Today, Immortals have announced a partnership with AEG that will see the organisation take a big step toward both financial success and being ready to take their place in the Overwatch World League. The deal will see the group host all ‘home’ matches at AEG’s L.A. LIVE Sports and Entertainment District. While that language may seem a little odd right now, in the context of Blizzard’s planned location-based, franchised competition it is very revealing.
AEG are a world-leading sports and entertainment company, and join an ownership group that already heaves with big names like Lionsgate, Michael Milken and Memphis Grizzlies Co-Owner Steve Kaplan. The move also brings Immortals closer to another big name in esports, as last year saw AEG enter a long-term global partnership with ESL which enables ESL to utilize AEG’s global network of more than 120 venues for tournaments and world championships.
“Partnering with visionary sports and entertainment leader AEG is another giant leap forward for the Immortals franchise,” said Immortals co-owner and Lionsgate bigwig Peter Levin. “With an amazing ownership group that includes AEG, Lionsgate, Michael Milken and Steve Kaplan, dynamic and forward-looking franchise management, a new state-of-the-art L.A. LIVE home and access to AEG’s incredible talent pool, Immortals is uniquely positioned to bring esports to a truly global audience.”
IMTs Overwatch roster were selected as our promising team of 2017
As we mentioned above, for the most part Immortals currently have no real need for a home venue, but the forthcoming competition is going to need teams to have a permanent home location to stage matches, similar to ‘real’ sport. Rumours in the world of Overwatch have had the group as part of the NA representation for sometime, alongside Cloud9, and this would seem to confirm they are pressing ahead with plans for that event.
“AEG prides itself on being a forward-thinking, innovative company and is committed to leading the way as the industry evolves,” said Dan Beckerman, President and CEO of AEG. “Expanding our interests in esports is a natural progression as we continue to invest in growth initiatives that further our leadership in sports and live entertainment. L.A. LIVE offers state-of-the-art venues, production facilities and an unparalleled fan experience, and we have ambitious plans for the campus to become the epicenter of esports in Los Angeles.”
As a young organistion, Immortals have shown remarkable growth in the last couple of years, and this moves merely adds power to an already wealthy and well positioned company. There is a lot to be decided regarding the OWL itself, and even if that doesn’t materialise there is no doubt Immortals won’t die overnight (no pun), but with that in mind this is a big step toward being prepared for success.
