Berlin-based G2 Esports has hired Jordan Bellar as its new Business Development Manager. 

Bellar will be G2’s first full-time employee focused on building the organisation’s presence in New York City, though he will also be responsible for business development across North America and globally. 

Previously with Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, Bellar has extensive partnership strategy and sales experience working with high-profile traditional sports properties like the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, in addition to esports organisations like 76ers Gaming Club and Dignitas. He’s also worked for the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lighting in membership services, and the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers in corporate partnerships. 

Discussing his new appointment Bellar said:

“I’m excited to be joining such a talented group at G2. Everything from the teams to the people is truly world-class. Our vision is to blend the cultures of sports, gaming, and music to create 24/7 entertainment. We’re going to be working with the world’s top brands to take this to the next level for our millions of loyal fans and future #G2Army members.”

As we previously reported, in December 2019 G2 Esports announced a USD $10 million investment from Canadian billionaire Joseph Tsai, owner of Brooklyn Nets and Co-Founder of Alibaba Group. The capital is being used by G2 to establish its New York City office.

AYO.NEWS says:

The North American market is clearly critical for G2 Esports’ long-term commercial success, and Bellar certainly seems like a good bet to drive growth there – and with Tsai’s $10m behind him, things are looking bright for the organisation. 

‘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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North American esports organisation Panda Global has announced a series of new signings and hires. 

Fighting Games-focused Panda has welcomed back accomplished Street Fighter V player Victor “Punk” Woodley after a year, and also added Super Smash Bros. player Cody “iBDW” Schwab, and anime fighter superstar Keenan “Kizzie” Kay. 

On the business side of things, Panda Global has made eight hires:

• Esports commentator Zak “CONEY” Zeeks, as Creative Lead (full-time)
• Sports stats expert and writer Jack “Jackie Peanuts” Moore, as Director of Growth for PGstats (full-time)
• Web developer and software engineer Bien “Xiily” Nguyen, as Director of Engineering (full-time)
• Grassroots esports organiser Robin “Juggleguy” Harn, as Project Manager (full-time)
• Former Aksys Games social media dude Brandon “EveryDamnDay” Brady, Social Media (full-time)
• Christina “Chia” Korsak, as SEO Specialist (part-time)
• Deyanira “Koi” Mares, Social Media (part-time)
• Trevor “kantrip” Lukan, Social Media (part-time)

Panda Global has commercial partnerships in place with several well-known brands including insurance company GEICO, Hyper X – the gaming brand of Kingston Technology, entertainment company Funimation, streaming platform Twitch, and gaming apparel company Meta Threads.

AYO.NEWS says:

Considering the rapidly growing COVID-19 lockdown-triggered economic catastrophe engulfing so many sectors, it’s fantastic to see esports organisations are still hiring and driving growth. It seems like a talented bunch of people Panda Global just hired too, on both the player and business side of things, so we’re sure they will fit right in.

‘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

UK-based esports organisation Excel Esports has welcomed Fortnite superstar Jaden “Wolfiez” Ashman to its competitive roster.

At just 16-years old, Wolfiez holds the Guinness World Record as the youngest person in esports history to win $1 million at a single event, and is the highest earner in UK esports. He has a growing list of victories under his belt, and has secured top place finishes in both the Squads edition of the Fortnite Champion Series and Fortnite World Cup Duos.

With Excel Esports, he will continue to participate in tournaments and represent the organisation across his channels.

While Excel is known one of the world’s top teams in League of Legends, Wolfiez is Excel’s first official Fortnite player and signals the organisations commitment to expand into another global esports title.

Welcoming Wolfiez Co-Founder and Chief Gaming Officer at Excel Esports, Kieran Holmes-Darby, said:

“As an organisation, we have been carefully exploring expansion opportunities for a while and when we first met Wolfiez it just seemed like such a natural fit. Fortnite is one of the most-watched esports in the world and has seen immense growth over the last few years. Everyone at Excel Esports is really excited to get involved and work together with Wolfiez to show everyone the best of what British esports has to offer.”

While Wolfiez himself added:

“I’m really excited to be joining Excel Esports as their first-ever Fortnite player. I spoke to lots of different teams and really liked how Excel was doing things and thought they were the perfect fit. 2019 was such a massive year for me and I know with Excel’s support this year can be even bigger and better.”

AYO.NEWS says:

Earlier today we reported that the COVID-19 crisis has forced Epic Games to cancel July’s Fortnite World Cup, but the game is still growing in popularity and gaining traction as an esport, and Excel’s signing of such a young talent and decision to invest in Fortnite is big vote of confidence for the future.

Staying with Excel, last month the organisation extended its partnership with peripherals brand HyperX.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Chicago-based sports data specialist Stats Perform has appointed Nancy Hensley as new Chief Product and Marketing Officer .

Hensley has extensive experience in AI, big data, cloud and digital strategy, and was previously Chief Digital Officer of IBM Data and AI.

Welcoming Hensley to the company Chief Executive Officer of Stats Perfom, Carl Mergele, said:

“Nancy has a proven track record building and growing advanced product portfolios and go-to-market strategies focused on creating a positive customer experience. Nancy’s data and AI background make her an ideal fit to oversee the structure and growth of our robust AI portfolio. We are thrilled to have a product and marketing expert of Nancy’s caliber come on board to solidify Stats Perform as the market leader.”

While Hensley herself added:

“I am thrilled to be joining an impressive team that is driving the SportsTech industry forward with leading technology and software platforms powered by world-class machine learning and computer vision. Stats Perform is committed to investing in new technology and innovations that are improving the way sports are understood, predicted and experienced. I look forward to leveraging the unique combination of our data, along with some of the best talent in sports data science to build some exceptional customer products and experiences.”

Prior to her time as Chief Digital Officer, Hensley served in several other senior roles at IBM, including director of strategy and growth at IBM Hybrid Cloud, director of offering management, strategy and marketing director of database software systems and senior program director of data warehouse product marketing and strategy. Before joining IBM, she was a senior project manager at McDonalds.

Staying with the Stats Perform team, at the end of February we reported that the company had appointed Elizabeth Cutri as General Counsel.

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Norwegian police have arrested millionaire Tom Hagen, on suspicion of murdering his wife and faking a ransom note demanding $10m in crypto.

In October 2018, Mr Hagen went to police to report that his wife, Anne-Elisabeth Hagen, had been kidnapped and that he had received a ransom demand for $10m worth of Monero cryptocurrency.

However, according to Reuters, Norwegian investigators now suspect that Mr Hagen murdered his wife, and then faked the ransom demand to cover up the crime.

At the time of writing Mr Hagen, who is thought to be worth around USD $161 million and hold investments in Bitcoin (BTC) and other digital assets, had not been formerly charged, and is still denying any involvement.

AYO.NEWS says:

Though specialist crypto forensic firms have made significant progress in tracking down criminals using cryptocurrency trails, digital assets, especially so-called privacy coins like Monero and Zcash, are still proving useful to crooks.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

The Singapore-based Global Esports Federation (GEF) has confirmed the initial composition of the Athletes and Players Commission.

Led by Charmaine Crooks & Koen Schobbers

Focused on inclusion, fair play, education, and the “holistic development of career pathways for athletes and players” the Commission is chaired by Charmaine Crooks, C.M, OLY, Vice President of the GEF, five-time Olympian and winner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Women in Sports Trophy.

A sought-after strategist and speaker, Crooks also serves as a Board Member of the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Soccer Association, is a founding member of the IOC’s Ethics Commission, World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Foundation Board, former member of the IOC Athletes Commission, and Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games Board.

She is leading the Commission with professional Dutch gamer, esports athlete and entrepreneur, Koen Schobbers, who serves as the Vice Chair of the Commission.

Discussing the Commission and her role, Chair, Athletes and Players Commission, Global Esports Federation, Charmaine Crooks, said:

“I am thrilled to bring my experiences as an Olympian, administrator, and entrepreneur with a deep passion for sport and technology – together with Koen, we will advise the GEF Board and help shape the organisation, convening this incredibly inclusive community, and uplift the lives of so many through the Global Esports Federation development platforms and #worldconnected outreach.”

While Vice Chair, Athletes and Players Commission, Global Esports Federation, Koen Schobbers, added:

“I’m honoured and excited to work with Charmaine Crooks and the whole #worldconnected team at the Global Esports Federation. Esports is the sport of the modern era – it’s our time. Our initial group of athletes and players will pave the way for more to join. We have to take proper care of our community and keep improving the wellbeing of the athletes and to empower them to keep levelling-up their game, because without athletes, there is no esports.”

Advising the GEF Board and championing the role of athletes

The role of the Athletes and Players Commission will be to advise the GEF Board on matters relating to representation of international esports athletes, focusing on championing the role of athletes and facilitating the players community engagement with the GEF.

The Commission will also oversee the staging of a global platform to convene athletes and players through various sharing and learning platforms, esports competitions and tournaments.

The Commission comprises an equal representation of gender, generation, and vocations, providing a diverse range of skills, experiences, and competencies; further demonstrating GEF’s emphasis on inclusion and diversity.

Further expert support

The Athletes and Players Commission is supported by a series of members from various vocations in esports and sports, including US-based Melita N. Moore, M.D., Sports Medicine/eSports Medicine Physician and International Speaker @levelupdoctor; Ukrainian professional tennis player, Sergei Bubka; and global influencer in esports, WNBA star of the Washington Mystics, and brand ambassador for Health-e-Gamer, Geekletes and eFuse, Aerial Powers.

The Athletes and Players Commission is further supported by Singapore-based Tan Wearn Haw, Advisor to the Commission and Director at Singapore National Youth Sports Institute, and leader at Female Esports League (FSL),  Tammy Tang as Commission Administrator.

The Global Esports Federation was founded to further elevate the future of esports, bringing the global community together through a #worldconnected.

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