Counter Logic Gaming, the esports organization owned by MSG, has signed watch brand MVMT as a sponsor, its first deal with a non-endemic company that did not already have business with the MSG empire. MVMT, an online seller founded in '13, will have a major presence on CLG’s team-run broadcast of its developmental team’s Thursday night games in "League of Legends," a new feature allowed by publisher Riot Games this summer. "They see a lot of alignment with the demographic, a young audience, millennial, and they’re getting a lot of traction in that area as well,” said CLG COO and MSG VP/Esports Nick Allen. “They saw esports, especially a partnership with CLG, as an opportunity to further invest in that demographic.” Expectations are low for the initial experiment with the team-run streams of the NA LCS Academy League games, Allen said. Prior to this summer season, Thursday games in the lower division were only available on Riot Games-produced video on demand after the fact. But Allen said he expects an audience to grow as CLG develops its streaming capabilities. “There’s a huge opportunity for teams to give a very custom and personality-centric look and feel to the broadcast,” Allen said. MVMT also will sponsor the debut video tour of the CLG Performance Center, a training facility under development in L.A., and CLG "League of Legends" players will wear MVMT watches during certain post-game interviews. MVMT also plans social media integration and sweepstakes related to the team. CLG Dir of Sales Cailey Fiesel led the MVMT deal development with help from the marketing team. MSG already has a timepieces sponsor with Tissot, which mostly activates with the Knicks.
