Team Liquid is the latest esports franchise to be acquired by people in traditional sports, and at this rate players and owners of traditional sports teams need to hurry if they want to get their hands on a slice of the esports pie. Team Liquid was acquired by Pete Guber and Ted Leonsis of new esports ownership group Axiomatic, who between them own the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Wizards, Washington Capitals, Los Angeles Football Club, Washington Mystics and Washington Valor (an Arena Football League team). Along with their new ownership are investments from Hall of Fame NBA player Magic Johnson and over two-dozen other businesspeople and companies.
With teams in League of Legends, Dota 2, CS:GO, Overwatch, StarCraft 2, Street Fighter, Hearthstone, Super Smash Bros., Heroes of the Storm and Halo, Team Liquid is one of the biggest names in esports. The franchise started as a community site and has grown to its current size and stature over 15 years.
Team Liquid's owners Steve Arhancet and Victor Goossens aren't going anywhere and will continue as co-CEOs and directors of the franchise.
"Watching Team Liquid grow from a community site into one of the biggest esports teams in the world has been nothing but a joy for me, and this is just the next step in our growth," Goossens said in an email statement. "I am proud we share the same vision as this ownership group for the team and for esports as a whole, and I know that we will work well together."
A third party spokesperson told Mashable that Team Liquid's branding will not be changing under its new owner, Axiomatic.
Esports franchises continue to form and be acquired by big names in the traditional sports world. On Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers became the first traditional sports team to acquire an esports franchise, taking both Team Dignitas and Apex under its wings. Earlier in 2016, NRG Esports formed under the co-owners of the Sacramento Kings with investors Shaquille O'Neal and Alex Rodriguez. Echo Fox formed in late-2015 under ex-NBA player Rick Fox.
The recent investments in esports show the potential of the industry, which was recently valued at nearly $900 million. More teams, players and owners adding esports to their repertoire comes as no surprise with numbers like that.
