British esports organisation Excel Esports and Spanish org Giants Gaming have announced a merger of both companies to form GiantX, a new entity.
This means the existing Excel Esports and Giants Gaming logos will be removed and replaced with GiantX’s. The previous orgs’ social media profile handles have also changed to adopt new branding.
GiantX will participate in the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) and Valorant Champions Tour (VCT), with its involvement extending to the Spanish LVP and the inclusive Valorant Game Changers initiative.
GiantX’s current 60 employees will continue to be based in the regional headquarters of London and Malaga, as well as a competitive performance centre in Berlin.
The new joint entity will also look to enter new esports and strike new global partnerships. Existing partners for Excel Esports and Giants Gaming will remain following the merger.
GiantX will be led by Tim Reichert, the current CEO of Excel Esports (pictured right), and Jose Diaz, the CEO and founder of Giants Gaming (pictured left), both of whom will now be Co-CEOs.
“Drawing upon our combined 24 years of rich cultural heritage built in the UK and Spain, GiantX aspires to emerge as a formidable new force in European esports.”
Tim Reichert
A source close to the situation told Esports News UK a while back that the move is more of an acquisition for Excel, with the brand going international, and Jose Diaz becoming a minor shareholder in the business.
The leadership team will also be composed of Chief Commercial Officer and former Excel Esports Commercial Director, Mark Carter, Chief Strategy Officer and Giants Gaming Co-Owner Virginia Calvo and Vice President of Marketing and Brand, Oskar Sisi.
In a press release, the pair said the new venture will unify each organisation’s competitive esports rosters, management and resources ‘to accelerate the organisation’s growth in an effort to expand its geographical and competitive presence’.
This merger underpins a core strategy to develop GiantX’s heritage markets in the UK and Spain, whilst also supporting wider European and global growth.
GiantX will continue to compete on global stages, and will create ‘engaging bilingual content to resonate with both audiences’. This includes leveraging the Spanish-speaking fanbase.
JRJ Group, who acquired a majority stake in Excel in 2018 alongside Toms Capital, will remain the controlling shareholder, with all existing shareholders continuing in their support of the future growth plans of GiantX.
Oddly, this Twitter account, disguising as LEC Wooloo at the time, posted about Giants Gaming getting Excel’s LEC slot a few months ago.
‘Our mission is for GiantX to establish itself as one of the most valued esports clubs internationally’ – co-CEO
Tim Reichert, Co-CEO of GiantX, commented: “The merger and establishment of GiantX represents a pivotal and noteworthy chapter in the history of Excel Esports, and we are thrilled to be joining one of Spain’s leading esports organisations, Giants Gaming.
“Through bringing together the two brands, each having cultivated passionate and distinct audiences, we are excited about presenting a fresh and compelling vision for the future.
“Whilst Excel and Giants Gaming are leaders in different markets, together we have created a clear and unified vision that will offer new and diverse opportunities for our partners through broadening our global audience, along with optimising our competitive strategies amongst our rosters.
José Díaz, Co-CEO, added: “Launching GiantX represents an extraordinary opportunity. After multiple achievements and years of leadership in the industry, where Giants has become one of the major references in the Spanish-speaking market, it’s time to evolve and take a new leap.
“We believe that in Excel Esports, we have found the ideal partner to continue growing. Our mission is for GiantX to establish itself as one of the most valued esports clubs internationally, and for our teams to rank among the best in the most important esports competitions worldwide.
“The spirit of GiantX is global: from London to Malaga, with Berlin as our sports headquarters. Our markets and audience also expand with this merger. So do the opportunities: we aspire to become a winning and relevant organisation at the highest levels within the esports universe. We are confident that we will achieve this and fully honour the legacy that Giants and Excel have built all these years with work, effort, and passion.”
GiantX LEC Winter 2024 team
Some more reaction to the GiantX announcement
Related article: Excel Esports and EE launch women’s esports training Power Up Programme
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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.
