London-based esports organisation Fnatic has announced the appointment of Lucien Boyer as its new Chairman. 

Boyer has amassed over two decades of experience in the sports and entertainment industry, and is regarded as a pioneer in sponsorship activation, branded content, experiential marketing, fan engagement, and social entertainment. 

In addition to co-founding Inspiring Sport Capital and being Chairman of Global Sports Week, Boyer has also been Chief Marketing Officer at media conglomerate Vivendi, and Global President and CEO of Havas Sports and Entertainment. 

Boyer is succeeding non-executive Chairman, Nick Fry, who will remain as an advisor to Fnatic. The organisation has also made two additional key hires, in the form of Soroya Sobh, as Head of Talent Management, and George Mead, as Interim Partnerships Director. 

Sobh previously ran her own artist management agency, where she worked with well-known creators including Above & Beyond, and Benny Benassi. Mead was previously with Beko, leading global brand management and partnerships, where he spearheaded the Beko #EatLikeAPro campaign with FC Barcelona and UNICEF. 

Regarding the new appointments Founder and CEO of Fnatic, Sam Mathews, said:

“At Fnatic, we are always on the search for top talent across industries, and we are excited to welcome Lucien to leverage his deep expertise and network within the media and sports landscape.

“As a leader in esports performance, we are constantly working towards a more diverse and inclusive future, and we pride ourselves on being an equal opportunity employer as we continue to grow our business in 2020 and beyond. The team looks forward to working closely with both Soraya and George to ensure Fnatic continues to be at the top.”

While Boyer added:

“I am humbled to join a highly successful organisation led by such a visionary founder and CEO.

“There is no doubt that esports represents the most promising new frontier for sports, bringing it closer to the entertainment world. I believe that my unique mix of experience and leadership in brand, sport, media and the entertainment business will help guide Fnatic through the next stage of its success story.”

Staying with Fnatic, earlier this month the organisation announced a two-year partnership with global tech and betting company Parimatch. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Fnatic are again proving that successful esports organisations are now able to easily attract top talent from the traditional sports and entertainment sectors. We’re sure Boyer, Sobh, and Mead will fit right into the organisation, and their experience will come in handy as the lines between pop culture, sports, video gaming, and esports continue to blur. 

‘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, 2020

The Ukrainian Professional Esports Association (UPEA) has unveiled its five-year strategy for esports development. 

In addition to raising funds, developing streaming studios, opening an “esports ready” hotel and increasing the number of international tournaments in the country, UPEA also plans to promote Ukrainian esports to attract investment. 

In total, UPEA hopes to attract $100M USD of investment, of which $42M has already been raised towards the purchase and development of the esports hotel. A further $20M is planned to be invested into the project, which is based on the existing Dnipro Hotel. 

Discussing plans Board Chairman for UPEA, and Founder of Natus Vincere, Oleksandr Kokhanovskyy, said:

“We want Ukraine to be among the world leaders, and today we have all chances to enter the TOP-5 countries with the most developed esports ecosystem.”

UPEA’s announcement comes just weeks after the Ukrainian Ministry for Youth and Sports officially recognised esports as a competitive sport. 

Staying with Ukraine, a couple of weeks ago Natus Vincere signed a two-year CS:GO streaming deal with Chinese platform HUYA. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With the world facing an unprecedented economic crisis due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic esports, and video gaming in general, are emerging as some of the very few growth industries. As such, it’s clear the sectors can become important parts of the new economic models countries are scrambling to formulate. But, to be successful, politicians and policy makers need to act quickly, because there’s going to be a lot of competition!

‘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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Automobili Lamborghini’s inaugural edition of The Real Race attracted over 1.5 million viewers on social media and its official site. 

The Real Race first edition started in May with a launch event, followed by five qualifiers, and saw 2,500 gamers from 106 different countries take part. 

Germany’s Nils Naujoks was crowned winner of the first edition of the sim racing competition, played on the Assetto Corsa Competizione platform, and has won the once in a lifetime opportunity to train alongside Lamborghini Squadra Corse drivers, and drive a real Lamborghini race car. The champion will be joined by Italian Matthias Egger and South African Jordan Sherratt, who placed 2nd and 3rd with 20 points each. 

The Real Race final was a thrilling, star-studded evening that saw legends such as former British Formula One racing driver, David Coulthard, Italian Formula One presenter Federica Masolin and former Italian Formula One racing driver and five-time Le Mans winner Emanuele Pirro host the evening. 

In addition to the official competition, the finals also included a guest appearance from Italian motorcycle racer Pecco Bagnaia, the 2018 Moto2 World Champion, currently racing in MotoGP with Pramac Racing Ducati.

Reflecting on The Real Race, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Automobili Lamborghini, Katia Bassi, said:

“We are really excited that our first steps into the eSports space has proven a huge success. Lockdown has presented a whole range of opportunities and challenges and we are really proud that we were able to produce an eSports tournament series that resonated with the community.

“Our ambition was to create a new platform for fans of our brand and the motorsports and sim racing communities to play with using the virtual and real world. The Real Race has been a new chapter in our story, something different and innovative, just like our cars”.

AYO.NEWS says:

Given the popularity of the inaugural edition of The Real Race, we expect Lamborghini’s esports footprint to grow over the coming years – especially now that it has competition from fellow Italian supercar maker Ferrari, which has launched its own esports series in partnership with Hublot. 

‘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, 2020

French esports organisation Team Vitality has partnered with smartphone, AirPod, and Apple watch accessory brand RhinoShield. 

The six-month deal represents RhinoShield’s first esports sponsorship, and will see the creation of an exclusive line of co-branded products, which will be available for purchase and used by Team Vitality’s players and ambassadors. 

Commenting on the news President & Co-Founder of Team Vitality, Fabien “Neo” Devide, said:

“We’re excited to team up with RhinoShield to create a cutting-edge, stylish one of a kind collection for our players and ambassadors to use and enjoy, and hopefully save a few smartphones in the process. At Team Vitality, we’re all huge fans of the products RhinoShield produces so for us it was a natural fit.”

While Brand Manager for RhinoShield France, Guillaume Pauthion, added:

“At RhinoShield, esports is one of our greatest passions. Thus, we were looking to step in that field for a while. As big supporters of Vitality and esports in general, we are particularly happy to announce this collaboration and to open a new chapter for our company. We put our heart into this collection, and we hope the fans will enjoy it as much as we do !”

Team Vitality was founded in 2013, and now has over 40 players competing across 10 esports titles including League of Legends, Rainbow Six, CS:GO, and Fortnite. 

RhinoShield was also founded in 2013 and built through a KickStarter campaign created by several PhD students at Cambridge University. Though this is the brand’s first foray into esports proper, it is no stranger to the video games world, having previously collaborated with Ubisoft to create an official Rainbow Six Siege smartphone case collection. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It may only be a six-month partnership, and it’s hardly groundbreaking, but it is good to see yet another brand making its first entry into the esports sponsorship space, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see it extended. 

‘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, 2020

German esports organisation PENTA has partnered with NATION-E Innovation to combat the spread of viruses.

The collaboration is NATION-E’s first venture into esports, and will be centred around the company’s THAT’S IT disinfecting product – which PENTA will use to combat the spread of viruses at its new Berlin Charlottenburg esports performance centre. 

According to the NATION-E, its THAT’S IT product uses a wipe to apply a clear lacquer disinfecting coating to surfaces. It was developed by human toxicologist Professor Luthe, and a single coating is claimed to last at least one year. In addition to killing 99% of all viruses and bacteria, and making it more difficult for germs and viruses to stick to surfaces, apparently it also makes cleaning up things like graffiti in bathrooms easier.

Commenting on the partnership Managing Director of PENTA, Andreas Schaetzke, said:

“[THAT’S IT] is highly innovative and will permanently raise the bar in terms of hygiene standards in electronic sports. 

“We are delighted to take the next steps in cooperation with such a strong partner. Particularly the first project is a matter very close to my heart: The coating of our new esports performance centre in Berlin Charlottenburg, which we will present in the upcoming weeks.”

While Chairman of the Board at NATION-E Innovation, Daniel Jammer, added:

“PENTA is a brand with a longstanding history and tradition. During the whole process, we quickly realized that we share the same vision and have the same expectations from a potential collaboration. 

“With our new partner PENTA, we will finally enter the esports and gaming world and address a young target group with a high affinity to technology and innovative products.”

PENTA currently fields professional teams in Rainbow-Six and FIFA, and academy teams in FIFA and Hearthstone, and has commercial partnerships with RECARO, sunmaker, cyberport, AverMedia, INSURNINJA, and BRAINEFFECT. 

Es ist ganz einfach!

Aufmachen, wischen und geschützt! 🛡️

Unsere einzigartige Lösung desinfiziert nicht nur dein Gaming-Equipment sondern eliminiert auch Viren und Bakterien für ein ganzes Jahr.

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— THAT’S IT by NATION-E (@e_thatsit) September 16, 2020

AYO.NEWS says:

Obviously this is a very apt partnership given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and if the product lives up to NATION-E’s claims, it could prove very useful for esports venues around the world. 

‘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, 2020

The Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE), has published the results of its Games in Schools project. 

It comes in advance of next week’s publication of the European Commission’s updated Digital Education Action Plan. The Games in Schools project includes a new teachers’ handbook, a resource created for teachers, in collaboration with European Schoolnet (a network of 34 Ministries of Education).  

It is designed to provide educators with training on how to use commercial video games for teaching support in the classroom – to support student engagement and the development of digital competences, boost digital literacy and help fill the digital skills gap in Europe. 

Discussing the project ISFE CEO, Simon Little, said: 

“There is a wealth of evidence that the use of video games in the classroom boosts important 21st century skills: teamwork, communication, problem solving, critical thinking,  analytical skills and much more. 

“Video games are central to today’s society, and the European Commission should use the Digital Education Action Plan to encourage all national governments to embrace the opportunity for digital growth and employment in Europe that they represent and to follow the Polish Government’s example by adding them to the school curriculum. 

“Europe’s video games industry is worth €21.6bn and it has grown 55% over the past five years. Europe’s educators need to catch up and prepare our young people for the jobs of the future.”

The European Commission cites the Action Plan as a key instrument in the COVID-19 recovery process.  A recent Ipsos MORI study commissioned by ISFE found that one in five parents agreed that video games had helped with their children’s education and schooling and a high proportion of parents agreed that playing video games had a positive impact on mental health during lockdown. Video games were a valuable tool for people to stay connected with friends and family online, for education, fitness and entertainment during the worst of the pandemic.

European Schoolnet Executive Director, Marc Durando, commented, : 

“The pandemic has shone a light on the importance of supporting teachers to use digital tools in a pedagogically effective way. Video games have the potential to not only engage students in learning but to also turn them from passive consumers of digital media to creators and developers that shape the digital media of tomorrow. 

“The Games in Schools project has provided teachers with training and guidance on how to achieve this shift through pedagogically grounded learning activities which make use of video games in the classroom.’’

The results of Games in Schools, which successfully reached more than 4,200 teachers across Europe in 2019, and the new teachers’ handbook will be presented on 29 September at a free online event, “Learning by Playing”, supported by Sabine Verheyen, Chair of the European Parliament’s Culture and Education Committee with a keynote speech by Antoaneta Angelova-Krasteva, Director for Innovation, International Cooperation & Sport, DG EAC, European Commission.

AYO.NEWS says:

We’ve often argued that education, at least in the UK, Europe, and North America, is failing students and preparing the ground for a skills crisis in the long-term. 

Though there are many factors contributing to this, one of the most apparent is the sloth-like pace of change in the public education systems, meaning teachers lack current knowledge and skills, and courses are often obsolete by the time they are launched. 

However, the video games (and esports) industries, embody precisely the opposite qualities – being extremely informed, dynamic, and willing to embrace new ideas and ways of doing things. So, it makes sense that video games can play a pivotal role in education – not only in helping engagement and digital skills, but also in fostering a proactive, 21st century mindset. 

‘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, 2020