.
Juked announces investment from former Twitch executives
San-Francisco based streaming platform Juked.GG has announced the arrival of Kevin Lin and Jon Shipman, formerly of streaming platform Twitch, as investors.
Lin and Shipman, who were both a part of Twitch’s founding team, join the company as investors and advisors to help with Juked’s growth and assist in reducing toxicity within the esports community.