Immortals officially confirms they’ve purchased OpTic Gaming
Following weeks and weeks of speculation and rumors, Immortals Gaming Club today announced that they have officially purchased Infinite Esports Entertainment, the parent company of OpTic Gaming.
OpTic Gaming has been the iconic Call of Duty esports brand team since its start years ago with OpTic HECZ, Nadeshot, SCUMP, BigTymer, and more being part of this organization and transforming the Call of Duty esports scene in many ways.
Today’s announcement comes after months of speculation about the future of OpTic Gaming after the team’s parent company, Infinite Esports & Entertainment put the brand for sale following disagreements with many people at the company.
Immortals Gaming Club purchase was announced in a press release today:
Immortals Gaming Club (IGC) announced today the acquisition of Infinite Esports & Entertainment, the parent company of OpTic Gaming. The transaction, the largest change of control transaction in esports history, values Infinite at more than $100 million in enterprise value. On a pro forma basis, the transaction makes IGC one of the world’s largest esports organizations, boasting four distinct and elite brands (Immortals, OpTic, MIBR and LA Valiant) and a presence in both franchised esports leagues (League of Legends Championship Series and the Overwatch League).
“Today, we announced a transformative transaction for our organization and a landmark transaction for our industry. Across our family of brands, OpTic; MIBR; LA Valiant; and Immortals, IGC’s total audience size is nearly three times larger than our nearest competitors,” said Ari Segal, IGC’s Chief Executive Officer. “At the same time, our multi-brand strategy enables us to tailor content, messaging, voice, and experience for distinct communities and audience segments, driving deeper engagement and affinity. Armed with these brands, the best fans in esports, the legacy and tradition of great teams and players, and a newly reinforced and strong balance sheet, IGC is positioned to be a market leader and model organization.”
Current Infinite investors including Neil Leibman and Ray Davis, co-owners of the Texas Rangers, will become shareholders in IGC. Leibman will join IGC’s Board of Directors, serving alongside AEG’s Steve Cohen, Meg Whitman, Lionsgate, Griffin Gaming Partners’ Peter Levin, the Milken Family, and Steve Kaplan.
“We’re incredibly excited to work to preserve, sustain and grow OpTic’s unique and special place as the original content-first esports brand, one that consistently delivers amazing content and championships for its community, the Greenwall,” said Segal.
In the press release, there was also a mention that OpTic Gaming’s Call of Duty team will remain intact and continue to operate as OpTic Call of Duty in the league for now.
The combined company’s team holdings will include Overwatch League franchise LA Valiant, OpTic’s Call of Duty World League team andLeague of Legends franchise, and Brazil’s flagship CS:GO team MIBR. The company will manage the Houston Outlaws, an Overwatch League franchise, on an interim basis, and maintain rosters in other leading titles.
“Clearly OpTic is a premier Call of Duty brand,” said Peter Levin, Managing Director of Griffin Gaming Partners and Chairman of the IGC Board of Directors. “We are excited to work with our partners at Activision Blizzard to ensure that OpTic continues to play that leading role in Call of Duty’s future.”
SOURCE: Immortals