TSM Collaborates with Crunchyroll, Barstool Sports, 100 Thieves in PGA Tour 2K23, and More!
EWD: News for Week of 10/3/22-10/16/22
Topics: Partnerships, 100 Thieves, Barstool Sports, TSM, Gillette
Partnerships
Mastercard x Riot Games
Mastercard extends Riot Games partnership and will remain an official sponsor of LoL Worlds, the Mid-Season Invitational and the All-Star event. Outside of brand exposure at League of Legends esports events, Mastercard will be featured in the game itself through promotions and logo placements, as well as on merchandise produced in partnership with Riot Games. An integral part of the partnership so far, Mastercard card holders are able to provide its clients with co-branded cards to be offered at banks around the world.
The extension was celebrated on October 12th in New York City, where the current World Championship Group Stage is being held. They had a VIP event named ‘Priceless Table at Worlds 2022’. According to Esports Insider, new events such as this are also in the works following the partnership extension.
Mastercard currently sponsors regional leagues like the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), League of Legends European Championship (LEC), Brazilian League of Legends Championship (CBLOL), and the Northern League of Legends Championship (NLC). Mastercard additionally sponsors FlyQuest’s League of Legends teams and G2 Esports’ League of Legends team as well.
TSM x Crunchyroll
TSM partners with anime streaming service Crunchyroll to collaborate on a range of merchandise for the TV series My Hero Academia. The merchandise will include hoodies, t-shirts, mousepads and keycaps as part of the launch of the anime’s sixth season. The design of the apparel will include the anime's artwork and integrate TSM's black and white logo colors. The merchandise was for sale at Twitchcon San Diego earlier this month and is available online on October 18th via TSM's shop.
Erik Marino, Vice President of Apparel for TSM, commented on the collaboration:
The world of My Hero Academia feels very fitting in how it parallels esports and TSM. Players training in the academy to rise and become pro, we often think of some TSM players, like Imperial Hal and Solo, as full-fledged pro heroes with their own special quirks.
Kimball's Take:
Not the least bit surprised about this collaboration. We've seen many top esports orgs: FaZe Clan, Team Liquid, and 100 Thieves all have Anime-inspired esports collaborations with other top anime tv series. The design of the apparel, combined with the interests that gaming/esports fans have with anime's makes it a match made in heaven for orgs to capitalize off of.
PUMA X Revenant
PUMA has partnered with Indian esports organization Revenant Esports to become the official kit supplier of its competitive teams and content creators. The deal marks PUMA’s official entry into the Indian esports industry. There's no details regarding the length of the partnership.
Vishal Gupta, Executive Director-Retail, PUMA India said this on esports and the partnership:
India is one of the biggest markets for the video gaming community, and competitive Esports is immensely influencing our youth across tiers. Esports getting incorporated as a medal sport into the Asian Games next year is evidence of its huge popularity & potential today. With this association, Puma & Revenant will leverage each other’s huge audience base and wide reach to connect with Esports athletes in the country and penetrate deeper into the market.
Kimball's Take:
PUMA now have their bases covered with esports partnerships in many key markets around the world with Gen.G (Asia), Cloud9 (NA), Natus Vincere (East Europe), EVOS Esports (SE Asia), and MOUZ (Germany).
The Chiefs x L'Oreal Paris
Australian esports organization The Chiefs Esports Club renewed its partnership with L’Oréal; partnered with APC by Schneider Electric as well.
For the L’Oréal Paris Men Expert partnership, the renewal marks the third year partnering with the Chiefs. Over the past three years, the two parties have collaborated on a range of activations including an invitational VALORANT tournament. They will continue collaborating on a range of activations that include L’Oréal Paris Men Expert-branded tournaments and opportunities for fans to play with The Chiefs’ roster of content creators. Nick Bobir, CEO of The Chiefs, commented on the partnership:
We’ve all had late-night gaming sessions and sacrificed how we feel the next morning to get one more game in. L’Oréal Paris Men Expert is a perfect fit for gaming and esports culture to keep us going and feeling fresh. We’re excited to be continuing our partnership with such a prestigious brand and look forward to producing even more energised content this year.
For the APC deal, they will supply its Back-UPS Pro units to the organization’s teams to protect their PCs, consoles and even internet modems from power surges. No other details regarding the partnership
Other News
Barstool Sports, Dude Perfect, 100 Thieves in PGA Tour 2k23
PGA TOUR 2K23 to tee off post-launch bonus content with collaborations across video game culture, entertainment, and sports lifestyle media. As so, 2K will have apparel drops and playable personalities from each of the 3 brands in the coming months. All bonus content will be free for all players across all platforms.
The first drop for the NBA 2K23 community will be from Dude Perfect, the trickshot content group with over 58 million subscribers on YouTube. Users will be able to customize their MyPlayers' with Dude Perfect-branded hats, a polo and a hoodie. from the group. According to the 2K press release, the group will battle it out in an upcoming video, featuring PGA TOUR pro Collin Morikawa, to determine who will be integrated in-game as a post-launch playable character later next year.
This Fall will also see premium lifestyle brand and gaming organization 100 Thieves have an apparel drop. Following the apparel drop, 100 Thieves Founder & CEO Matthew "Nadeshot" Haag, will make his debut in PGA TOUR 2K23 as a playable character.
Finally, one of the largest digital sports, entertainment and lifestyle multimedia brand Barstool Sports will make its debut on the virtual course in early 2023, when branded merchandise and playable personalities from Barstool’s golf podcast, Fore Play, will be featured in PGA TOUR 2K23. According to the press release, Barstool Sports have already built strong connections with the PGA TOUR 2K community, and have hosted online tournaments with the PGA TOUR 2K21 Barstool Golf Society.
Australia’s NBL Joins NBA 2K League
The NBA 2K League partners with Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL) to launch NBL Oz Gaming, becoming the 25th team in the league (22 of which are affiliated with NBA teams). This also marks the first time an Australian professional team has joined a global esports league on a permanent basis.
NBL Oz Gaming becomes the third expansion team from outside of North America following the addition of the Gen.G Tigers representing Shanghai, and DUX Infinitos representing Mexico City, in 2021 and 2022, respectively, and will make its debut when the NBA 2K League’s sixth season tips off in spring 2023. BL Oz Gaming will be based in the U.S. during the 2023 season, with the team’s location still to be announced.
Beyond just having a team represented from Australia, the NBL and the NBA 2K League will collaborate to grow the NBA 2K League’s presence in Australia through talent identification, joint marketing efforts and grassroots events. To note, NBA 2K22 was in the Top-3 best-selling console games in Australia (#3) and New Zealand (#2) in 2021.
NBL Commissioner Jeremy Loeliger said this on the partnership:
We have been intrigued by the esports sector now for some time, largely because there is a significant crossover between gaming fans and basketball fans – more so than any other sport. We always want to partner with the best, and one of the best professional esports leagues in the world is operated by our long-standing friends and partners at the NBA. The global popularity of NBA 2K and the NBA 2K League continue to grow every year, and neither is showing any signs of slowing down. Our hopes and expectations are that NBL Oz Gaming will introduce the NBL to a legion of new fans around the world.
Kimball's Take:
Absolutely love this. For the NBA 2K League to grow, whether it be just game sales, scaling viewership, and leveling up the competition, it has to expand into other regions and not silo in the US. With teams now represented in Mexico, South Korea, China, and now Australia/NZ, the league is making smart moves and I truly see this becoming a top esport in the future.
Nadeshot Launches Energy Drink Brand Juvee
Matthew ‘Nadeshot’ Haag, the Co-founder/CEO of 100 Thieves has launched his own energy drink brand Juvee, short for rejuvenation. The energy drink is formulated to improve ones energy, focus and well-being.
According to the press release, Juvee is made with a blend of ingredients that deliver invigorating and mood-lifting effects for longer-lasting, more sustainable energy. Each 12 oz. can of Juvee contains:
B Vitamins, Taurine and 128 mg of Caffeine (equal to a double shot of espresso) for long-lasting energy
L-Theanine for elevated mood
Panax Ginseng (Maca Root) for sustained focus
Vitamin C for health and well-being
0 sugar and only 5 calories per can
Matthew Haag talked through reasoning for creating new energy drink:
We’ve created a new energy drink that was built completely on our terms and catered to our community’s lifestyle and interests, which are all centered around the joy of 'play.' Launching Juvee is a lifelong dream of mine that I know will enhance the experience of not only our world-class gaming creators and competitors, but anyone who's passionate about having more energy to do the things they love.
Per the release, Juvee is serving up three flavor combos with "nostalgic flavor profiles that recall the golden era of 90s beverages and match the optimism and fun of the Juvee brand." Flavors include: Kiwi Strawberry, Watermelon Lime, and Tropical Crush.
Kimball's Take:
As part of the initial launch, they brought on Twitch streamer and content creator for Sentinels VALORANT, Tarik as an ambassador for the energy drink. Combined with Tarik, 100 Thieves creators, and a number of other gaming/esports influencers giving taste tests and hyping up the product on social media, the new drink got a ton of buzz for the launch. Since this new product is created by Matt and not 100 Thieves itself, it allows for him to easily partner with other creators (such as Tarik) that are members of other esports organizations without contractual obligations in the way.
Gillette Brings Back Gillette Gaming Alliance
Gillette has a new stream team totaling 13 creators in 8 countries with names such as Andre “TypicalGamer” Rebello and and Kyle “FaZe Mongraal" Jackson. Throughout the year, Gillette’s streamers will create custom livestream content for YouTube and Twitch, while sharing details of their personal grooming regimens.
According to SBJ, previous Gillette ambassadors include names like Dr. Lupo and David “TheGrefG” Cánovas Martínez. Last year’s Gillette Bed Battles, a solo Fortnite tournament format, amassed approximately half a million players. Two new playable versions of last year’s map will be rolled out, and a third custom Fortnite experience will be created for the Gillette Cup, appearing next year.
Gillette worked with management agency Loaded and Communications agency Ketchum for this partnership. A Gillette spokesperson said this about the revamped Gillette Gaming Alliance:
Gaming is truly borderless, and Gillette consumers live in virtually every nation in the world. It was a natural progression for the Gillette Gaming Alliance to expand over its five years to include some of the best gamers from across the globe.