About The Clutch
The Clutch was born at ESI London 2019 and is a live pitch investment competition founded with the aim of helping esports-related start-up companies in need of funding and/or mentorship. We’ve since expanded the remit of The Clutch into the wider video games and adjacent creator economy spaces, to best serve the future of esports and gaming with our next edition taking place in Lisbon, in 2025.
Over 60 companies have applied to The Clutch so far, and amongst the winners and losers, there have been many standout companies. In 2023, we partnered with HSBC UK to hand the the winner with £3000 cash, the coveted trophy for The Clutch winner as well as invaluable business support from The Clutch sector partners.
Lisbon 2025
What’s on at ESI Lisbon
The Clutch Showcase
PAST WINNERS
UNEVN
2023 | ESI London
We live and breathe esports. Our mission is to help gamers become e-athletes by providing comprehensive solutions and tools for gamers. We vision a world where playing esports is recognized as not just gaming, but as an act on improving skills and ability to thrive through the most demanding circumstances.
MOUSESKINS
2022 | ESI London
An independent peripherals brand created to offer a tailored service to all players seeking to define their mice and stand out from the crowd.
E1 CHAMPIONSHIP
2022 | ESI Singapore
The premier SEA sim-racing championship, focussing on making motorsports accessible for all.
TEAMS.GG
2020 | ESI Digital Summit
A social network focused on helping players find teammates to queue with, both casually and competitively.
ANZU
2020 | ESI Digital Summer
An up and coming firm offering sophisticated and seamless in-game advertising.
G-SCIENCE
2019 | ESI London
A provider of market leading sports science and data analytics to develop healthier, happier and more successful gamers.
ITERO GAMING
2021 | ESI Digital Summer
A revolutionary data analysis tool designed to give pro teams and the average player the edge at a very early stage of development.
THE CLUTCH JUDGES
The Clutch Judges have been selected to use their expertise in business development as well as insight into the esports, video games and the creator economy to listen to the short-listed pitches from the finalist, ask the necessary questions and decide who will win The Clutch.
Lisa Hau serves as COO/Executive Director of Bidstack, a technology platform that brings together the lucrative advertising and gaming industries. Since joining in 2020, the company has scaled rapidly across the UK, Latvia and the US. Her role spans commercial, people, fundraising and corporate development. She previously led investor relations at WPP a global agency holding group and was an equity analyst at US investment bank Jefferies, covering the media and technology sectors. Lisa graduated from the University of Technology, Sydney in 2006 and is a qualified Chartered Accountant.
THE CLUTCH ADVISORY BOARD
The Clutch Advisory Board is a handpicked collective of esteemed individuals, from investors to sector / industry specialists, who will be on hand to offer their expertise and insight to those start ups who come through the ranks of The Clutch.
Joanie Kraut is the CEO of Women in Games International (WIGI), a nonprofit organization with a mission to cultivate resources to advance economic equality and diversity in the global games industry.
For over fifteen years, Joanie has operated in the tech and gaming space within different verticals throughout her career, and she has served as an advisor and consultant for smaller studios, startups, and nonprofits in the gaming space. Her expertise resides in business development, financial strategy and monetization, and DEI initiatives.
Prior to SeventySix Capital, Dan Bravato founded Pitch 15 Sports Group, an esports agency focused on connecting the esports world with the rest of the sports world. Having worked on projects such as Major League Soccer’s eMLS, the Call of Duty League’s first ever event and Overwatch League sponsorships, Dan was ready to bring his expertise to the SeventySix Capital team. Dan also worked in sponsorships for Manchester City and NASCAR/ISC, managed sports marketing initiatives for Rocket Mortgage and Fathead, and sold and strategized for Van Wagner Sports Group. Dan is a graduate of New York University.
Shahar Sorek is the Chief Marketing Officer at Overwolf, the guild for in-game creators. Built for creators by creators, Overwolf is the all-in-one platform that enables creators to build, distribute, and monetize in-game apps and mods. With over 12 years of experience in the games and technology industry, Shahar has founded and managed leading startups including 7 Elements Studios, a game studio specializing in massive-multiplayer-online strategy games. Prior to joining Overwolf, he was CMO at Spacemesh, where he led branding efforts, go-to-market strategies, and product marketing execution. Shahar has also held advisory positions at GK8, Flytrex and Treebute.io, where he shaped the narrative and strategy of the venture with a focus on the go-to-market audience and the companies’ investors. In his past, Shahar worked as a creative producer and actor in Hollywood and Israel and is a former five-time Israeli national champion in Taekwondo.
Kesem Fine is a Business Development Manager at Overwolf, the all-in-one platform that enables creators to build, distribute, and monetize in-game apps and mods. Kesem’s focus is on building strategic partnerships, expanding Overwolf’s app ecosystem, and supporting creators to turn their passion into a profession. Prior to joining Overwolf, Kesem was an Investment Analyst at AnD Ventures, investing in early stage Israeli startups. Born in NYC & raised in Israel, homeschooled & professionally grown through apprenticeships, Kesem is passionate about working with early stage founders and helping them scale into global businesses.
THE CLUTCH
PARTNERS
Presenting Partners
Silver Partner
IESF consistently makes an effort to promote Esport as a true sport beyond language, race and culture barriers.
Supporting Partners
Proudly founded in August 2021, ESG Gaming’s vision is to ensure that consumers worldwide possess the skills, knowledge, resilience, and tools to engage with digital entertainment in a safe, responsible, positive, and inclusive manner. They are incorporated as a not-for-profit and with no share capital Community Interest Company (CIC). They are independently regulated by the Office of the Regulator of Community Interest Company and registered with the Fundraising Regulator.
Shikenso is a thriving German tech start-up with a mission to make the gaming and esports industry transparent for sponsors. We employ artificial intelligence to deliver an all-in-one analysis of your marketing campaign. The Shikenso Dashboard & Smart Tracking Algorithm equip your organization with a rich data set of brand performance along every campaign step.
Ross Video – High Impact, High Efficiency Production Solutions
Ross powers video productions for billions of global viewers daily with the industry’s widest range of high impact, high efficiency production solutions. Ross makes it easy to create compelling news, weather and sports broadcasts, engaging material for sports stadium screens, entertainment shows and rock concerts, educational institutions, legislative assemblies, corporate applications and inspiring content for houses of worship.
Ross solutions have impressed the audiences and marketing partners of NBC Sunday Night Football, Eurosport, BBC World, Google YouTube Space London and China’s esports powerhouse VSPN. Ross delivers an unrivalled range of products and services comprising virtual studios, real-time motion graphics, cameras, robotic camera systems, production switchers, video servers, infrastructure and routers, social media management, newsroom systems and mobile live events.
Deliver the excitement and experience of the game to your viewers with a world class production. Captivate fans with game characters and environments brought to life through augmented reality and virtual sets. Ross brings the best of live sports and broadcast production technology to the task of putting on an amazing esports even
Design & development agency, busy helping companies transform ideas into great products and services.
Empowering esports and gaming talent to reach their potential. A talent management agency founded by Morgan Sports Law
badassness. Through our ongoing work and conversations with so many of you, we know that safe spaces that honor women, femme-identifying gamers and non-binary gamers who are comfortable in spaces that center women are necessary. Thus, the*gameHERs was born.
The*gameHERs is a women-led community dedicated to amplifying and centering the voices of women, femme-identifying gamers and non-binary gamers who are comfortable in spaces that center women. This is a sexist-free space for the casual players, the hardcore gamers, the techies, the streamers, the designers, the cosplayers, the developers, and programmers. Our mission is to advance the role, voice, image, and power of all the*gameHERs in the gaming world. We welcome all humans who value this mission.
Promod Esports was founded in 2019 by a group of passionate esports industry veterans who want to use our knowledge and expertise to create authentic B2C connections for IP owners. As an esports and gaming solutions agency we use our experience & knowledge to advise and consult on esports strategies for clients; creating, organising and managing end-to-end tournaments, events & broadcasts. Our holistic approach enables us to have a range of impact for our clients, from creating meaningful experiences for customers to adding value for shareholders.
MEET THE
ATTENDEES
Having focused as an attorney on professionalizing esports establishing best practices with regards to player welfare, integrity issues and grassroots efforts, Anna has now moved to building Rogue’s presence as Managing Director and General Counsel of the European subsidiary running the LEC and Polish Regional League slot. She is set to implement the unique vision of Rogue’s ownership group to build a global brand connecting music icons, esports superstars and community outreach, offering one of the best environments to players for realizing their full potential, building sustainable careers and evolving their individual brands. Besides offering fans a fresh take on esports entertainment, Anna is a member of the Disciplinary Panel of the Esports Integrity Coalition (“ESIC”) and focuses on integrity matters for the German Esports Association (“ESBD”).
Anna is now Executive Vice President Esports at infinite Reality/ KOI, and will be joining us as a speaker for ESI London 2023.
Arwin Fallah Shirazi is the CEO and Co-Founder of Frankfurt-based analytics startup Shikenso GmbH. Graduated in business informatics, Arwin is a tech-savy gaming enthusiast running the commercial and financial departments of the company. His will and determination for success has since been the driving force, empowering everyone in the team to realise their potential and use their skills in a goal-oriented fashion. Together with the founding team, he is leading the company to the top of data providers in the esports and gaming industry with a clear mind and strategic competence.
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WANT TO GET INVOLVED?
If you’ve any questions about involving your brand in The Clutch, or any ideas or opportunities to discuss please reach out via [email protected], or directly to any team members.