TSXV-listed ESE Entertainment, through its K1CK esports team, has formed a partnership with Portuguese Premier League football team Rio Ave FC. 

The deal will see ESE manage and create esports-related content, while ESE’s esports team, K1CK, will help the club develop an esports and gaming infrastructure, in a collaboration that is beneficial to both parties.

This will include the organisation and management of esports events at Rio Ave FC’s stadium, and management of certain esports operations. K1CK players will also be representing Rio Ave FC in FIFA competitions, as they attempt to qualify for the eChampions League. 

Commenting on the deal Rio Ave’s Director of Marketing, Nuno Santos, said:

“This partnership between Rio Ave FC and K1CK is indeed a great opportunity for both of these ambitious organisations to work together and achieve excellent results.

“K1CK brings us the experience in the esports world that we have been struggling for years to reach, so it’s with the utmost pleasure that we will work together with an esports brand such as K1CK, that has attained so much international prestige.”

While CEO of ESE, Konrad Wasiela, added:

“It is with great pleasure that we announce a partnership between K1CK and Rio Ave FC, a Premier League football club in Portugal. Premier League soccer in Europe is one of the most prestigious levels of sport globally.

“We are absolutely thrilled at the opportunity to build out the gaming and esports business with Rio Ave FC. We look forward to many fruitful collaborations throughout 2021 and beyond with Rio Ave FC.”

As previously reported, in November 2020, ESE entered into an asset purchase agreement with the owner of K1CK Esports Club, Pedro Fernandes. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Entering esports successfully requires a lot of expertise and significant resources, so even major football clubs, it makes a lot of sense to partner with existing esports companies and organisations. Other footballing giants that have gone down a similar route include AC Milan with QLASH, Leeds United with Ninjas in Pyjamas, and Olympique de Marseille with Grizi Esport. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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Greentube, the NOVOMATIC Interactive division, has acquired Austria-based blockchain-powered esports betting platform HERO. 

HERO’s herosphere.gg platform allows players to create their own contests and compete against each other on the outcome of games, cutting out the bookmaker middleman altogether. 

The company’s proprietary HEROcoin serves as the currency for the platform, and guarantees all transactions are transparent and secure. 

Herosphere.gg already has over 300,000 players, and the HEROnetwork can also also be used to enable any type of pooling, betting, fantasy, or poker systems. 

Discussing the acquisition CFO/CGO at Greentube, Michael Bauer, said:

“At Greentube, we aim to hold a leading position when it comes to adopting new trends and technology, and with HERO’s unique products, we have acquired an innovative and exciting business that will see us move into uncharted territory. 

“The esports and blockchain space offers a lot of possibility for the gaming sector and will open up new doors for us as a company. We are excited to explore the possibilities that lie ahead together with HERO.”

While CEO at HERO, Paul Polterauer, added:

“Our objective has always been to change the nature of online betting and bring innovation and new technology into the sector by offering something completely different. Our products challenge the old concept that the house always wins and instead let users build a community that better benefits them. 

“Being acquired by such a renowned company as Greentube is a huge testament to the hard work we have put into developing and evolving our products. Together with Greentube, we will be able to reach new heights.”

And, CTO at HERO, Philip Peinsold, said:

“Our HEROnetwork was created to challenge the conditions and lack of transparency and trust that we see with traditional betting systems today. Through our blockchain technology, we have succeeded in our objective to revolutionise the betting market and to bring back the social element with the peer-to-peer approach. 

“Greentube shares our vision to innovate the industry, and we are thrilled to now join forces. Together, we will continue to evolve our products and offer players something different.”

AYO.NEWS says:

The entry into esports and blockchain by one of the iGaming world’s biggest players is sure to cause a bit of a stir, and very much signals that even those entrenched in the traditional online casino sphere are now waking up and smelling the coffee. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2019-2021.

Simona catches up with Quentin Martin, CEO of Real Luck Group Ltd, operator of esports-first betting platform Luckbox, to find out whats been happening since the company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange in Toronto.

AYO.NEWS first interviewed Quentin back in August 2020, when Luckbox was seeing business boom and preparing for its TSX listing. Since then, the platform has added even more features, seen the growth of esports betting continue, and launched traditional sports betting too.

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From Baywatch babes to the Backstreet Boys (if you’re AYO.NEWS’ Simona), sexy celebrities have always generated millions of crushes. But, increasingly, it’s not even real people, but rather video game characters who are getting pulses racing. 

Yep, even if we go back to 1996 and the first Tomb Raider game, the razer-boobed Lara Croft was, quite literally, pointing to the future! And, as graphics got better, and a whole generation of character designers liberated their imaginations from the constraints of things like gravity and space for vital organs, and hotness went to a new level. 

So, which fictional characters from video games are fantasised about the most? Has ever improving graphics enabled Miss Croft to keep a lead, or has some other young upstart knocked her off the top spot? Maybe a certain beauty from League of Legends or Overwatch? And, what about the guys? Are girls still melting over Link from The Legend of Zelda Series, or have things taken a distinctly more brutal turn with a brute from The Witcher?

Well, we can find out, because those frustrated geeks over at Goodluckmate have done hours of tedious research to find out the most searched for characters (human-based only!), and the results might surprise you. 

Sexiest Female Video Game Characters

1. Lara Croft – Tomb Raider Series 1996-2018 
2. Samus Aran – Metroid Series ,1986-2017 
3. Jill Valentine – Resident Evil Series, 1996-2020 
4. Chun Li – Street Fighter, 1991- 
5. Widowmaker – Overwatch, 2016 
6. Rosalina – Super Mario Galaxy, 2007
7. Bayonetta – Bayonetta, 2009-
8. Tifa Lockhart – Final Fantasy VII, 1997
9. Palutena – Kid Icarus, 1986-2012
10. Ada Wong – Resident Evil, 1998-2012
11. Princess Zelda – The Legend of Zelda, 1986-
12. Sonya Blade – Mortal Kombat, 1992-

Sexiest Male Video Game Characters

1. Link – The Legend of Zelda Series, 2006
2. Geralt of Rivia – The Witcher Series, 2015
3. Master Chief – Halo Series, 2014
4. Cloud Strife – Final Fantasy VII, 1997
5. Sephiroth – Final Fantasy VII, 1997
6. Vega – Street Fighter V, 2016
7. Kratos – God of War, 2005-
8. Dante – Devil May Cry, 2005
9. Chris Redfield – Resident Evil, 1996
10. Kano – Mortal Kombat, 2011-2019
11. Nathan Drake – Uncharted, 2007
12. Vergil – Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening, 2005

So, there you go, it seems Lara is still on top among the girls, and I’m a little surprised not to see Jinx on there, but maybe that’s just my taste! 

You can find our more details, including the exact number of searches, and methodology at Goodluckmate. 

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Real Luck Group Ltd (TSX.V: LUCK), has appointed former Dunder, Mr Green, and Electronic Arts Executive Thomas Rosander as Luckbox’s Chief Customer Officer. 

Mr. Rosander is an experienced igaming executive whose former positions include Chief Executive Officer of Dunder Casino, Chief Product Officer at Mr Green Online Casino, and Section Head Business Intelligence at bwin. Mr. Rosander was also Engagement Director and Business Intelligence Director at game developer Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA).

Discussing the appointment CEO at Real Luck Group Ltd, Quentin Martin, said:

“Having a CCO like Thomas, who has the industry experience and relationships is crucial as Luckbox executes on its customer acquisition strategy.

“The Luckbox team comprises a mix of igaming and esports experience and Thomas fits in perfectly with that ethos, as his resume will testify. We have big plans for growth in 2021 and beyond, and Thomas will play a leading role in helping us deliver on our targets. This is a key role in growing our business and I am delighted to have someone of Thomas’s caliber on board.”

While Rosander himself added:

“Luckbox is one of the most exciting companies in the igaming space and I am thrilled to be joining the team. The rapid growth and huge potential of esports betting is well documented and I am looking forward to working with the team and using my skills and experience to ensure Luckbox is at the forefront of this exciting industry.”

Grant of Stock Options

The Board of Directors have granted an aggregate of 850,000 stock options to Mr. Rosander. The options were granted under the Company’s stock option plan and in accordance with the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Each option is exercisable to acquire one common share of the Company, for three years, at an exercise price of $0.97, based on the closing price of the Company’s shares on February 4, 2021. Options shall vest over a three-year period with 10% vesting immediately, 10% vesting six months from grant date and 20% vesting every six months therafter.

Staying with Luckbox, last week the esports-first betting operator went live with traditional sports betting, via an expanded partnership with EveryMatrix. 

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Mobile game developer and publisher Homa Games has raised $15M USD in a seed round led by Idinvest Partners, e.ventures, and business angels. 

Founded in 2018, France-based Homa Games has focused on developing HyperCasual games, and now has more than 30 apps in its portfolio, including hits like Tower Color, Sky Roller, and NERF Epic Pranks!

Over the past year, despite the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, Paris-based Homa Games has quadrupled its team, expanding with offices in Toulouse, Lisbon, and Skopje. It has also absorbed free-to-play mobile studio IRL Team. 

By 2021 Homa Games consolidated its growth by hiring key management figures, including VP of Operations, Julien Bourhis, previously project leader for Boston Consulting Group, Naveen Mewani, Head of Growth Strategies and Romain Levrini, VP of Finance.

The company’s titles have now notched up over 250 million downloads, with NERF Epic Pranks! – one of the first IP HyperCasual games on the market – being one of the best performers. Looking ahead, Homa says it will be using its new capital to help further diversify and expand its portfolio, innovate and create new tech in User Acquisition and Monetisation. 

The company will combine its expertise with the experience of Idinvest Partners, a European venture capital firm and holder of the Venture 2020 fund prize by Private Equity Magazine, and e.ventures, a leading early-stage early-stage American venture capital fund which invested in Farfetch, Sonos, Scopely, Blinkist and Gopuff among other companies. 

OneRagtime, a French venture capital fund is also participating in the round. Renowned business angels invested in the company including Jean-Marie Messier (ex-Vivendi CEO), Vladimir Lasocki (Managing Director and Co-Head Carlyle Europe Technology Partners), John Cheng (ex-GM Data Products at Unity) & Alexis Bonillo (Co-Founder of Zenly).

Benoist Grossmann, Managing Partner at Idinvest Partners, and Jonathan Userovici, Partner at e.ventures are joining the board of Homa Games.

Commenting on the news Homa Games CRO and Co-founder, Oliver le Bas, said:

“Resilience, task ownership and teamwork are the basis of Homa Games culture, and what allowed us not only to be fully operational during the lockdown, but succeeding in innovation and growth.”

While Homa Games CEO & Co-Founder , Daniel Nathan, added:

“HyperCasual is paving the way for a new production flow to release fun games at a very fast speed. At Homa, we are creating technologies to push this vision a step further, and our goal is to disrupt the content creation process to release the most entertaining apps to a massive audience. We unlock the creativity of developers around the world. This Seed round will enable us to invest further in talents, IP licensing, and products.”

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