The Pittsburgh Knights, a North American esports organization, and Absolute Power Esports (APE), a Korean esports organization, have officially announced a “multi-year strategic partnership.” With the APE-owned SeolHaeOne Prince applying for a roster spot in the soon-to-be franchised League of Legends Champions Korea, the Pittsburgh Knights would help promote the Korean franchise in the West, if accepted.
The Pittsburgh Knights are a North American esports organization with rosters competing in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Rocket League, Trackmania, Gears 5, Smite, Rainbow Six Siege, and Madden. Some of the organization’s notable shareholders include the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League and rapper Wiz Khalifa.
If APK are accepted into the 2021 franchised LCK, SeolHaeOne Prince would use the partnership to promote the team in the West. “APE aims to gear up its global fan expansion strategies, including global marketing and sales, tournaments and events, online and offline fan engagement activities, and celebrity marketing,” The Knights said in a statement.
“I believe the future of LCK and APE lies in globalization, and our partnership with the Pittsburgh Knights is the first step in the right direction," APE owner OJ Kim said. " The Knights can help us to connect to the vast pool of extensive knowledge and experience in both esports and traditional sports with the Pittsburgh Steelers and other relevant sports-industry stakeholders."
On the Pittsburgh Knights side of things, the team will look to “expand their investment going forward, contingent upon the acquisition of the franchise spot.”
James O’Connor, president of the Pittsburgh Knights said in a statement, “The Knights have wanted to participate in the LCK from the moment we launched, and this partnership between APE and the Knights will serve as a best practice example of global strategic partnerships… Our goals are for the Knights to become actively involved in Korea’s champion-making esports ecosystem, and ultimately to share the intensity, excitement, and culture of APE and the LCK with North and South American audiences.”
With the Knights’ extensive reach in esports as well as mainstream culture, they’d serve as a valuable partner to APK. This partnership also gives them an international audience, solidifying their 2021 LCK bid. SeolHaeOne Prince joins other Korean esports organizations that have partnered with Western brands. T1 signed a brand deal with BMW earlier this year and Gen.G signed an apparel sponsorship with Puma.
Source: Pittsburgh Knights
