The world’s second biggest mobile phone carrier just doubled-down on its esports endeavor. British telecommunications company, Vodafone, signed its first sponsorship deal with G2 Esports on Feb. 15, 2016. Today, G2 and Vodafone announced a renewed contract that extends the partnership for another year and brings it from a regional to the international level.
The partnership originally focused on the Spanish market and encompassed a newly acquired League of Legends team, competing in the regional league under the name G2.Vodafone. Sources with knowledge of the deal tell Dot Esports the renewal of the two-year contract, worth $1 million per year, also includes the club’s international teams in the partnership.
Additionally, the partners are strengthening their engagement in the Spanish market. G2 signed a Spanish Counter-Strike: Global Offensive squad, which will compete under the G2.Vodafone banner.
“With our newest addition, we are bringing more force to our ambitious collaboration with Vodafone,” said G2 owner Carlos “ocelote” Rodríguez in a press release. “We are committed to esports and are extremely glad to have such a strong partner sharing our passion and helping us to contribute to the growth and development of competitive gaming.”
While Vodafone isn’t the first telecommunications company in esports—AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and more have paved the way—the company seems to be heavily committed.
“We reaffirm our commitment to esports as a sports phenomenon and as entertainment for an entire generation,” said Cristina Barbosa, director of brand and communications at Vodafone Spain. “We want to continue creating valuable interaction and providing the best connectivity to the teams so they can continue to enjoy their passion and reach the best possible results.”
Vodafone’s engagement goes beyond traditional team sponsoring, too. In April 2016, the company launched a TV show called “Gamers.” Broadcast on MTV, the show brought the daily life of the G2.Vodafone players to the audience’s attention.
Lately, team sponsorships from non-endemic companies are skyrocketing. Earlier this year, Astralis signed a contract with Audi that was worth just shy of $750,000, SK Gaming secured a high six-figure sponsorship from Visa, and Paris Saint-Germain signed two six-digit deals in a week, just to name a few.
Unlike Astralis, SK, or PSG, G2 fields successful teams in two major esports titles, CS:GO and League of Legends, and thus, it comes with little surprise that the brand is an attractive asset for sponsors. Pulling in a company like Vodafone was impressive already, keeping it committed is even more so. Well played, G2.
