VSPO announces leadership change and renames to Hero Esports

08 October 2024

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VSPO Danny Tang
Image credit: VSPO

Chinese tournament organiser VSPO has announced major changes in the leadership team, with CEO Dino Ying transitioning to Executive Chairman.

As a result, VSPO will promote its Co-Founder, CFO and Head of Global Strategy, Danny Tang, to lead the company as CEO. Moreover, VSPO’s Group Vice President and Head of Capital Markets, Finance and Legal, Luying Wang, will become the company’s Acting CFO.

In addition, VSPO unveiled that it will be renaming to Hero Esports. Little details have been shared about the name change, however, the company noted that the change aims to ‘better align VSPO with its existing domestic name’ and support its global growth strategy.

Tang will continue to drive growth for the company after working as CFO since its inception in 2016. Prior to VSPO, Tang served as Vice President of China Development Bank Capital between 2010 and 2014 and obtained a Master of Science in Management at Stanford University. Her endeavours in esports with VSPO also earned her this year’s ESI Hall of Famer Award.

Throughout the past eight years, VSPO has grown to become one of the largest esports companies in China. The company operates various tournaments and leagues in China, notably the King Pro League, Honor of King’s franchised league. VSPO’s long-term partnerships with developers include deals with Tencent, Garena and Krafton. 

The company has also received huge investments over the years including a $265m (~£219m) investment from Saudi Arabian company Savvy Games Group in 2023.

According to a release, Dino Ying’s movement away from the CEO position will enable him to use his experience to explore new esports products and experiences. This includes focusing on the VSPO’s newly-announced multi-esports tournament, the Asian Champions League (ACL), as well as global events such as the Esports World Cup, which VSPO is a partner of.

Dino Ying, Executive Chairman of VSPO, commented on the move: “This marks the start of an exciting new chapter for VSPO, soon to be Hero Esports. The launch of the ACL has the potential to be a further catalyst for not only the growth of our company, but also the broader esports industry.

“I look forward to continuing to work closely with Danny and the team, as well as on the ACL’s development, engaging with international organisations to support the continued development of the esports industry and all those involved in it.”

Davide Xu