UPDATE (May 25th): Manchester United footballer Harry Maguire has now also joined Semper Fortis as an ambassador.
Original article (published May 21st 2021): English professional footballer Dominic Calvert-Lewin has made his first move into esports as an ambassador for Semper Fortis Esports, a new UK-based organisation.
Semper Fortis listed on the Aquis Stock Exchange in April, with £2.6m raised, and Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell is on board as a non-executive director.
Everton’s Calvert-Lewin was rumoured to be in talks with Semper Fortis earlier this month – along with Manchester United English footballer Harry Maguire – and the Everton striker has now officially been signed.
Calvert-Lewin will be the company’s first ambassador and will be part of Semper Fortis’ mission to ‘bridge the gap between physical and digital sports’. He has been signed to support and promote all assets under the Semper Fortis brand including the company’s first team: Top Blokes.
Top Blokes are a Rocket League team which ranked third in Europe and sixth globally in the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS X) at the end of the 2020 Fall Split.
As an ambassador, he will help develop content, grow the brand and team’s community and support fan activations.
The signing of Calvert-Lewin will also allow him to break into esports and gaming. As an ambassador he will also be able to interact with online audiences via Semper Fortis’ digital platforms.
“Esports has been on my radar for quite a while now and I am excited to take my first steps into the space with Semper Fortis. As an athlete, being competitive is part of my DNA so it’s great to be an ambassador for a brand that is striving to be the best.”
Dominic Calvert-Lewin
Kevin Soltani, CEO of Semper Fortis Esports, said: “Over the last year we’ve seen a number of athletes become ‘ambassadors’ for esports organisations. The connection between sports and esports is significant, every ambassador across the industry can offer a unique insight into performing at the highest level which is invaluable to all of the young pro players looking to build a career. Our hope is that Dominic’s guidance will offer exactly that to Top Blokes and to all teams we sign in the future.
“As a fantastic athlete, Dominic will make a great role model bringing a wealth of experience from traditional sports. He is also an avid gamer and respects the art of gaming and the high level of competition and talent you need to have to play professionally. We’re excited to have him on board as our first ambassador.”
Dominic Calvert-Lewin said: “Esports has been on my radar for quite a while now and I am excited to take my first steps into the space with Semper Fortis. As an athlete, being competitive is part of my DNA so it’s great to be an ambassador for a brand that is striving to be the best. I’m looking forward to connecting with new audiences and getting involved with the multiple opportunities the burgeoning gaming industry has to offer. This exciting chapter has just begun!”
There’s another Everton link at Semper Fortis. Keith Harris, Chairman of the Board for Semper Fortis, was also previously the chairman of the Football League, the director of Wembley National Stadium Ltd and the director of Everton FC.
Other big UK esports orgs with footballer ambassadors include Guild Esports (David Beckham) and Excel Esports (Dele Alli).
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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.
