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According to various posts on social media, Player1 Events, the organiser of UK gaming exhibition Insomnia Gaming, has undergone layoffs.
First reported by Esports News UK, the website’s sources claim that all staff at Player1 Events were let go on May 14th.
There has been no official announcement from Player1 Events, but many staff, including Peter Lewis, former Head People Officer of the company’s parent company SuperNova Capital, have announced their redundancy on social media.
Alongside the layoffs, sources close to the matter told Esports Insider that many contractors who worked at Insomnia 72 have had their payment deadlines missed by two weeks. Nathy B, a DJ and content creator who worked at Insomnia 72, is the first to come forward on X about the lack of payment.
Sam Macedonio, a Co-owner of British esports organisation Into the Breach, also took to X to claim that he already paid deposits for booths and that The Goose House is owed £10,000 for a tournament win.
Player1 Events has overseen and run British gaming festival Insomnia since being rebranded from Multiplay in 2018. Founded in 1997, Multiplay created the Insomnia festival and was sold to GAME in 2015, more recently Player1 Events was bought by SuperNova Capital in 2021.
The next Insomnia Gaming Festival was announced to run from September 4th to the 8th, but tickets have yet to go on sale. There has been no announcement as to whether the event will run or not.
However, RuneFest, an event which was meant to be running alongside Insomnia 73, has announced that “due to unforeseen circumstances we are postponing the sale of RuneFest tickets tomorrow (Wednesday, May 15th)”.
Esports Insider has asked for an official comment from Player1 Events, but as of the time of publication has yet to hear back.
