The Overwatch League signs Bud Light as a sponsor and hosts its first-ever homestand event, while Rick Fox plans to leave Echo Fox over racist comments from a shareholder.
Missed any of the biggest esports business news last week? The TEO Monday Morning Briefing recaps the top headlines from the last seven days!
Overwatch League Signs Bud Light, Brand Takes Title Sponsorship for Homestand
The Overwatch League (OWL) announced that it has signed Anheuser-Busch InBev as a sponsor for the rest of the 2019 season, making Bud Light the official beer of the esports league everywhere except China.
The deal includes live activation at four key events and sponsored broadcasts on ABC/ESPN2 in the coming months, starting with last weekend’s newly named Bud Light Homestand Weekend – Dallas. The two-day, eight-team event, hosted by the Dallas Fuel at the Allen Event Center, marked the OWL’s first games outside LA’s Blizzard Arena in LA as the league prepares to shift to a full home-and-away schedule in 2020.
In addition to Bud Light, other OWL sponsors T-Mobile and Omen by HP had on-site activations. as did Dallas Fuel jersey partner Jack in the Box and team partner Gamestop, the latter being the presenting partner for the official afterparty. Local sponsors for the event included food delivery service Favor Delivery, Topgolf, who sponsored a welcome reception, VIP lounge sponsor law firm Greenburg Traurig, and the University of Texas at Dallas, which advertised its new esports program.
Echo Fox founder Rick Fox has allegedly notified shareholders of his intention to leave the organization, citing a hostile work environment, according to a report by Richard Lewis for Dexerto.
A statement from Echo Fox, later sent to The Esports Observer stated that “a limited partner of the Echo Fox organization, who is not an employee, officer or director of Echo Fox, used a racial epithet towards individuals both verbally and via email.”
An email shared anonymously with Dexerto tells shareholders that Fox’s position, as well as “the entity that owns my shares” are available. He listed options such as acquiring his entity, saying he will move on the “first deal that sits well.”
Developer Hi-Rez Studios has announced a revenue sharing initiative through its streaming partner, Microsoft’s Mixer. Viewers can now provide monetary support to their favorite Paladins Premier League (PPL) teams by purchasing Mixer Embers, a virtual currency. According to a spokesperson for Skillshot Media, the operator of the PPL, 50% proceeds from Mixer Embers spent during Paladins Premier League broadcasts will go back to the teams.
On April 22, Chinese livestreaming platform Douyu filed a preliminary IPO application with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for listing at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
According to the prospectus, Douyu plans to use the proceeds to further strengthen its position in the esports ecosystem, continue attracting more viewers and streamers while investing in technologies, increase monetization capabilities, and start expansion in selected overseas regions.
While the amount of American Deposit Shares (ADSs) to be offered as well as the pricing isn’t filed yet, the Chinese news outlet The Beijing News has reported that the company is looking to raise up to $500M USD. This amount almost equals the company’s 2018 revenue of ¥3.65B RMB ($531.5M). Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America Securities (previously known as Bank of America Merrill Lynch) are the underwriters of this U.S. IPO.
