by: Tanner Simkins
ReKTGlobal, launched in 2016 as an advisory business in the eSports space, Monday announced an impressive business expansion with the official launch of three new ventures for the business community; ReKTVenues, ReKTLive and ReKTMedia.
These new ventures are designed to help bridge the gap between the multi-billion-dollar business of traditional sports and the burgeoning business of esports and competitive gaming. The new extensions will meet the growing demand of existing businesses in professional sports and entertainment, from teams and venues to brands and media companies, looking to expand and attract millennials and gamers. They will help companies interested in creating authentic media content for esports fans, and festival and convention producers who want to bring unique esports experiences to their events.
“My vision is that every city will have an esports venue and every professional sports team will have an esports strategy,” said founder Amish Shah in a release. “ReKTGlobal has the solutions to help them navigate through the ecosystem,” continued Shah, an early investor in the esports space with Gameco, the “First Video Game Slot Machine,” professional esports Team EnVyUs and Drone Racing League before finding the sweet spot of esports infrastructure building with ReKTGlobal.
“We view ReKTGlobal as a Rising Tide to Lift all Ships; an infrastructure business in support of the esports and broader gaming marketplaces,” added co-founder and CEO David Bialek. “ReKTGlobal will make it easy for anyone to enjoy, participate or work in esports anytime and anywhere.”
The ReKTGlobal executive team includes founder Shah, also a founding partner of venture capital firm SierraMaya360, who was joined in 2017 by co-founders Bialek, a 25-year sports marketing veteran and Sports Business Journal 40 Under 40 recipient; Christopher J. Steele and Christopher Golden of Sterling Select, a venture development and investment platform affiliated with Sterling Equities; and Counsel Charles Baker, a top sports, media and entertainment attorney.
“We at Sterling Select, considered partnering with Amish in his investment in Team EnVyUs in early 2016 but ultimately decided it was too nascent and unchartered at the time,” said managing partner Christopher J. Steele. “However, when Amish came to me and shared his vision for ReKTGlobal and esports infrastructure, I determined that it was a better fit for the Select platform. Given the estimates of the growth of the industry, Select’s sees ReKTGlobal as being in the right space, at the right time with the right team, which we are excited to be an integral part of as co-founders.”
Also joining the team is Vice President of Esports Kevin Knocke, an industry go-to who has led content and events for partners like Blizzard Entertainment, IGN, SiriusXM, Sony, SXSW, E3 and many more.
Specific plans and partners are expected to be announced in the coming months.