Fortress Esports, which last week announced plans for the southern hemisphere’s largest video gaming and entertainment venue in Melbourne, has appointed Strive Sponsorship to provide expertise on commercial partnership strategies ahead of its opening next year.
The new venue will be developed at the Emporium Melbourne shopping centre and will span more than 2,700 square metres across two floors. The venue, which is due to open in early 2020, will feature over 160 gaming PCs, console gaming suites, dedicated streamer pods and RPG and a tabletop game-play area, along with function rooms, a restaurant, two bars and a 200-seat esports arena.
Fortress Melbourne has been designed by leading architecture firm Populous, the company behind Tottenham Hotspur’s state-of-the-art new stadium which opened earlier this year. The facility will be opened up to casual and competitive gamers and is the first in a series of Fortress Esports locations planned in Australia in the coming years.
Strive Sponsorship was recently appointed by World Rugby and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to evaluate opportunities within the video gaming and esports sectors for the governing bodies. The partnership with Fortress Esports expands the company’s client base in the Asia-Pacific region.
Jon Satterley, chief executive and co-founder of Fortress Esports, said: “We’ve been in conversations with Strive for over a year as we have developed our proposition and raised capital, and so it’s great to finally be able to work together. Strive’s strong venue experience, comprehensive international esports knowledge and track record in building compelling commercial partnership strategies that engage global brands and drive value for both parties, means they were the obvious choice to work with.”
Malph Minns, managing director of Strive Sponsorship, added: “Jon leads a very capable team with big ambitions and a hunger to learn and innovate in an area of esports which is evolving rapidly on a global scale. These factors always make for the most enjoyable and successful projects. We can’t wait to help Fortress Esports make a real difference to gaming and esports in Australia, and beyond.”
Image: Allied Esports
