Guild Esports PLC Guild Esports signs all-female Valorant team (2738M)

TIDMGILD

RNS Number : 2738M

Guild Esports PLC

20 September 2021

Press release

20 September 2021

Guild Esports PLC

("Guild Esports", "Guild" or "the Company")

Signing of all-female Valorant team

Guild Esports (LSE: GILD), a global team organisation and lifestyle brand, is pleased to announce the signing of a top-tier team, comprising of all-women, to compete in Valorant, a leading 5v5 multiplayer tactical shooter game.

The new team, Guild X, comprises Vivian Mae Schilling ' Roxi' (DE), Ya mur Gündüz 'Smurfette' (TUR), Anastasiya Rival'evna 'Glance' (RUS), Benfakir Sophia 'Kim' (FRA) and team captain Klaudia Beczkiewicz 'Cinnamon' (USA). All five players, who previously competed as Project X, have signed one-year contracts with an option to renew for another year. They will receive an annual salary and performance incentives.

Guild X becomes the Company's fifth roster of high-achieving professional players and has already established a strong track record of success under its previous name, recently winning the Women in Games Community Cup.

They will kick off their career under the Guild banner by competing in the first-ever all-women's Valorant tournament, the VTC Game Changers EMEA. The tournament, which runs from 27 September to 3 October 2021 has been launched to help create more competitive opportunities for women in esports.

The first two VCT Game Changers EMEA events will be open qualifier tournaments, featuring up to 64 teams competing for a share of the EUR20,000 (GBP17,219) prize pool per tournament. The final event of the series taking place from November 15(th) to November 21(st) will feature a total prize pool of EUR50,000 (GBP43,055). The total prize pool for Valorant across all tournaments to date is estimated at over $8.3m (Source: Liquipedia).

The new hires take the total number of active players on Guild's roster across all games to 18. The Company fields teams in Fortnite, a battle royal online multiplayer; Rocket League, a motor-racing and soccer hybrid game; FIFA, the eponymous football franchise, as well as Valorant. Guild has achieved top results in major trophies, including the Fortnite Championship Series (FNCS) and Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS).

Kal Hourd, Chief Executive at Guild Esports said: "We are incredibly proud to welcome our first all-women team to Guild. Ensuring that women have a route to inclusion and progression in the industry is important for the future of the esports ecosystem as its mainstream appeal grows and global brands seek to reach its growing and diverse audiences. Fostering inclusion in esports is part of Guild's founding vision and our academy approach is a key part of making that happen, we look forward to working with partners that share our vision for esports as an inclusive haven."

Guild X athlete Cinnamon said: "When we started looking for an organisation to join we wanted somewhere that took us and our development as competitors seriously. Guild gave us total reassurance on that, and that we would be able to create a legacy here. We are so excited about Guild's commitment not just to us but to the future of the Valorant esports universe and plans to inspire more and more gamers to join it through their Academy."

For further information please contact:

 
 Guild Esports 
 Kal Hourd                             via Tancredi [phone] 
  Chief Executive                       7633 
  Neil Thapar 
  Investor Relations 
                                        [phone] 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Tennyson Securities 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Corporate Broker 
  Peter Krens                          [phone] 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Zeus Capital 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Corporate Broker 
  John Goold 
  Benjamin Robertson                   [phone] 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Tancredi Intelligent Communication 
  Media Relations 
                                      ------------------------- 
 Salamander Davoudi 
  Emma Valgimigli                      [phone] 
  Helen Humphrey                        [phone] 
  [e-mail]               [phone] 
                                      ------------------------- 
 

About Guild Esports:

Guild Esports PLC is a global fan-focused team organisation and lifestyle brand that fields professional players in gaming competitions under the Guild banner. Our training academy aims to attract and nurture the best esports talent, and our goal is to provide the ultimate entertainment experience alongside a distinctive lifestyle brand authentic to the esports community worldwide. Guild is led by an experienced management team of esports veterans and co-owned by David Beckham. The Company is headquartered in the UK and its shares are listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange (ticker: GILD). Please visit www.guildesports.com

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September 20, 2021 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)