It looks like another chapter in the OpTic Gaming behind-the-scenes fiasco is being written. Texas Esports, the majority owner of Infinite Esports and Entertainment, is planning to sell its stake in the company. This comes a few months after people were reporting internal struggles within Infinite.
https://twitter.com/DailyEsportsGG/status/1049579694423560192
In October, OpTic Gaming’s parent company, Infinite Esports, and Entertainment would go through a pretty big organizational shakeup. The company would lay off nineteen employees in the month. Also, throughout their esports teams, releases would be made all over the place. For example, last year, they would let go of Romain Bigeard as the General Manager of OpTic Gaming. They would also release their entire DOTA 2 team after a top-eight finish at The International. Many people were blaming these losses due to them dropping a major investor in Deep Space Ventures. As a result, their teams would lose a significant amount of funding.
The Selling Point
Right now, it is reported by ESPN that Texas Esports is selling their stake in Infinite for about $150 million. Luckily, no other layoffs are being made alongside this news. Instead, sources say employees from Infinite’s support company are rerouting to positions under OpTic Gaming, Houston Outlaws and Obey Alliance. Other assets are moving or have been sold, like Sector Six Apparel, which was a clothing company that Infinite would end up selling to We Are Nations. We Are Nations is a competing apparel company that was able to land a huge long-term merchandising deal with the LCS back in November.
The price of the stake in Infinite is driven mostly by the team’s LCS and Overwatch League spots. Just recently, the North American League of Legends Championship Series went under franchising. As a result, their LCS spot has become that much more valuable, which will also drive the price of the stake upwards. The Overwatch League just added eight new teams to the league, and spots were reportedly selling at a price of $35 to $60 million. Therefore, these lucrative spots will also give the stake that much more value.
Effect on OpTic and the Houston Outlaws
There are a few possibilities with Texas Esports selling their stake in Infinite. One big positive that could happen is that OpTic Gaming, the Houston Outlaws and all the other teams under the Infinite banner finds stability. Maybe another company could help make some lasting changes that could solidify OpTic’s future? Texas Esports doesn’t mean that everything is bad. Although the ownership may be seeing a loss coming in the future, there is still the possibility that the teams can become more profitable.
These behind-the-scenes changes and problems have been affecting all the teams in a pretty negative way. It will be interesting to see how Infinite decides to deal with this ongoing situation, as well as the management of the various esports teams. Hopefully, they find security in their organization soon, as OpTic Gaming is one of the most iconic and recognizable faces in the esports world.
What are your thoughts on Texas Esports selling their stake in Infinite Esports and Entertainment? Let us know what you think in the comments below! If you want more news, check us out here!
