UK-based esports tournament organiser Gfinity has announced two big deals over the past week.
Elite Series to be broadcast on TV
Firstly, Gfinity has signed a contract for Eleven Sports to broadcast the Gfinity Elite Series across North America, Europe and Asia.
Coverage of the Elite Series will air in the US, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Poland, Singapore and Taiwan, aiming to bring the event to ‘more than 70m homes’.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
Eleven Sports already broadcasts major sporting events including Formula 1, NBA, NFL, the Premier League, La Liga and more.
The broadcaster will show live and on-demand coverage of the competition along with preview and review shows, behind the scenes footage, documentary and magazine content and industry interviews and features.
“We are very excited to work with Eleven Sports as they are an excellent partner to deliver top quality broadcasting to the key markets where esports matters the most,” said Gfinity chief executive Neville Upton.
Gfinity buys US esports company
The second announcement sees Gfinity acquire CEVO, a US esports tech and service provider/agency.
Gfinity has bought the company for $2.7m in cash and shares.
Founded in 2004, CEVO provides esports competitions and white label tournament management systems, event production, anti-cheat systems, stream management, broadcast software and other services to brands across the globe, including Nvidia, iBuyPower and MLG. It has worked with Gfinity in the past.
Gfinity said the acquisition is part of its strategy of delivering premium esports events to fans across the globe.
Gfinity chief executive Neville Upton said: “We are delighted to have acquired one of the most reputable esports businesses in the industry, which further strengthens our position as a market leader in esports technology.
“It is also demonstrative of our ambition to become a global player in the industry having previously delivered events in the UK, France, Mexico and USA since the start of this year.”
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
