From sponsorships to industry-wide announcements, Insider Sport has you covered when it comes to the world of esports.
This week’s edition highlights the latest developments within the sector, including Riot Games launching Twitch subscriptions across several channels broadcasting League of Legends esports.
As a subscriber, fans will reap an array of benefits, such as ad-free viewing, access to subscriber-only chat, exclusive emotes and in-game rewards. The organisation launched the initiative in LCP’s Japanese Twitch channel but intends to roll it out across other channels.
This development follows a test by Riot Games which took place in August 2024.
The test provided the developer with an opportunity to explore features that would expand the experience of League of Legends viewers.
Riot Games views this move as a way to improve the viewing experiences of supporters while generating additional ways for fans to support the leagues and teams.
In the announcement, the League of Legends developer states the initiative “provides fans with a meaningful way to support their favourite leagues directly”.
This will be made possible via its Global Revenue Pool, which supports Riot Games’ leagues and teams across the world.
Expanding revenue streams for teams has been a key topic of interest for Riot Games in the past couple of months. Last December, the organisation announced a significant policy shift regarding gambling sponsors.
Starting in 2025, partnered esports teams will be permitted to sign sponsorship deals with betting companies. However, Riot Games clarified that betting brands would not appear on official Riot broadcasts.

OG Esports appoints new CEO to target global growth
European organisation OG Esports has appointed Daniel Sanders as its new CEO, at a time when it looks to expand its influence on the sector.
As CEO, Saunders will lean on his experiences in corporate strategy and esports. His main focus will be on enhancing OG Esports’ global presence and “continuing its mission to inspire, empower, and unite through passion and community.”
Saunders has over two decades of experience in the industry, holding leadership positions at companies such as Dignitas, Tencent Games and Red Bull. Most recently, Saunders played a key role at OG Esports as CCO, supporting the organisation’s strategic plans and success.
Another key experience, which places the new CEO in a unique position, is his career as a professional esports player.
Commenting on his new role, Saunders said: “I’m incredibly proud and honoured to be asked to lead OG. OG has such a strong and positive philosophy that has always resonated with my vision for the industry.
“The organisation possesses one of the most powerful brands in esports, and we have an incredibly exciting future ahead. I’m looking forward to bringing that vision to life with such a passionate and talented team.”

Blast and PGL tournament clash opens the door for smaller teams
Esports tournament organisers Blast and PGL have announced Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) events that take place at the same time.
The clashing tournaments are the BLAST Bounty, taking place between 13-24 January 2027, and an unnamed PGL tournament which will conclude on 25 January 2027. So far, other details about both competitions are yet to be finalised.
Though two years away, Valve’s ruling requires organisers to announce events happening in 2027 two years in advance to ensure stability to CS2’s events calendar. This is the first time a clash of this size has been recorded following Valve’s new rule.
The two tournament organisers are both well-established in the CS2 landscape, with the PGL and Blast both having hosted Valve-sanctioned Majors and several tier-one events in the past.
Currently, neither organiser has shared plans to change their calendar. This will mean that teams will have to choose which tournament to compete in and could cause a significant loss of profits for either the PGL or Blast.
This news isn’t completely negative, however. Due to teams missing one tournament to attend the other, smaller organisations may have the opportunity to compete on a larger stage than usual.
