British Esports organisation EXCEL ESPORTS has completed a €20m (~£17m) investment round to fund its expansion and new headquarters.
The round, which was first reported by Sky News, was led by investment firm JRJ Group. The company previously acquired a majority shareholding in EXCEL in 2018 alongside TOMS Capital LLC.
RELATED: EXCEL ESPORTS partners with AndaSeat
According to a release sent by EXCEL ESPORTS, the funding will be used to help the organisation improve its infrastructure, this includes its new London headquarters, launching ‘operations into new territories’, and developing its digital platform XL.gg.
IPGL Ltd, the family office of Michael Spencer; the family office of Alan Howard; and international private equity firm TNF Investments, have also become new investors in the organisation.
EXCEL’s headquarters in Shoreditch, London is expected to open this Summer. The HQ is expected to become a ‘central hub’ for the organisation’s business operations and will be used for talent streams and content production, as well as partner and media events. In addition, the facility will also be the home for EXCEL’s departments.
Wouter Sleijffers, CEO of EXCEL, commented: “Together with our investors, I’m truly excited to be entering the next chapter, building on EXCEL’s legacy and realising our shared vision for the future of esports and gaming. In a very short space of time, EXCEL has cemented itself at the top of British esports attracting significant support from investors, partners, our ambassador Dele Alli, and all on and off-stage talent.
“We now have all the elements in place to aim for more, to go from a household name in UK esports to an internationally recognised, diverse British gaming brand with the ability to derive maximum value from ongoing sector expansion and the growing digitisation of consumer behaviour.”
2021 has been a hectic year for the esports organisation. Over the last six months, EXCEL has secured partnerships with the likes of AndaSeat, Sony, and Eleiko among others. Moreover, the organisation expanded into competitive Fortnite and VALORANT.
RELATED: EXCEL ESPORTS secures Sony smartphone partnership
Esports Insider says: This is a significant investment figure into EXCEL and so it’ll be very interesting to see where this amount will be funded. Moreover, EXCEL’s HQ in London has been in the works for a while now and so it’s good to see some images of what the facility will potentially look like.