ESL’s UK arm is ‘currently under assessment and roles have been put at risk’ as part of changes being made by the esports tournament operator.
@Nors3 leaked an internal memo sent to ESL staff, which Esports News UK has checked and verified to be true.
The memo stated that ESL is announcing ‘organisational changes’ to its international business, in particular across EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa).
The memo read:
“Spain and France will be affected immediately, whereas the UK office is currently under assessment and roles have been put at risk.”
“Aligning with our global strategy, we would like to focus our execution into our hubs in Germany and Poland, with the guidance of the local entities.
“The main goal of [the changes] is to refocus our entities on local growth, while supporting the global ESL brand. “
ESL added in the memo that ‘making difficult decisions which impact people’s lives is not something taken lightly’.
“This has been a very difficult process and we are trying to secure as many jobs as possible,” ESL added. “We would like to take a moment and thank those team members who are directly impacted by the change. Their dedication, passion and work ethic over the years has helped ESL become a leader in the esports industry and for your efforts, we thank you!
“It is never easy, during challenging times, to part ways with colleagues. We wish you future success.”
Esports News UK had learnt that ESL staff affected or at risk found out face to face with someone from HQ at each location yesterday (December 3rd 2019).
It’s worth noting that this assessment does not mean that ESL UK will shut down. On the contrary, Esports News UK understands that ESL UK will continue to operate and initiatives such as the ESL Premiership will run as normal heading into 2020 and beyond.
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He has almost two decades of experience in journalism, and left Esports News UK in June 2025.
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 also previously worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation.
