David Beckham is a brand by himself and time and again he has proved his astute business sense even after the end of his football career. And now, when he has picked up a minority stake in Guild Esports, a gaming company, you know that’s because of a very strong possibility the future of eSports is bullish.
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How is Beckham Involved with eSports?
The news is former legendary footballer David Beckham’s DB Ventures, a company he owns, has become a minority stake-owner in Guild Esports. In doing so, he has become the second-biggest stake-holder in Guild Esports and is looking to raise more than £25 million ($31 million) with his investment.
In doing so, the valuation of the company will be pegged at £100 million ($124 million).
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Who Else is a Part of Guild?
Beckham will be joined by Carleton Curtis, a former Activision vice-president in this new venture. The footballer will leave the day-to-day operations to Curtis.
Activision was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Santa Monica in California. Some of the popular gaming titles associated with it are Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, Sekiro, Spyro and Skylanders.
DB Ventures will also be joined by Blue Star Capital as a stakeholder. Blue Star Capital had earlier invested £150,000 ($186,000) in The Lords Esports (Guild Esports’ previous name), and acquired 11.7% in the company. They have further invested £480,000 ($596,000) in the company to maintain that stake.
Interestingly, Blue Star Capital have also made similar investments into other eSports-driven companies like Dynasty Esports, Googly Esports, and The Drops Esports.
Which Games will Guild Esports Focus on?
At the time of launch, Guild Esports will be focussing on FIFA, Rocket League and Fortnite but the plan is to slowly move into other sports as well over the next 12 months.
The focus of Guild will be to build teams which can participate in competitions related to the aforementioned titles for starters but the bigger dream is to build a UK-based eSports talent pool, using the model used by traditional sports like soccer around the world.
Interestingly, there has been an overall push towards eSports in the UK and there are multiple universities which offer courses and degrees for the same. Here’s a list of the best universities in the UK for eSports.
There will also be a push to create a lifestyle apparel brand with Fergus Purcell getting involved in its development.
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What is Guild Esports’ Plan?
Currently, Guild is looking to operate on a two-pronged approach.
One, they will be hiring some of the top gamers in the UK to set up teams for games like FIFA, Rocket League and Fortnite. Over time, they will look to expand into other games as well with the focus on building the best in the business.
Secondly, they are expected to build an eSports academy to nurture talent at the grassroots level which they can then pluck and sign up over the years or even trade with other teams around the world!
Combine a brand like Beckham, who wasn’t just a brilliant footballer but is also a shrewd businessman, alongside how the eSports industry has taken off in the last few years, Guild Esports could be a gaming company to watch out for in the future.
Other Sporting Personalities Associated with eSports
David Beckham isn’t the first sports personality, or even a football legend to be associated with eSports. Here’re some of the others who are all involved with eSports in one or the other capacity.
- Ruud Gullit, Dutch and Chelsea footballer. He in charge of Team Gullit, which is an eSports academy “creating stars of the future”. Their primary focus, for now, is FIFA.
- Gareth Bale, Welsh and Real Madrid footballer. He owns Ellevens Esports which has eSports teams representing the company in different games like FIFA and Rocket League.
- Ronaldinho, Brazilian and Barcelona footballer. He is the owner of R10 Esports.
- Mesut Özil, German and Arsenal footballer. He owns M10 company and represents Fortnite World Cup winners
- Michael Jordan, American and Chicago Bulls basketball legend. Has a stake in aXiomatic Gaming, which owns the popular esports organization Team Liquid
- Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala, Basketball players. Invested in an eSports company TSM which participates in competitions for League of Legends and Fortnite.
- Steve Young, NFL Hall of Famer. Also a part of the TSM
- Kevin Durant, Basketball player. Invested in Vision Esports, which is an eSports investment fund.
- Odell Beckham Jr., NFL star. Also invested in Vision Esports.
