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Team Vitality Announces Entry Into Indian Esports

Teasing their way into the Indian Esports scene, Team Vitality released a 7 second video on their official Instagram handle, indicating their plans of expansion in India.

Founded in August 2013 by Frenchmen Fabien Devide and Nicolas Maurer, Team Vitality is a professional Esports organization. They have had a strong presence in CS GO, F1, FIFA, Fortnite Battle Royale, Hearthstone, League of Legends, PUBG, Rainbow Six Seige, Rocket League, and Street Fighter 5.

The organization raised $15.7M in November 2019 from Indian investor Mr. Tej Kohli’s gaming fund, Rewired.GG. This was the second fundraiser via Rewired after an initial $22.7M in November 2018, which allowed Vitality the capital to enter the LEC. One of the key takeaways from the second round was Vitality’s plans to expand Esports into China and India.

Explaining the reason for the expansion to The Esports Journal, CEO Nicholas Maurer said, “We are totally convinced that there’s a lot of potential in India, because there is a very big interest, not only in esports, but in gaming. A lot of people are very passionate there, but it’s hard to predict the time it takes for a European brand to be seen as legitimate to an Indian audience.”

Vitality isn’t the first international organization that is expanding operations to India. Established organizations such as Fnatic, TSM, Noblegg, and Nova Esports have all set up shop in India, after seeing massive growth in PUBG Mobile. 

But with the Indian Government’s ban on PUBG Mobile under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act just a few weeks ago, it will be interesting to see how the Indian E-sports industry overcomes and adapts to these changes, with all stakeholders looking at temporary solutions and/or long-term alternatives in order to harvest their investments.

Vitality’s entry during this transitional phase is certainly going to make some noise in the community, stirring up excitement at the future of the Indian Esports industry. Only time will tell what Team Vitality has in store for them. For more updates on similar gaming and esports stories in India, stay tuned to GutshotMagazine.com.

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