Envy Gaming

Last updated
Envy Gaming
Company type Private
IndustryEsports
Founded2007
Defunct2022 (2022)
FateMerged with OpTic Gaming
Headquarters
Dallas, Texas
,
United States
Key people
RevenueUS$8 million (2019) [1]
Subsidiaries
Website envy.gg

Envy Gaming, Inc was a collective esports and gaming company. It was originally founded in 2007 by Tosh "Stainville" Mcgruder and Skyler "Foreplayy" Johnson as a Call of Duty esports team known as Team EnVyUs. Envy Gaming, LLC was formed in October 2012 and incorporated as Envy Gaming, Inc in May 2016. The company owned and operated several esports teams, including Team Envy, the Dallas Fuel of the Overwatch League, and the OpTic Texas of the Call of Duty League with OpTic Gaming. In June 2022, it was announced Envy Gaming would retire the Envy brand, and fully become OpTic Gaming.

Contents

History

Former owner and CEO Mike "Hastr0" Rufail Mike Hastr0 Rufail - 2.jpg
Former owner and CEO Mike "Hastr0" Rufail

2007–2016

Envy Gaming was originally founded by Tosh "Stainville" Mcgruder and Skyler "Foreplayy" Johnson as a professional Call of Duty 4 team in 2007, known as Team EnVyUs. The team brought on Mike "Hastr0" Rufail in 2009 as a team member; Rufail would eventually become the team's owner. [2] Envy Gaming, LLC was officially established in North Carolina on October 31, 2012. [3] The company was officially incorporated on May 25, 2016, as Envy Gaming, Inc. [4]

2017–2022

After a reportedly US$35 million investment from Hersh Interactive Group in September 2017, Envy Gaming relocated their headquarters from Charlotte, North Carolina to Dallas, Texas. [5] The deal also allowed Envy to purchase the Dallas-based Overwatch League franchise spot for an estimated US$20 million, making them one of twelve teams competing in the league's inaugural season. [6] [7] Envy Gaming filled the roster by transferring all of the members and staff from the Overwatch team of Team EnVyUs, which officially ended EnVyUs' Overwatch division. [8] On October 5, 2017, the Dallas-based franchise name was revealed as the Dallas Fuel. [9]

On June 28, 2018, Envy Gaming hired former COO for the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) and EVP of sales and marketing for the Dallas Stars Geoff Moore as its first President and COO. [10]

Envy established their second franchised team in May 2019 with the purchase of a slot for Activision's Call of Duty League for a reported US$25 million. [11] [12] The team's name, Dallas Empire, and branding were revealed on October 19 and chosen as a callback to the organization's roots. [13]

In October 2019, Envy Gaming established their headquarters and training facility at Victory Park in Dallas. The 20,872 square feet (1,939.1 m2) will include space dedicated to team training, content creation, player development, and wellness training. [14]

On July 9, 2020, Envy Gaming appointed that Adam Rymer as the company's new CEO, replacing founder and owner Mike Rufail. [15]

In November 2021, it was announced that Envy Gaming would acquire the OpTic Gaming brand as part of a merger. OpTic Gaming leader Hector "HECZ" Rodriguez joined the combined companies' ownership group and was to serve as President of OpTic Gaming. This also brought the OpTic Texas roster for Activision Blizzard's Call of Duty League into the Envy family. [16]

In January 2022, Envy Gaming acquired the operating contract for Esports Stadium Arlington, an esports facility located in Arlington, Texas, from Esports Venues LLC. [17]

In June 2022, it was announced Envy Gaming would retire the Envy brand, and fully become OpTic Gaming. The Envy Foundation, a grant program helping North Texas middle schools and high schools, became the OpTic Foundation. Team Envy's content creators and Rocket League team were rebranded to OpTic Gaming, while the Dallas Fuel team remained as is. [18] [19]

Investors

Envy Gaming acquired several investors in 2017. In March, it was revealed that prior to becoming chief business officer of Team Envy, John Brock had invested a seven-figure sum into the team. [20] Months later, in September, Team Envy owner Mike Rufail confirmed that the organization had secured a reportedly US$35 million investment from Hersh Interactive Group. The deal entailed Hersh serving as strategic partners to the organization, whilst Rufail would remain as the principal owner and operator of the team. [5] [21] [22] Two months later, World Series of Poker High Roller winner Fedor Holz invested in Envy Gaming to become a minority owner. [23]

In July 2018, Preston Arsement, known as the YouTube personality PrestonPlayz, joined Envy Gaming as an investor and content creator. [24] In January 2019, Envy announced it had raised US$20 million in external capital; they did not reveal the identity of the investors and only described them as "a mix of prominent local investors and Texas families, as well as a select set of national investors." [25]

In August 2020, Post Malone acquired a minority stake, joining as a co-owner. [26] [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth Hersh</span> American businessman and financier (born 1963)

Kenneth A. Hersh is an American businessman and financier. He is the former chairman and CEO of NGP Energy Capital Management (NGP), a private equity firm based in Texas. He is the CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nadeshot</span> American professional esports player

Matthew Haag, better known as Nadeshot, is an American former professional Call of Duty player and the founder, co-owner and CEO of 100 Thieves. As a professional Call of Duty player, Haag was a former captain of OpTic Gaming in the 2014 Call of Duty: Ghosts season and the 2014–2015 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare season, playing the objective support role.

OpTic Gaming is an American professional esports and entertainment organization headquartered in Frisco, Texas. The organization currently operates a Call of Duty team in the Call of Duty League, OpTic Texas, they also operate a Overwatch team in the Overwatch League, Dallas Fuel, as well as Rocket League, Halo and Apex Legends teams. They previously competed in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Gears of War 4, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Fortnite Battle Royale, Dota 2, League of Legends and Valorant. The organization is currently owned by Hector "H3CZ" Rodriguez and Mike “Hastr0” Rufail.

The Call of Duty Championship is an annual Call of Duty tournament held at the end of each competitive season to determine the year's World Champion. To determine qualification, teams must qualify through events before the World Championship. Players must be at least 18 years of age as of the beginning of the tournament in order to participate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Team Envy</span> American esports franchise

Team Envy was an American esports franchise based in Dallas, Texas, owned by Envy Gaming. Founded in 2007 as a professional Call of Duty team under the moniker Team EnVyUs, they fielded rosters in Counter-Strike, FIFA, Fortnite, Gears of War, Halo, League of Legends, Chess, Magic: the Gathering, Overwatch, Paladins, PUBG, Rocket League, SMITE, StarCraft, Super Smash Bros., Street Fighter and Valorant. Following the merger between Envy Gaming and OpTic Gaming, Envy Gaming retired the Team Envy brand in June 2022, shifting all of them to the OpTic Gaming moniker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Immortals (esports)</span> American professional esports organization

Immortals is a professional esports organization based in the United States owned by Immortals Gaming Club. It was founded on October 7, 2015, after the acquisition of Team 8's LCS spot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scump</span> Professional Call of Duty player

Seth Abner, also known as scump, scumperjumper or The King of COD is a former American professional Call of Duty player who last played for the Call of Duty League team OpTic Texas. Abner is a two time Major League Gaming (MLG) X Games gold medalist. During the first ever Esports Awards in 2016, Scump won the Esports Console Player of the Year award. In August 2017, Scump achieved his first ever Call of Duty World Championship. Abner is sponsored by several gaming hardware companies, including Turtle Beach and Scuf Gaming. He also runs a YouTube channel that currently has obtained over 2.7 million subscribers and over 665 million channel views as of November 10, 2023. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest Call of Duty players of all time.

Karma (<i>Call of Duty</i> player) Canadian-American professional esports player

Damon Barlow, better known as Karma, is a Canadian-American professional Call of Duty coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for OpTic Texas. He is the first three-time Call of Duty Championship winner, winning back-to-back titles in 2013 & 2014, and also in 2017, with Fariko Impact, compLexity Gaming, and OpTic Gaming respectively. He is also a Major League Gaming (MLG) X Games 2015 gold medalist, with OpTic Gaming. Karma joined OpTic replacing outgoing captain Matt "Nadeshot" Haag on the team. He is a naturalized American citizen. As of May 2020, Karma has won $815,087.25 from tournament winnings, making him the player to have earned the fifth most total prize money playing professional Call of Duty, and making him the player to have earned the fifth most total prize money playing any professional console game. He also runs an active YouTube channel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overwatch League</span> Esports league

The Overwatch League (OWL) was a professional esports league for the video game Overwatch, produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. From 2018 to 2023, the Overwatch League followed the model of other traditional North American professional sporting leagues by using a set of permanent, city-based teams backed by separate ownership groups. The league used the regular season and playoffs format rather than promotion and relegation used commonly in other esports and non-North American leagues, with players on the roster being assured a minimum annual salary, benefits, and a portion of winnings and revenue-sharing based on team performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallas Fuel</span> American professional esports team

Dallas Fuel is an American professional Overwatch team based in Dallas, Texas. The Fuel compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Outlaws</span> American professional esports team

The Houston Outlaws are an American professional Overwatch esports team based in Houston, Texas. The Outlaws compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seagull (gamer)</span> American video game streamer and retired professional Overwatch player

Brandon Larned, better known as Seagull, is an American video game streamer and retired professional Overwatch player. Early in the game's history, Larned established himself as one of the most popular Overwatch streamers on Twitch. As an esports competitor, Larned represented Luminosity Gaming and then NRG Esports, before leaving the active roster of the latter to resume streaming full-time. He returned to competitive play with Team EnVyUs shortly before its roster became the Dallas Fuel, one of the teams in the newly launched Overwatch League. At the end of the League's inaugural season, Larned once again announced that he would be stepping away from competitive play in favor of being a full-time streamer.

The 2019 Houston Outlaws season was the second season of the Houston Outlaws's existence in the Overwatch League (OWL) and their second under head coach Tae-yeong Kim. After finishing 22–18 the previous season, the Outlaws were looking to improve on their record and qualify for the season playoffs for the first time.

Team Envy <i>Overwatch</i> Overwatch team representing Team Envy

The Team Envy Overwatch team represented Team Envy, an American esports franchise, in the video game Overwatch. Originally competing under the name Team EnVyUs, the team won multiple regional and international competitions before being transferred to the Dallas Fuel franchise of the Overwatch League (OWL) by their parent organization, Envy Gaming. The franchise reestablished its Overwatch division in 2018 and currently competes in the North America West region of Overwatch Contenders (OWC) as an academy team for the Dallas Fuel. The division disbanded in April 2020.

The 2020 Houston Outlaws season is the third season of the Houston Outlaws's existence in the Overwatch League (OWL). The Outlaws planned to host two homestand weekends at the Revention Music Center in Houston's downtown Theater District. While their first homestand took place, all other homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OpTic Texas</span>

OpTic Texas is an American professional Call of Duty League (CDL) esports team based in Dallas, Texas. OpTic Texas is owned by OpTic Gaming. Dallas was announced as one of the first five cities to host a CDL team.

The Call of Duty League (CDL) is a professional esports league for the video game series Call of Duty, produced by its publisher Activision. The Call of Duty League follows the model of the Overwatch League as well as other traditional North American professional sporting leagues by using a set of permanent, city-based teams backed by separate ownership groups. In addition, the league plays in a tournament point system and playoffs format rather than the use of promotion and relegation used commonly in other esports and non-North American leagues, with players on the roster being assured a minimum annual salary, benefits, and a portion of winnings and revenue-sharing based on how that team performs. The League was announced in 2019 with its inaugural season starting in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OpTic Chicago</span> American professional esports team

OpTic Chicago was an American professional Call of Duty League (CDL) esports team based in Chicago, Illinois. OpTic Chicago was owned by NRG Esports owned and ran by Co-CEO's Andy Miller & OpTic Gaming owner Hector “H3CZ” Rodriguez.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crimsix</span> American professional esports player

Ian Porter, better known as Crimsix, is an American former professional Call of Duty player and current esports driver. As an esports competitor he has represented multiple organizations in multiple game titles, most notably representing Optic Gaming and Complexity in Call of Duty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">InternetHulk</span> German professional Overwatch player (1987–2017)

Dennis Hawelka, also known as InternetHulk, was a German professional esports player and coach. He rose to prominence in 2016, after establishing and playing for team IDDQD in the beta release of Overwatch. He went on to play for Team EnVyUs, winning several major tournaments, including season one of Overwatch Apex. In mid-2017, he transitioned to a coaching position for Team Liquid'sOverwatch team, and later for their League of Legends team.

References

  1. ↑ Settimi, Christina (November 5, 2019). "'Awful Business' Or The New Gold Rush? The Most Valuable Companies In Esports Are Surging". Forbes. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  2. ↑ James, Ford (April 17, 2019). "History of CoD eSports: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare". Dot Esports. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  3. ↑ North Carolina Secretary of State (October 29, 2012), Articles of Organization of Envy Gaming, LLC, C2012 305 00359
  4. ↑ North Carolina Secretary of State (June 15, 2016), Application for Certificate of Authority, C2016 194 00130
  5. 1 2 Garrett, Arnessa (September 18, 2017). "E-sports pioneer Team Envy announces relocation to Dallas after big investment from oil baron". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  6. ↑ Marshall, Cass (September 20, 2017). "Meet the final founding members of the Overwatch League". Heroes Never Die. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  7. ↑ Wolf, Jacob (August 6, 2017). "Blizzard to add Team EnVyUs as Austin-Dallas Overwatch League rep". ESPN. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  8. ↑ Marshall, Cass (November 7, 2017). "The Dallas Fuel are eager to debut in the Overwatch League". Heroes Never Die . Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  9. ↑ Carpenter, Nicole (October 5, 2017). "Team Envy's Overwatch League team will be called the Dallas Fuel". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on November 19, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  10. ↑ Fischer, Ben (June 28, 2018). "Sports Industry Veteran Geoff Moore to Join Envy Gaming as President". The Esports Observer. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  11. ↑ Vincent, Brittany (May 2, 2019). "Activision Sells First Five 'Call of Duty' Esports League Teams". Variety. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  12. ↑ Webb, Kevin (November 9, 2019). "Twelve teams reportedly paid $25 million each to join a new esports league around one of the biggest games in the world — here's everything you need to know about Call of Duty League". Business Insider. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  13. ↑ Magelssen, Tommy (October 19, 2019). "Dallas Empire branding for Envy Gaming's Call of Duty League team signals 'a new era' for a storied esports organization". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  14. ↑ Montes, Bianca (October 31, 2019). "Envy Gaming to Establish Esports Training Center and Headquarters in Dallas' Victory Park". D Magazine. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  15. ↑ Ajamy, David (July 10, 2020). "Dallas-based Envy Gaming names new CEO". Dallas Business Journal. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  16. ↑ Edwards, Alex (November 9, 2021). "OpTic Gaming Merges With Envy Gaming to Form a Combined North Texas Esports Powerhouse". Dallas Innovates. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  17. ↑ Swanger, Ben (January 13, 2022). "Dallas-based Envy Gaming Acquires Esports Stadium in Arlington". D Magazine . Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Envy Gaming retires its esports brand, becomes OpTic Gaming". Dallas News. 2022-06-27. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  19. ↑ "SBJ Unpacks: Nike continues to see tough North American market". Sports Business Journal . June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  20. ↑ Dunn, Andrew (March 9, 2017). "Will this team become Charlotte's next major league sports franchise?". Charlotte Agenda. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  21. ↑ Carpenter, Nicole (September 18, 2017). "Team EnVyUs confirms eight-figure investment deal from oil magnate". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on October 22, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  22. ↑ Ring, Oliver (September 19, 2017). "Team EnVyUs confirm "multi eight figure investment" from Hersh Interactive Group". Esports Insider. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  23. ↑ Wolf, Jacob (December 16, 2017). "Poker pro Fedor Holz invests in Team Envy, Dallas Fuel". ESPN. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  24. ↑ Hollingsworth, David (July 19, 2018). "Preston Arsement partners with Team Envy". Esports Insider. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  25. ↑ Fischer, Ben (January 4, 2019). "Envy Gaming Raises $20M from External Investors". The Esports Observer. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  26. ↑ Webster, Andrew (2020-08-28). "Post Malone is now a co-owner of Texas' biggest esports teams". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  27. ↑ Beresford, Trilby (2020-08-28). "Post Malone Takes Equity Stake in Envy Gaming (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.