eSports
G2 ESPORTS PARTNERS WITH JÄGERMEISTER TO BECOME THE INTERNATIONAL SPIRITS BRAND’S FIRST OFFICIAL ESPORTS PARTNER
G2 Esports, the most entertaining esports organisation in the world, has launched a ground-breaking collaboration with Jägermeister, marking the spirit brand’s first step into the world of gaming.
As a leading entertainment brand, G2’s partnership with Jägermeister was a no-brainer. Sharing a breadth of core values, the brands will combine their authenticity, creativity and shared love for pop culture references to expand beyond its core product offering. Jägermeister’s mission is to “enable the best nights of your life – today and tomorrow”. The partnership will help awaken the magic of esports to a new audience, while giving G2 the chance to celebrate its successes bigger and better than ever before. This partnership will see both brands create magical moments for esports fans across the globe while truly turning G2’s successes into the best nights on and off the server.
A partnership that puts the fans at its very core, G2 will look to enhance the experience for members of the G2 Army by taking community activities to the next level. This includes, elevating and enabling great nights for gaming enthusiasts, rewarding fans and giving them access to special moments and their favourite talents.
And the brands are wasting no time, kicking off the announcement with a Jägermeister x G2 Party on the 12th of May in London.
The event will take place at the award-winning bar, 26 Leake Street, with a full day of tailored activities for fans. Throughout the day, there will be an opportunity to interact with the staff. Fans can play games in G2 gaming booths, whilst enjoying live music from the likes of headline act and North London’s climbing rap riser, JBEE and more!
As part of this partnership, the brands will team up to create a new and exciting content series to be released later in the year. Fans also will have the opportunity to buy limited-edition apparel where the brands will blend their innovative design experience to create unique pieces.
Sabrina Ratih, COO of G2 Esports comments: “We are thrilled to be announcing this partnership and to lead Jägermeister’s first venture into the world of gaming. Jägermeister is a giant and iconic brand that has nurtured brand love far beyond the product. Seeing us jointly work on creating better experiences for our fans and celebrating the best nights in esports is a dream come true for everyone at G2 and we cannot wait for our fans to see what we’ve got coming up.”
Sven Schindler, Head of Global Brand & Digital at Jägermeister SE comments: “We are excited to be announcing our partnership with G2 Esports, a powerful collaboration that marries our iconic brand with the dynamic world of competitive gaming. Jägermeister brings you the best nights of your life today and tomorrow, while G2 Esports brings people together for joyful and celebratory moments. By joining forces, we aim to elevate these experiences to the next level, delivering unforgettable moments for G2 fans and beyond.”
The latest announcement comes as G2 continues to make developments across the esports and entertainment scene. As well as multiple successes on the field, the organisation has expanded in North America, competing in the VALORANT Challengers North America league, and SouthEast Asia, with the formation of G2 Blacklist: G2’s first mobile team competing on Wild Rift. Meanwhile, in the entertainment space, G2 marked its latest expansion with the release of its latest alt-rock single ‘Detonate’. The track was developed in-house by G2 and will serve as the organisation’s 2023 anthem.
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eSports
Abios names co-founder Anton Janér as new Managing Director
Abios, the esports subsidiary of Kambi Group plc, has appointed CTO Anton Janér as its new Managing Director, succeeding Abios’ long-term CEO Oskar Bonnevier Fröberg who has stepped down to pursue new endeavours.
Having co-founded the company alongside Fröberg in 2013, Janér assumed leadership of Abios as Managing Director effective from 1 May. He brings extensive experience in technology to his new role, as well as a deep understanding of the esports market, and as CTO was instrumental in the development of Abios’ market-leading esports solutions.
Spearheaded by Fröberg for more than 10 years, Abios has witnessed incredible growth since launch, expanding the company to reach millions of esports fans, power scores of businesses in esports, media, betting, and entertainment sectors, and employ roughly 70 people worldwide.
Furthermore, Fröberg successfully navigated Abios through its acquisition by Kambi Group, a leading sports betting technology company, in 2021. Bonnevier Fröberg played a pivotal role in ensuring a smooth integration within the Kambi Group, further solidifying Abios’ position within the esports betting landscape.
Janér said: “I am honored to take on the role of Managing Director and lead Abios into its next chapter. Oskar and I have had a lot of fun together throughout the years at Abios, building the company into the industry leader it is today. I am very excited about the future of Abios and eager to take the business to new heights alongside our excellent team.”
Fröberg added: “It is with mixed emotions that I have resigned as CEO of Abios. This decision has not been an easy one, as I have dedicated more than 10 years of my life to building and leading this organisation together with Anton. However, we could not have found a better home for Abios than Kambi nor could I have found a better successor than Anton, giving me every confidence that Abios will only flourish moving forward.”
The post Abios names co-founder Anton Janér as new Managing Director appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Angela Bernhard Thomas
CAPCOM’S STREET FIGHTERTM 6 GOING TO COLLEGE THIS FALL
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eSports
R&D rethink needed for sportsbooks to harness esports’ power
Esports betting is still grappling with a perception problem amongst operators. Despite the leaps and bounds in product development made by suppliers – particularly in the last two years – esports hasn’t shaken off the image built in the late 2010s.
Our good friend, Oliver Niner, Head of Sales at PandaScore, has been kind to share the below article with us.
There’s scepticism around esports betting’s value, how well it can actually perform and what’s needed to make it appeal to bettors. A big part of that comes down to perception, which shapes the research and development (R&D) choices made by each operator.
Self-fulfilling prophecy?
Operators who have put the research and development (R&D) resources into esports are seeing excellent growth, while others are still treating it like part of a long tail. The lack of a uniform approach to esports often translates into hesitancy to be bullish and invest in esports.
Whereas in the United States, post-PASPA sports betting has exploded and operators are seeking to capture as much territory and market share as possible because in most cases, you switch the lights on and the money comes in. It’s, of course, good business sense to take opportunities like this – you can apply the same templates used elsewhere on an incredibly lucrative market.
This kind of approach has been attempted for esports and hasn’t found the same success. Granted, the legislation for betting on esports has been somewhat slower than that of sports betting and iGaming.
However, bullish operators have acknowledged the fact that esports hasn’t found the same success in regulated states and asked what can be done differently, while for others, esports has been thrown into the too-hard basket or relegated to the bargain bucket.
For the latter, the fate of the esports vertical becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy – especially if an operator already using a budget esports product that throttles its very growth.
It takes two to tango
When esports is discussed in broader betting circles, you’ll often hear different versions of the same talking point: the problem with esports is no one is doing it well, it doesn’t innovate.
This argument is a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Esports is a driver of innovation, and it is sportsbook R&D that is holding it back.
Multiple suppliers on the market are investing significant resources into R&D, and bullish operators are leveraging these product innovations to acquire new customers and create engagements made for the internet age.
There are understandable reasons why sports betting doesn’t innovate. It’s largely because operators focus on acquisition, entering new territories and spending money on data rights. But the actual R&D on sportsbook products is left lacking, with ever-increasing cost-per-acquisition (CPA) numbers a clear symptom of this.
It means that if an operator does decide to use or acquire an esports specialist supplier but does little to cater its product and attempts to just lay the sports betting template over the top, of course performance will be throttled.
It’s like putting a Ferrari engine in a Prius – no offence to Toyota or Prius owners.
The same problem exists on the platform supplier front. Platforms are understandably focused on compliance and getting customers live, not necessarily improving models or their products.
Even the idea that if you just acquire an innovative company the problem is solved or you have found the solution, doesn’t hold water. In many cases, the company is acquired and plenty of noise is made about it, but there’s little organisational investment in R&D afterwards.
It’s not just in esports
These problems extend to customer acquisition and marketing for most emerging markets, not just esports. There’s a rush to use the same old playbook in newer sectors because it’s easy.
The fantasy vs. house sector in the US is already experiencing an acquisition arms race. As analyst Dustin Gouker points out, deposit match bonuses for new users on fantasy vs house products have jumped from $100 to as high as $500 in some places.
This is the same race that played out in sports betting and despite the costs, there’s little effort from most operators to try something different. There’s less work when you just put the same acquisition template on an emerging sector and call it a day. This seems to be an accepted practice in the industry, for better or for worse.
Esports betting success requires ongoing dialogue
Rather than attempting to wedge esports into hegemonic sportsbook approaches, sportsbooks need to take a completely unique approach.
The fact is the betting sector has barely scratched the surface – communities of esports fans are still dormant. Canadian operator Rivalry has built a successful, esports-first business by embracing the ever-changing internet culture that esports inhabits. French esports organisation Karmine Corp recently sold out a 30,000-person stadium for an event with no prize money up for grabs.
Innovative products developed on the supplier side like microbetting and betbuilders are only half of the equation.
Maximising esports revenues requires institutional investment, ongoing R&D and collaboration between suppliers and operators to create products and experiences. This includes having staff on the operator side that can drive and push the product further, and crucially, rethinking current sportsbook strategies and practices.
Building experiences for betting’s greatest emerging market – one that caters to your future core audience – takes investment, innovation and a willingness to experiment. If the industry wants to make the most of the Millennial and Gen Z audience that will become its primary customers, investment into R&D and close collaboration between suppliers and operators is needed. Many hands makes light work.
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