It is a deal that could mark the moment e-sports enters the big league. The US owners of a famous basketball franchise and investors in Premier League club Crystal Palace have snapped up two of the leading e-sports teams.
The Philadelphia 76ers have acquired Team Dignitas and Apex, and will merge them into what the NBA franchise hopes will prove to be a new powerhouse in the booming, yet still commercially undeveloped, e-sports industry.
Josh Harris and David Blitzer, already owners of the 76ers and an ice hockey franchise, bought a substantial stake in Crystal Palace last November. This deal will be on a much smaller scale but it seems the pair have big plans.
"The e-sports industry is primed for incredible growth," says Harris. "And we are thrilled to become an owner of such a storied franchise as Team Dignitas.