BMW partners with the 5 biggest esports organizations

Multinational automobile company BMW has created an “allied” partnership with five of the most prominent esport organizations in the world. The branding alliance sits between five organizations that each have League of Legends teams. These teams include G2 Esports, Cloud9, FunPlus Phoenix, T1, and Fnatic.

Passion drives us to get better in life. BMW and five of the most successful esports teams have joined forces, to show that we're #UnitedInRivalry. #UnitedAtHome pic.twitter.com/jYNQzVgzif

— BMW (@BMW) April 16, 2020

Huge Step for Esports and BMW

The partnership cover title is called United in Rivalry and United at Home. Each organization comes from a respective powerhouse region in esports. Representing organizations are Cloud9 (North America), T1 (South Korea), FunPlus Phoenix (China), Fnatic (United Kingdom), and G2 Esports (Germany).

Image via BMW

BMW recognizes the potential in the esports industry and has done similar projects beforehand. Examples include the 2017 LEC Finals in Paris partnership and the 2019 BMW SIM LIVE premiere at BMW Welt, Munich. After a successful run, BMW believes in esports and supports the most influential and successful teams in the world. They’re taking the next step by developing esports discipline and acting as a strong sponsor to back teams’ progression.

In the official publication, Jens Thiemer, Senior Vice President Customer and Brand BMW stated his excitement and goals they strive to accomplish.

“Esports shows us how sports entertainment can continue to thrive and play a key role considering today’s challenges,” said Jens Thiemer. “Our entry into esports is motivated by a commitment to become a sustainable, global partner, supporting the teams and the discipline as a whole before, during, and after these times of uncertainty. Joining forces with the best teams in the world, we aim to use our design and innovation skills to help shape the discipline in the long term. Our esports involvement is an important milestone providing, for the first time, a new intersectionality with a dynamic and fast-growing community. We consider esports a promising, growing addition to our marketing activities, helping BMW on its journey to becoming an emotive brand people relate to.”

United in Rivalry

United in Rivalry means a passion for competitiveness that helps drive the scene to unprecedented heights. Each of the five esports organizations aim to conquer each other in every game title. But each organization has lots of passion and strive, influencing positivity in the hearts of the industry audience. The fight to be number one is a clash of strength, pride, passion, and relentless drive, which represents competitive esports perfectly.

Image credit to BMW

United at Home

United at Home symbolizes the undying warmth that striving teams bring, despite facing the current pandemic striking the world. It’s a movement that lets fans enjoy esports at home and not just in a live stadium. Furthermore, it’s about exceeding limits and creating paths for everyone by being resourceful and intelligent.

To boost motivation and enthusiasm, each team will be posting #UnitedatHome and #UnitedinRivalry throughout all their competitions on their social media and streaming platforms.

Five Organizations, Five Voices

In the official article, each organization provided refined perspectives about this BMW esports partnership.

“We’re thrilled to expand our partnership with BMW to the global front and continue to uphold shared pillars of excellence and peak performance,” said Cloud9 CEO & Co-Founder Jack Etienne. “We welcome the outstanding teams that we’ll work alongside to drive competitive excellence forward with BMW!”

“At Fnatic, we are dedicated to maximizing performance and entertainment through technology and innovation,” said Fnatic COO Glen Calvert. “It is these shared values that make BMW the perfect partner as we seek to level-up every gamer on the planet. As a pioneer in the automotive space, with a history of advancing entertainment in competitive sport and working with the best talent and teams, we are thrilled to be working with BMW to build the future of esports and entertainment together.”

“We are excited that the world-class top brand has chosen to enter the global esports industry with FunPlus Phoenix,” stated FunPlus Phoenix CEO Chun Li. “BMW has a century-long history, prestigious technology, and worldwide recognition. This partnership will fuel innovation and the pursuit of high performance in this new era.”

“G2 Esports are pioneers both in and out of game, and this is evident in our incredible competitive success, entertaining content, and the energy we bring to our fans every day,” said G2 Esports CEO Carlos “ocelote” Rodriguez. BMW will power G2 as we build on our vision to create a massive entertainment empire and bring the best innovation to the esports industry. This is more than a sponsorship, this is a united effort to highlight the power and influence of esports.”

“Together with some of the most elite global esports organizations, T1 is thrilled to partner with BMW to elevate innovation and entertainment in the gaming industry,” stated T1 CEO Joe Marsh. “Faker and the entire T1 family are excited to create content, products, and programs with the BMW team that showcase our shared values of competitiveness and premier performance for esports fans and enthusiasts around the world.”

BMW Esports

Overall, BMW’s “allied” partnership is what the industry needs during these hard times. It promotes excellence, passion, motivation, strive, and drive, for esports fans and the community. Each of the five teams starts their journey with BMW.

Written by Jay Hunter