eSports

Guild Esports Plc Enters VALORANT and Announces Full Team Line-Up

Published

5 years ago

October 21, 2020

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Guild Esports Plc (Guild), the global esports team organisation headquartered in London, today announces its entry into Valorant, a competitive 5v5 multiplayer tactical first-person shooter, with the signing of a top-flight roster of professional players who will compete in the upcoming First Strike tournament, Riot Games’ debut esports tournament for Valorant.

Guild’s Valorant team has been acquired from the top-ranked Swedish team Bonk, one of Europe’s most successful Valorant teams. The team was carefully chosen following a rigorous selection process and is comprised of five sought-after players: Yacine Laghmari ‘Yacine’, Malkolm Rench ‘bonkar’, Leo Janneson ‘Leo’, William Sundin ‘draken’, and Filip Gauffin ‘Goffe’. The team’s inaugural competition under the Guild banner will take place at the start of First Strike in early November.

The team has already achieved success, finishing in the top two in the recent Ignition Series and Mandatory.gg Cup tournaments and the players are excited to take the next step and emerge as champions under Guild.

Yacine is a top-tier former CS:GO player who has made waves early on in his Valorant career.

bonkar was Sweden’s first professional Valorant player. He is a former Paladins professional player and has won two Paladins World Championships. He is regarded as one of the best players in the game and is known for producing impressive results.

Leo, aged 16 is a talented emerging player known as “The Young Gun”. He has achieved professional success at a young age.

draken is a tier-one former CS:GO professional player and well known star player with a significant following.

Goffe is a former top CS:GO professional player and Valorant amateur who is widely regarded as an industry “one-to-watch” and is now ready to compete at a professional level.

The finalised Valorant roster marks Guild’s first step into hardcore PC-based esports, following its launch into the cross-platform Rocket League and EA Sports FIFA titles earlier this year.

Guild is developing a talent pipeline in the UK based on the traditional academy model which will see the most able players such as Valorant amateurs scouted by Guild’s talent scout network and coached by industry leaders in order to attain the skillset required to win and take their careers to the next level.

Valorant is a fast-growing esports title published by Riot Games, the renowned developer behind League of Legends. Valorant is followed by a large audience with recent tournaments reported to have recorded over one million viewers.

Carleton Curtis, Executive Chairman at Guild, commented: “Joining the Valorant community is a perfect step for Guild and we are delighted to expand into the new exciting and emerging esports space. Valorant is destined to become a major esport with global reach and deep fan bases and it benefits from the prestige of being developed by best-in-class publisher Riot Games. With these signings, Guild has established itself as a multi-disciplinary esports business and we are looking forward to fielding rosters in new games as we continue to scale and invest in our business utilising the war chest we raised in our IPO.

Valorant is an exciting esport and since its launch this year has already made a big impact on the competitive gaming ecosystem, winning over top pros from established games like Overwatch. We have high ambitions for our top-calibre team in the upcoming First Strike tournament. We are proud to welcome the players to our Guild family where we will coach and support them to become world champions.”

Yacine Laghmari ‘Yacine’, Professional Valorant Player at Guild, commented: “Valorant is one of the most dynamic esports out there and being in Guild’s first Valorant roster is an exciting opportunity. I’m looking forward to playing my part in the future of Guild and the team.

Guild is an organisation with big ambition that is on a path to achieve great things and I’m proud to be a part of that. I’ve always been an ambitious player and want to create a legacy that will last.

Our team has already proved itself at a top level and now the goal is to become world champions.”

eSports

FURIA Pulls Off the Reverse Sweep to Win Thunderpick World Championship 2025

Published

2 days ago

October 28, 2025

Niji Narayan

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

Thunderpick, the leading esports betting platform delivering fans cutting-edge tools and experiences, announced that FURIA has emerged victorious at the Thunderpick World Championship 2025 — one of the tournament’s most competitive editions yet, featuring four of the world’s top 10 ranked teams. FURIA takes home the $500,000 first-place prize, with KSCERATO earning his first Grand Final MVP.

FURIA’s steady performance and relentless focus were on full display throughout the tournament, culminating in a Finals victory over Natus Vincere. After NAVI went up two maps to zero, FURIA did what many thought was impossible and completed a dominant reverse sweep with a 13:1 on the decisive map.

Natus Vincere finished second place, earning $150,000. The MongolZ, who won the Thunderpick World Championship last year, finished third after defeating Aurora earlier in the day, receiving $70,000 and $50,000, respectively. Venom, 9z, Imperial and OG all placed fifth through eighth, taking home $20,000 each.

“It is a privilege to congratulate FURIA as the Thunderpick World Champions! This tournament was thrilling, featuring exceptional gameplay. The success of our World Championship is thanks to the incredible teams, streamers, partners, staff, and everyone behind the scenes who made it possible, as well as the passionate fans who make this event so special,” said Kelly Sanders, Head of Strategy at Thunderpick.

This year marks the third consecutive Thunderpick World Championship. Last year, The MongolZ stunned HEROIC to claim their third international title of the season, cementing their status on the global CS2 stage. In 2023, FaZe Clan took the crown after defeating Virtus.pro, with Robin “ropz” Kool earning the MVP title. The TWC 2025 Finals are presented in collaboration with Hotspawn, a leading hub for esports news and analysis.

The post FURIA Pulls Off the Reverse Sweep to Win Thunderpick World Championship 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Betting

LEON Esports announces partnership with GamerLegion’s CS2 team

Published

7 days ago

October 23, 2025

Zoltan Tundik

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

LEON Esports is excited to announce a new partnership with GamerLegion’s Counter-Strike 2 team — a leading German esports organization ranked among the top 15 teams in the world, renowned for its consistent top-tier performances.

This collaboration marks a new chapter for LEON Esports, as the brand continues to expand its presence in competitive gaming. Over the years, LEON has become an active force in esports — supporting professional teams and hosting its own tournaments across titles like CS2, Dota, Free Fire and Deadlock.

Together with GamerLegion, LEON Esports aims to bring even more action and engagement to fans — with exclusive offers, special markets, social media giveaways, and more challenges made for true esports and betting enthusiasts.

This partnership follows LEON’s successful collaborations with other major esports organizations such as SAW (Portugal), FlyQuest (Australia), and NFA (Brazil) — strengthening its position as one of the key players in the global esports scene.

Get ready for the next level — follow the action on our channels:

LEON Esports Linktree

The post LEON Esports announces partnership with GamerLegion’s CS2 team appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

eSports

HAVIT Partners with Legendary Galatasaray Esports

Published

7 days ago

October 23, 2025

Niji Narayan

havit-partners-with-legendary-galatasaray-esports

Reading Time: < 1 minute

HAVIT, a leading global consumer tech brand, announced a strategic partnership with Galatasaray Esports, one of Turkey’s most iconic and influential esports teams. This collaboration aims to energise the rapidly growing Turkish gaming ecosystem with cutting-edge gear.

Galatasaray, a symbol of pride, passion and excellence with over a century of sporting heritage, has extended its winning spirit into the digital arena through Galatasaray Esports, now a powerhouse in competitive gaming. By partnering with Galatasaray Esports, HAVIT is not only equipping the team with cutting-edge gaming gear to enhance professional performance but also bringing more high-performance gaming gear to redefine the esports experience in Turkey.

With this partnership, HAVIT and Galatasaray Esports will work together to open a new chapter for Turkish esports. In upcoming competitions, Galatasaray Esports will continue to showcase its strength and team spirit, representing Turkey with pride on the international stage. Meanwhile, HAVIT will provide full support with its outstanding gaming gear, empowering the team to reach new heights.

The post HAVIT Partners with Legendary Galatasaray Esports appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.