YouPorn is expanding deeper into esports with yet another minor Dota 2 team.
Team YP, the pornography site’s esports division, entered the North American Dota 2 scene today by signing a relatively unknown team called No Broodmama.
“We’re especially excited about this partnership for it’s a validation of our vision for our future within the eSports industry,” Brad Burns, YouPorn’s vice president, said in the official announcement. “Formed 1 year ago, Team YP is now looking to affirm its presence as one of the world’s best eSports gaming organizations.”
Of course, what he means by “best” is up for interpretation. Based off the team’s past acquisitions, especially in Dota 2, he may not be talking about his team’s talent.
Team YP first entered esports in December of last year when it acquired Spanish Dota club Play2Win. At the same time, it introduced its Team YP branding, an innocuous euphemism that’s probably a prudent way to get the team into events sponsored and run by companies who may not want the word “porn” all over their broadcasts.
Much like Play2Win, No Broodmama is essentially an unknown team with no big accomplishments to their name. Their claim to fame is qualifying for the ESL One New York America qualifier by winning an open bracket. But only one team of the 12 in tomorrow’s shindig will make it all the way to New York. Team YP will likely not be that team; they aren’t even a favorite to beat Root Gaming, their first-round matchup, much less other more established teams like Cloud9, Complexity, or Team Imagine.
That said the American team featuring Eleven, Eraj, Kengan, Monster, and Sunken may be a dark horse. Most lineups are new and untested in the post-International Dota landscape, so if the newly minted Team YP has a time to shine, it’s now. The team certainly has personality—Kengan joked his role was “designated feeder” on Reddit after advancing through the open qualifier, noting that it’ll take more than just watching replays to get there on a professional level.
Image via Team YP
