New York / London - March 1, 2023 – ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), home of leading video game entertainment brands ESL, FACEIT and DreamHack, has today announced the acquisition of Vindex, the leading global esports technology and infrastructure company. The acquisition strengthens EFG´s ability to unite and engage more players, fans and creators around the esports and video games they love and brings new levels of scale to experiences in wider geographies. Together, EFG and Vindex will leverage their collective industry-leading talent, expertise and complementary technology stacks to drive innovation for publishers, brands and video game communities around the world.
“The unmatched expertise and talent of our combined teams are the catalyst to drive our mission to build worlds beyond gameplay around the games fans love,” said Craig Levine, co-CEO of ESL FACEIT Group. “The combination with Vindex brings together the power of our brands with a new scale in infrastructure and production capabilities. As one, this will help serve new communities of gamers and accelerate gaming culture globally.”
“By joining forces with EFG, we are bringing together the best of video games and esports under one roof. EFG is the global leader in the industry and being part of the ESL FACEIT Group will allow us to not only expand our global footprint but also leverage our complementary technology stack to deliver a comprehensive suite of products and services to drive engagement,” said Mike Sepso, CEO of Vindex. “Together, we are best positioned to accelerate our growth plans and scale our offering for publishers, brands and gamers worldwide.”
Vindex’s portfolio of esports infrastructure companies offers end-to-end solutions to serve the video games industry. Esports Engine leads in video game, esports and creator-driven content production across broadcast, physical and metaverse events and Vindex Intelligence Platform provides brands, publishers and creators with robust omnichannel consumer data and analytics.
EFG is the leading esports and video game entertainment company with a mission to drive the long-term growth and development of esports and the wider video game industry worldwide.
By leveraging their combined strengths, EFG, operating under Savvy Games Group (Savvy), and Vindex offer an expanded breadth of solutions and capabilities to meet the evolving needs of the video games industry and the growing global gamer audience. Benefits of the transaction include:
Vindex companies Esports Engine and Vindex Intelligence Platform will be part of EFG and continue to provide existing world-class solutions and services to their partners and clients, and will benefit from additional resources leveraged from the wider ESL FACEIT Group. As part of the transaction, Belong Gaming Arenas will become a stand-alone entity and will continue to operate independently. Mike Sepso will continue to serve as CEO and Sundance DiGiovanni as Chief Strategy Officer at Vindex while taking on leadership roles within EFG.
The transaction closed on February 17, 2023. Financial terms were not disclosed. Goldman Sachs acted as exclusive financial advisor to ESL FACEIT Group and Savvy Games, the parent company of ESL FACEIT Group, on the transaction. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor to Vindex LLC.
For more information about ESL FACEIT Group, please visit www.eslfaceitgroup.com and LinkedIn. To learn more about Vindex, please visit www.vindex.gg and LinkedIn.
About ESL Faceit Group
ESL FACEIT Group (EFG) is the leading esports and video game entertainment company dedicated to creating worlds beyond gameplay where players and fans become community. EFG is built on a legacy of world-renowned brands including ESL, FACEIT, DreamHack and DreamHack Sports Games, providing innovative ecosystems for global communities of players, fans and creators around the games they love. Working alongside leading partners, brands and global IPs, EFG operates an unmatched portfolio of live events, digital platforms and developer tools that reach and engage millions of gamers worldwide. For more information visit www.eslfaceitgroup.com
About Vindex
Vindex is the premiere solution to create, extend and optimize engagement across the modern entertainment ecosystem. Headquartered in New York, Vindex has developed the essential cloud & data platform for gaming audience management. Through an integrated platform with brands such as Esports Engine and Vindex Intelligence Platform under one roof, Vindex aims to deliver unique, unforgettable entertainment experiences for gamers and developers across esports, gaming, and creator-driven content. For more information visit www.vindex.gg
For media enquiries please contact:
ESL FaceIt Group
press@afg.gg
Vindex
vindex@jsapartners.co
