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Today, HYPE Sports Innovation announced that it has partnered with Cologne-based esports organization SK Gaming, sports and entertainment agency Lagardère Sports, and sports business information provider SPONSORs to launch an esports accelerator in Cologne, Germany. The accelerator is branded HYPE SPIN InsideTrack.
“The recipe to support startups and make them successful as well as getting financed by investors is to lift them to have a ‘market-proven’ status – we call it the InsideTrack,” said Michael Broda, managing partner of the accelerator.
The accelerator will select 15 startups from applications to participate in a three-day boot camp, where they pitch in front of a selection committee, that will then select five startups to take part in the pilot program. The five startups will receive a €20K EUR ($22K USD) cash investment as well as €100K ($110K) in facilities, exhibitions, and mentorship hours. Additionally, the best startup in the program will receive a €50K ($55K) convertible loan. The pilot program will kick off in May and come to a close in August when the startups get to pitch their projects at SPONSORs’ SPOBIS Gaming & Media conference.
The esports accelerator will mark the second HYPE Sports Innovation venture in the city of Cologne. In 2018, HYPE teamed up with one of SK Gaming’s shareholders, 1.FC Köln, to launch a sports accelerator. According to the company, which was founded in 2015, HYPE has raised a total of $181M in funding and established 12 accelerators to date.
