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Esports team Gen.G today announced its first all-female team as part of a deal that includes title sponsorship from networking/dating app Bumble. Terms were not disclosed for the deal, which will see Gen.G put together a roster of all-women pro Fortnite players, plus some gaming influencers.
Bumble’s app is unique among dating apps in that it is set up in a way where only women can make first contact with men who they match with. Bumble has a jersey patch deal with the Clippers. Its assets with Gen.G include jersey logo placement, social and digital ad opportunities, co-branded events and live streams and a branded streaming room at Gen.G’s L.A. training facility. Bumble will also develop co-branded merchandise with Gen.G and has added a gaming badge to its app to let users show their affinity for gaming on their profiles.
The app, which was launched by Tinder co-Founder Whitney Wolfe in late ’14 and is available in 150 countries, will partner with Gen.G exec and player Kristen “KittyPlays” Valnicek, who runs a network of female gamers and streamers.
NEW GENERATION: Gen.G CEO Chris Park said of the deal: “An important core mission of Gen.G is to give voice to and support what we view as emerging segments of the gaming community, in part because we believe the community of gamers today is bigger than a lot of people realize and is growing quicker to larger heights than a lot of people realize. The empowerment of women and creating new platforms and opportunities throughout the gaming space is a critical part of opening up the community and showing the world not just how big it is but how vibrant it can be.”
This is the first deal in esports for Bumble, which says it has more than 65M users across the world. Gen.G, which controls the Seoul Dynasty team in the Overwatch League, recently raised $46M USD with investors, including actor Will Smith.
Adam Stern is a writer for Sports Business Journal, where this article first appeared.
