Spanish esports organisation DUX Gaming has raised €3m (~£2.6m) in a funding round led by NBA champion Marc Gasol.
The investment will be utilised to help the organisation expand into Latin America. This includes relocating its NBA 2K League franchise, DUX Infinitos, from Indianapolis to Mexico City.
Through the funding, DUX will continue to create intersections between the esports and traditional sports industries, this time through Bàsquet Giron, a Spanish basketball team founded by Gasol.
According to a release, the investment also signals an alliance between the two parties which will include Bàsquet Giron’s entry into European NBA 2K competitions.
The project will be managed by DUX Gaming Sports Director and DUX Infinitos General Manager RafaelTGR. More details on future projects will also be revealed soon.
Founded in 2018, DUX Gaming solely competes in sports simulation titles such as FIFA and NBA 2K. In September 2021, the organisation became the second NBA 2K League franchise to be formed outside of the US and Canada. The organisation also gained a presence in sim racing by competing in titles such as F1 and Gran Turismo.
Other investors named in the latest funding round include footballers Thibaut Courtois and Borja Iglesias, as well as the organisation’s Founders Jordi Torras and Xavier Robles. Both Courtois and Iglesias first joined DUX Gaming alongside Spanish content creator DjMaRiiO in 2020 as shareholders.
Alongside its esports operations, the organisation also owns a women’s football team, DUX Logroño, which currently competes in the Reto Iberdrola, the second division of Spanish women’s football. Moreover, the team owns a semi-professional football club DUX Internacional de Madrid.
DUX Gaming did reveal that the funding round also included other ‘big names and business angels’ however the organisation will announce them at a later date. Some of the Spanish organisation’s commercial partners include the likes of adidas, Heineken and Caffe Latte.
Marc Gasol is a three-time NBA all-star and most notably won the NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors in 2019. The Spanish player still actively competes with Bàsquet Giron.
