Interview with NIP Group CEO Hicham Chahine on Ninjas in Pyjamas 25th anniversary

Ninjas in Pyjamas (NIP) has stood the test of time to celebrate its 25th anniversary.

The Swedish esports organisation became famous for its competitive success in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

Since then, the organisation has expanded into other esports titles and later formed NIP Group in 2023.

We caught up with NIP Group CEO, Hicham Chahine, on Ninjas in Pyjamas’ 25th anniversary, reflecting on the past, expanding into a global market, and where next.

The most memorable moment for me was when NIP won DreamHack Malmö on home soil […] 
That was probably [my] favourite competitive moment

Ninjas in Pyjamas has now reached its quarter-life crisis. How is the organisation doing? 

Ninjas in Pyjamas probably hasn’t been in a better shape than now, I would say, especially after the formation of NIP Group, which is essentially the largest esports team in the world.

It takes a little bit of time to find your footing when you do a merger of that scale, but we managed to get it done.

We managed to get it off the ground and growing again. 

With the culmination of the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of the main list of NASDAQ (the US-based stock market index) last year, I would say the company is very much in good shape to take on the next twenty-five years.

Ninjas have been around for a very long time. So, for you, what’s the most memorable moment as part of that history? 

There’s a couple, right? 

If you look at the competitive side, probably the most memorable moment for me was when NIP won DreamHack Malmö on home soil. 

A Swedish team coming off a little bit of a turbulent period, playing in Malmö after a rebuilding, and then winning the event.

That was probably the favourite competitive moment. 

If you look at the more professional moment, I think that when you’re standing there on Times Square and you’re ringing the stock exchange bell. 

That is, from a professional level, the most memorable moment. 

And it’s also a recognition of all the hard work that we’ve done over the last ten years to get the company to that position.

At one point, we also realised, esports is what we care about and we really enjoy watching, but for the company to continue growing, we need to find further scale. 

That’s really interesting, because you joined Ninjas after their unstoppable 2012-2013 run, I believe?

I joined in 2016, where obviously they had their massive run, the success, and the fan base grew to millions. 

However, the people who were at NIP at the time had no idea how to run and operate the company. 

It was pretty much like this little chemistry team, which was immensely successful but badly mismanaged. 

After I joined, we spent two years cleaning up, and then we decided that we needed to be in every single video game that’s relevant right now, and then we started scaling it from there.

At one point, we also realised, esports is what we care about and we really enjoy watching, but for the company to continue growing, we need to find further scale. 

So that’s when we decided to build what is now one of the world’s largest talent management agencies.

We went into events production, we announced and are rolling out our first esports hotel, we expanded further into publishing, and so on. 

To reach that scale where we diversify the business.

You mentioned the esports hotel, which some of our UK readers might not be aware of. Could you tell us more about it and how an esports org decided to invest in hotels?

Of course, NIP Group is working on opening esports hotels across China as part of our gaming hospitality efforts. 

We have a partnership until 2031 with BTG Homeinns Hotels, and we see a lot of potential there. 

Given the fall in LAN culture and the phenomenon of esports hotels gaining significant momentum in Asia, there’s definitely an opportunity to offer something new and exciting to players. 

Our roots lie in esports, but our aim is to continue diversifying as a business to ensure we are not relying on performance to ensure financial stability. 

This is why we are also invested in event production, to host games for League of Legends and Honor of Kings, alongside other third-party publishers, influencer management, where we have over 36,000 digital creators and games publishing. 

With NIP, we are now in a position where we are truly global, competing in leagues on numerous continents, with players from various countries.
As such, we have such a huge reach that we just didn’t have in the past. 

How does Ninjas compare to other legacy esports organisations? Such as Team Vitality, SK Gaming, and Evil Geniuses

Esports organisations across the world all have their own unique selling points and reasons for supporting them, whether that is competitive excellence, identity, or national affiliation.

With NIP, we are now in a position where we are truly global, competing in leagues on numerous continents, with players from various countries.

As such, we have such a huge reach that we just didn’t have in the past. 

Our 2023 merger with ESV5 to form NIP Group has been paramount in this expansion, especially in China, to establish ourselves as a global brand. 

Today, we are the largest esports organisation in the world in terms of footprint through NIP and eStar gaming.

I think that this evolution sets us apart from various legacy esports organisations, with many sticking to their own region or country rather than making the decision to expand to new fields.

Lastly, are there any final words for the fans out there, both new and old?

A huge thank you to everyone who has supported us at any point over the last 25 years. 

It wouldn’t be possible without your voices, your passion, and your commitment to our teams and investment in their journey. 

It has been a wonderful rollercoaster from the moment I joined back and one I wouldn’t change for the world. 

I’m extremely excited for what the future holds for us!