Esports Business Review
Nike signs deal with first esports athlete
Nike Has Inked Their First Individual Esport Deal
The majority of sponsorship deals that have been coming out are between teams and brands. Nike has taken this a step further by sponsoring Royal Never Give Up’s Jian “Uzi” Zihauo to be part of Lebron James “Dribble &” series promotion. During the 2017–18 NBA season Lebron James was criticized for his outspokenness on political topics and was told to “Shut Up & Dribble” by Fox News host Laura Ingraham. Uzi will join LBJ and and Chinese actor Bai Jingting in this campaign. Uzi is arguably the best LoL of player in the world and has one of the largest Chinese followings in Esports. Royal Never Give Up is one of the most recognizable teams if you base this metric on sponsorship deals. Before this Nike deal with Uzi, they inked deals with KFC, and Mercedes-Benz.
QG Raises $14.4M in Series A Funding
QG has continued to prove why they are such a strong organization. Partnerships include JingDong, Nike, and 361°. Now they have secured $14.4M in funding to build a headquarters in Shenzhen. The round was led by Toutoushidao Fund who has been making substantial investments in the entertainment industry and now continues to build their portfolio in the esports space. QG previously sold their League of Legends team to JingDong in May of 2017 and is also the owner of QG.happy, a mobile esports brand.
Trust Esports to Invest $23.1M in Esports
A new VC fund, Trust Esports, led by FIMALAC and Matthew Dallon will be deploying over $20M into 10–12 ventures. Dallon founded the Esports World Convention and Tournament. According to The Esports Observer, “ Trust Esport plans to support 10 to 12 businesses that have a focus on developing applications, modifications, and other services for esports titles. The fund will look for investment opportunities in companies aiming to improve the viewing esports experience, develop audience monetization, and create better, more optimized playing conditions for players.”
Fighting Esports Group Closes $15M in Funding
Fighting Esports Group, a Beijing based mobile esports company, has secured $15M from sequoia-backed VC firm, China Sports Capital. Other investors were SAIF Partners, and Sea of Stars Capital. According to gamesindustry.biz, rumors of this funding round are to “gear up for a partnership with Tencent to bring Honor of Kings’ largest esports competition, the King Pro League, to South Korea, where it will be referred to as the Korean King Pro League.”
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