Tag: eSports

Oddin.gg enables the growth of its partners through its end-to-end esports betting ecosystem. The partners can take advantage of its esports odds feed, risk management, iFrame solution, widgets, 24/7 content and marketing services. To further expand its product verticals, Oddin.gg is proud to announce Richard Kidd as the new Senior Executive Advisor, helping the company to expand its wide selection of award-winning services.

Richard Kidd is a sales veteran in the digital marketing sector, formerly with Google/DoubleClick, OpenX and an executive at Bayes Esports. As a consultant for enterprises and start-ups within the digital media and technology industry, he has planned business strategies focused on digitalization, and also supported the implementation and application of new solutions in the field.

”We are really pleased to welcome someone with Richard’s wide commercial and go-to-market experience to our team. His knowledge of business monetization and development will be extremely valuable to Oddin.gg. We have been intensively looking into some new avenues where we can bring additional value to both existing clients as well as prospects. With Richard on board, we are certain we will be able to address these market opportunities with the right proposition and execution in place,“ explained Marek Suchar, co-founder and Managing Director.

When asked about his motivation for working with Oddin.gg, Richard states, “Oddin.gg represents exactly what I expect from a technically driven data product company. The team is extremely experienced in esports and esports betting and, with my wide international commercial knowledge, I am convinced I can provide the necessary support to the further development of the company. It is a pleasure to work with this team focused not only on best-in-class products, but also on venturing into new markets and new product developments.”

Even though esports betting is still in its early stages, its odds feed is already quite complex for esports titles like Counter Strike, League of Legends and Dota2. Digitally savvy esports bettors and fans are looking for much more to occupy their time and interests, like an esports-centric UI/UX, esports stream and widgets. On the other hand bookmakers, many with the appetite to expand into esports, prefer to outsource esports risk management to trustworthy partners like Oddin.gg to stabilize the margin. On top of this, there are multiple other verticals to be explored in esports in the upcoming years.

Greentube, the NOVOMATIC Digital Gaming and Entertainment division, is teaming up with big-name partners, Swiss-Ski, the Austrian Ski Federation and the German Ski Federation, to bring back its internationally popular Ski Challenge game this Autumn. The game will provide a true esports experience, complete with new and improved features.

The winter sports app captures all the excitement and motion of real-life on-piste action, with players competing in races for the best times on popular, real-world inspired ski racing tracks across various online events, tournaments and challenges.

The new esports game, which will include suit and gear customisation and other exciting brand-new features, also grants players exclusive access to popular tracks from the skiing world including brand new ones that haven’t been part of the game before.

The all-new return of the Ski Challenge franchise, which will take place in Autumn 2022, is set to be a hit with the large, active and global community of fans. Contrary to the original title, it is planned to operate the game all-year long and not only during the skiing season. Additionally, new features and tracks will be added after the launch to keep players entertained. The original Ski Challenge game was Greentube’s first-ever gaming title when it hit the market in 1998.

Michael Bauer, Greentube’s CFO/CGO, said: “Ski Challenge established itself as a legendary title when it was available to play on desktop. We are more than happy to not only announce the return of this popular game, but it’s very exciting to be able to bring it back as a true esports mobile app, to players old and new. Especially that we can do so with key partners in winter sports. The updated version is packed with special features that the community is certain to love and we have some very ambitious plans for the franchise in the future.”

Diego Züger, Director Marketing & Deputy CEO, Swiss–Ski, said: “We have seen just how popular Ski Challenge has proven to be with players in the past and it’s fantastic to be able to introduce the game to a new audience. Greentube has done a great job capturing the excitement of the sport and it has been a privilege being a part of the game’s development.”

Christian Scherer, Secretary General at Austrian Ski Federation, said: “It is a tricky task to create a game that is as fast-paced and thrilling as downhill skiing, but that is exactly what Greentube have managed to do. We are sure players all over the world will react positively to this new title that allows them to experience the fascination of sport so realistic and enables us to reach new target groups.”

Stefan Schwarzbach, CEO at German Ski Federation, said: “Having been a part of the development of Ski Challenge, it is very gratifying to see a final product that is as polished and compelling as this is. We are happy to have partnered with the Federations from Austria and Switzerland to help deliver a game that we believe will prove to be a success worldwide.”

India is a diverse land, full of talented individuals in all walks of life. In the recent years, Indian sportspersons have outshined their competitors at various international events. From Mirabai Chanu and PV Sindhu to Chopra, athletes from the country have proven their mettle in their respective sports.

Their success comes after tremendous hard work and perseverance, but an important factor contributing to this success remains the encouragement these sportspersons are receiving from various top-notch organizations in the country. On the occasion of National Sports Day, we bring you some of the biggest companies in India which have time and again fueled Indian sports talent to achieve more through their various initiatives.

MG Motor India

MG Motor has a rich legacy of supporting sportspersons, which the company has continued in the recent times through various partnerships with budding talent in sports. In association with The Vadodara Marathon, MG Motor India presented a personalized Hector to Paralympian Bhavina Patel, who bagged a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. The company also roped-in para-athlete and Arjuna Awardee Deepa Malik to be the voice of the personal AI assistant in its SUV, MG Astor. The company is also known for recognizing budding female sports talent and showcasing its support to player like golfer Tvesa Malik, athlete Rupal Chaudhary, hockey player Khushboo Khan, and any many more.

Mobile Premier League

Mobile Premier League (MPL) is the world’s leading mobile eSports platform that allows users to participate in free as well as paid competitions across 60+ games in multiple categories, including fantasy sports, sports games, puzzle, casual and board games.  As an industry leader, MPL continues to support VS Rathanvel, a young chess prodigy. Rathanvel began playing chess at the age of seven and became a grandmaster at the age of ten. In 2011, he was ranked third in the world under-10 category. This partnership has enabled Rathanvel to compete in international events and earn recognition on a global scale. MPL’s ultimate aim is to democratise gaming and esports across the country, by giving gamers a platform to compete with the best and monetise their skills. Founded in 2018, MPL hosts millions of tournaments a month and is trusted by over 90 million registered users across Asia, Europe, and North America.

Adidas

Footwear and accessories giant Adidas launched a new product aimed at making sports convenient for menstruating sportspersons. The new TechFit Period Proof Tights are the company’s way to ensure that teenage girls and women in sports do not give up on their dreams just for the fear of period leakage. Adidas launched ‘Stay in Play’ to promote its latest innovation, and roped in Tokyo Olympics Silver-medalist Mirabai Chanu as the face of this campaign.

JSW

Steel giant JSW is known for its continued efforts towards improving the sports scenario in India. The group has time and again undertook projects to upscale the facilities for sportspersons. The flagship endeavour of the group, the JSW Sports Excellence Program, supports 49 athletes across four disciplines, including Olympic medalists wrestler Sakshi Malik and javelin-thrower Neeraj Chopra. The sponsor of the Indian contingent at the Tokyo Olympics, the JSW Group also presented the Tokyo medalists as well as their coaches with cash grants of up to Rs 1 crore.

Tata Steel

Tata Steel has a long legacy of supporting Indian sportspersons. Throughout decades, the leading steel company has provided assistance to numerous talented individuals and teams at different national and international sporting events. Many of India’s Olympics heroes have been employed by the Tata Group in a bid to support them with their training and other needs. An important chapter in the success stories of athletes like TC Yohannan, Mercy Kuttan and Lavinho Pinto remains the encouragement they received while being employed with the Tata Group.

India’s journey to excellence in sports is still a long one, but the country’s sportspersons have nevertheless made positive strides over the years. What they need is continued encouragement and support from all directions, which is something companies like MG Motor and Tata Steel are expected to continue providing.

After the recent capital raise, Oddin.gg announces major additions to its senior team with the hire of Mark Balch as Director of Strategy. The appointment comes at a time when Oddin.gg is looking to further expand its industry leading product suite by transitioning to an end-to-end esports betting ecosystem to become a one-stop shop for everything related to esports betting.

Mark Balch, former Sportradar Head of Esports and Bayes Esports VP of Products is set to join Oddin.gg to work mostly on data partnerships, integrity solutions and product development. Mark brings nearly 20 years of betting experience and 7 years of successfully running esports betting services and negotiating data partnerships.

Mark shares his perspective: “I am very proud to be joining the Oddin.gg team. It is remarkable how much they have achieved and I am honored to be asked to help shape the future of the company on the topics that are close to me. Oddin.gg is positioned very well to become the standout leader and the Number 1 choice for those serious about esports betting products.”

Marek Suchar, Co-founder and Managing Director of Oddin.gg added: “There are very few people at the intersection of esports and betting who I respect as much as Mark. He brings a ton of expertise in products, relationships, and everything in between. He will help us get to the next level in the areas dearest to our hearts such as risk management, integrity and official data. Oddin.gg is already perceived as the top esports betting choice and we aspire to cement this position for the years to come. To achieve that goal, we need the best in the market on board and Mark perfectly fits the bill.”

Oddin.gg will continue assembling the best team in the market to deliver on its vision. A truly engaging esports betting experience can be achievable through an end-to-end esports betting ecosystem that everybody can benefit from. The company believes that the esports data space is currently extremely sterile. There are many more monetization channels that can be leveraged to improve the revenue streams and thus sustainability for the entire ecosystem.

The Esports Awards, the most prestigious night in the esports calendar, is excited to present the finalists for this year’s creative & collegiate categories which include the likes of FaZe Clan, Team Vitality, and LittleJem with voting now live. This year’s Esports Awards will be hosted at Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas on December 13th.

The finalists were announced by Parker “Interro” Mackay, Yinsu Collins, & Thom “Fdot” Badinger as part of Esports Awards’ fourth Spotlight Show of the year. The show also featured a quiz where a VALORANT expert Yinsu and Rainbow 6 expert Interro went head-to-head to see who knows more about esports.

The Spotlight Show also played host to an interview with Jake Lucky, esports personality, interviewer, presenter, and reporter, who discussed Full Squad Gaming’s nomination for Content Group of the Year, an organisation he recently joined. Lucky is an esports apparel enthusiast and co-founded Esports Closet – an organisation focused on promoting and displaying the best apparel and merchandise from the esports industry.

The full list of creative and collegiate award finalists are:

Esports Apparel of the Year

• FaZe Clan
• Team Liquid
• 100 Thieves
• FlyQuest
• G2 Esports
• Cloud9
• Fnatic
• OpTic Gaming
• TSM
• Team Vitality

Esports Cosplay of the Year

• LittleJem
• Inastes_tears
• Anaelic
• Kinpatsu Cosplay
• Skydaddi
• Har_Fie
• Peyton Cosplay
• Romu
• Anna Veber
• Larissa Rochefort

Esports Creative of the Year

• Caroline Parker-Stark
• Roma Bib
• Tiago ‘Liquid Enigma’ Paixao
• Euller Araujo
• Gregory ‘SesoHQ’ Ortiz
• Ella Pravetz
• Jay Braga
• Christian Skimmeland

Esports Creative Piece of the Year

• FATALE: Coming for the Crown | 2022 Verizon VCT Game Changers
• The Bellhop | Gucci Gaming Academy
• 2022 Here we are – WATCH US FOLLOW US
• Become the Nightmare | VCT22 Masters Reykjavík Cinematic
• Together We Rise | Liquid VALORANT Montage
• The Topfather | G2 MSI Hype Video
• TOMORROW WE FIGHT | 2022 LCS Summer Promo ft. Voyboy, Doublelift, Sneaky, Shiphtur
• IEM Katowice 2022 – Immortals
• Blast Premier Spring 2022 Posters

Esports Creative Team of the Year

• Sentinels
• LOUD
• AOE Creative
• Paper Crowns
• North Studio
• G2 Esports
• OpTic Gaming
• Team Liquid
• MAD Lions
• 100 Thieves
• Team Vitality

Esports Collegiate Program of the Year

• Boise State University
• Maryville University
• University of Hawai’i
• University of Warwick
• St. Thomas University
• Illinois State University
• Northwood University
• Grand Canyon University
• University of North Carolina at Charlotte
• Southern University

Esports Collegiate Ambassador of the Year

• Kevin Hoang
• Justin Banusing
• Jack Fenton
• Adam Antor
• Sergio ‘Physix’ Brack
• Daniel Clerke
• Yugina Yun
• Nyle Sky Kauweloa, PhD
• Christine Fan
• Ryan Johnson

“It is such an honour to bring together so many talented individuals, organisations, and brands from across the globe and provide a platform for them to get the recognition and celebration that they deserve. I am so happy to see the massive amounts of growth in the creative categories this year and look forward to welcoming everyone to a night of excitement and celebration in Las Vegas in December.” Michael Ashford, CEO, Esports Awards

The Esports Awards 2022 campaign key dates:

• September 29: Lifetime Achievement in Esports Class of 2022 reveal
• October 27: Finalists for Pro & On-air categories
• TBC: The Go Home Show
• December 13: Esports Awards 2022

The 2022 Esports Awards is brought to you in partnership with Verizon, Plarium, Truman Factory, Secretlab, Sizzle Creative and Tyson Foods.