North American esports organisation TSM FTX has partnered with automobile brand GMC, a division of General Motors, the two parties announced today.
GMC will become the official automotive partner for the esports organisation, the first partnership GMC has ever made in esports. The GMC logo will be featured on all TSM jerseys as part of the partnership, which also includes content creation, events and custom branded merchandise.
GMC is a division of U.S. automotive giant General Motors that specialises in pickup trucks, SUV’s and utility vehicles. GMC is viewed as General Motors’ premium SUV and truck brand, ahead of Chevrolet.
The partnership is a major milestone for both TSM and GMC considering the brand has never worked with an esports organisation in the past.
GMC has, however, worked with gaming brands and streamers before, notably streaming on Twitch for the release of the new GMC HUMMER EV in 2020.
The company now joins a large roster of automotive brands that are already active in the industry, including BMW, Mercedes Benz and Toyota.
The partnership looks to allow the brand to reach a younger audience that might not traditionally be inclined to spend a money on a pickup truck or SUV.
The news come at a turbulent time for TSM. The company’s CEO Andy Dinh was fined and put on probation by Riot Games last week for bullying behaviour, and the organisation also reportedly laid off a number of team members.
The GMC deal, which would’ve been struck long before the Riot Games decision, is a promising PR turn for TSM — and likely comes with a sizeable paycheck, too.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but TSM did claim this is an “org-level” partnership, presumably denoting the partnership extends to all of the org’s esports teams.
According to TSM’s SVP of Sales, Ned Watkins, this partnership will ‘redefine the category’ and both brands are looking towards creating new types of content together.
Molly Peck, Vice President of GMC marketing, said: “At GMC, we are thrilled to kick off this partnership with TSM. The esports arena is not only bold, but fast-growing, and TSM is at the forefront as one of the top esports organisations. Through our partnership with TSM, we have the opportunity to engage even further to help elevate the esports experience.”
