Gareth Bale enters esports arena with new team

Real Madrid soccer star Gareth Bale has launched Ellevens Esports, a brand new competitive gaming organisation.

The 30-year-old has teamed up with 38 Entertainment, a company specialising in bringing together esports and entertainment, with Ellevens to initially compete as a three-member team on EA Sports’ FIFA title, starting at the FIFA eClub World Cup taking place from 7th to 9th February.

The new organisation plans to branch out into further esports titles, including Fortnite, Rocket League and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It was confirmed to SportsPro that other franchise games such as League of Legends and Overwatch are targets for the future.

Bale, a four-time Uefa Champions League winner, is also inviting gamers worldwide to take part in an open talent search for the chance to earn a professional contract with Ellevens.

The Welshman joins a growing list of renowned sporting names to have made an esports investment, including National Football League (NFL) ace Odell Beckham Jr, National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Steph Curry and Fifa World Cup winner Mesut Ozil.

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Speaking to SportsPro ahead of Ellevens Esports’ unveiling, 38 Entertainment co-founders Larry Cohen and Jonathan Kark outlined their primary goals for the team.

“Ultimately, we want to be one of the most competitive sides in the esports industry. We also have content creators who are signed up to the team, so we want to create exciting, engaging content.” said Cohen on Ellevens’ potential to work with brands.

“For brands, endemic and non-endemic, they want to be involved in the new hot topic and what kids are watching. Esports teams’ target audience starts at a younger age so they can keep them engaged for a longer period of time. Brands getting involved in the esports space are capturing a younger audience, which is key for them.”

Kark added that having Bale fronting the team would help “establish credibility” to Elevens as the organisation looks to make an immediate mark in the industry.

“Gareth will be a big difference. He’s a big FIFA fan and isn’t just the face behind the team. He’s actively involved and is contributing to Ellevens. He’s helping to select the team and is giving us key approvals on aspects such as lifestyle brands and all that kind of stuff,” he continued.

“We want to establish our brand and develop a winning team and expand into other titles. In the future, we’ve got capital to deploy when the right opportunities present themselves for us to explore and help us grow within the industry.”

When asked by SportsPro about the wider esports sector, the pair said they expected competitive gaming to achieve greater credibility comparable to traditional sports.

“If you look at how much esports has grown just in the last two years, I think it will be more mainstream and accepted. Younger generations are engaging more and more. Who knows, it could become bigger than traditional sports in the future,” said Cohen.

“The likes of Twitch, YouTube and Mixer are signing influential content creators to exclusive contracts and that’s getting quite competitive,” continued Kark. “It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out in the coming years and the wider impact it has.”

Ellevens Esports will debut at the FIFA eClub World Cup this month.

Real Madrid soccer star Gareth Bale has launched Ellevens Esports, a brand new competitive gaming organisation.

The 30-year-old has teamed up with 38 Entertainment, a company specialising in bringing together esports and entertainment, with Ellevens to initially compete as a three-member team on EA Sports’ FIFA title, starting at the FIFA eClub World Cup taking place from 7th to 9th February.

The new organisation plans to branch out into further esports titles, including Fortnite, Rocket League and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It was confirmed to SportsPro that other franchise games such as League of Legends and Overwatch are targets for the future.

Bale, a four-time Uefa Champions League winner, is also inviting gamers worldwide to take part in an open talent search for the chance to earn a professional contract with Ellevens.

The Welshman joins a growing list of renowned sporting names to have made an esports investment, including National Football League (NFL) ace Odell Beckham Jr, National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Steph Curry and Fifa World Cup winner Mesut Ozil.

Speaking to SportsPro ahead of Ellevens Esports’ unveiling, 38 Entertainment co-founders Larry Cohen and Jonathan Kark outlined their primary goals for the team.

“Ultimately, we want to be one of the most competitive sides in the esports industry. We also have content creators who are signed up to the team, so we want to create exciting, engaging content.” said Cohen on Ellevens’ potential to work with brands.

“For brands, endemic and non-endemic, they want to be involved in the new hot topic and what kids are watching. Esports teams’ target audience starts at a younger age so they can keep them engaged for a longer period of time. Brands getting involved in the esports space are capturing a younger audience, which is key for them.”

Kark added that having Bale fronting the team would help “establish credibility” to Elevens as the organisation looks to make an immediate mark in the industry.

“Gareth will be a big difference. He’s a big FIFA fan and isn’t just the face behind the team. He’s actively involved and is contributing to Ellevens. He’s helping to select the team and is giving us key approvals on aspects such as lifestyle brands and all that kind of stuff,” he continued.

“We want to establish our brand and develop a winning team and expand into other titles. In the future, we’ve got capital to deploy when the right opportunities present themselves for us to explore and help us grow within the industry.”

When asked by SportsPro about the wider esports sector, the pair said they expected competitive gaming to achieve greater credibility comparable to traditional sports.

“If you look at how much esports has grown just in the last two years, I think it will be more mainstream and accepted. Younger generations are engaging more and more. Who knows, it could become bigger than traditional sports in the future,” said Cohen.

“The likes of Twitch, YouTube and Mixer are signing influential content creators to exclusive contracts and that’s getting quite competitive,” continued Kark. “It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out in the coming years and the wider impact it has.”

Ellevens Esports