Australian esports organisation Team Bliss has announced the acquisition of fellow Australian organisation The Chiefs Esports Club.
The two companies will merge but continue to operate as independent brands going forward, keeping both the Team Bliss and The Chiefs names alive. Australian esports industry insider Chris Smith will also take on an advisory role during the merger.
The acquisition of The Chiefs by Team Bliss comes despite the latter being the older and likely more internationally recognised of the two brands. Terms were not disclosed.
Team Bliss was founded in 2019 and has seen success in PUBG and Rainbow Six: Siege on the regional scene. In 2023, the team entered the League of Legends Circuit Oceania (LCO). The Chiefs, one of the most recognisable Australian teams, was founded in 2014. Its League of Legends team won the LCO Split 2 in June.
The two companies noted that the merger has been in the works for a while, and that they had built a relationship over the past 12 months. Bliss and Chiefs notably worked together with Logitech G on the launch of the new Logitech G Pro X2 headset. No decisions have been made regarding future teams or titles to compete in, they said.
As a part of the merger, Nick Bobir, Managing Director for The Chiefs and CEO of ICON ESPORTS (which bought The Chiefs in 2021), has stepped down from his role.
Chris Smith, the founder of Business in Games and BIGR AI, said he had taken on an advisory role in order to facilitate the transition and help with commercialisation and growth over the next two years. Mat Jessep of Game Legal will also work together with the two companies to ensure the prosperity of the new entity.
Brendan Harms, COO of Team Bliss, said: “We couldn’t be more excited about what this merger means for the future of Oceanic esports. By pooling the resources of two top tier organisations, we are able to focus on having a bigger impact on the international stage and give Oceanic esports fans a powerhouse to really get behind.
“In my mind the management team behind Chiefs are the best in the game, so to be able to work with them to create something ultimately beneficial for the entire industry in OCE is a dream come true.”
