Catalyst Sports & Media Enhances Esports Offering with Hire of Esports Industry Leader
14 Dec, 2016, 18:00 GMT
~Former Esports Official at Riot Games Tapped to Further Build out Catalysts’ Esports Practice~
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Catalyst Sports & Media ("Catalyst"), a strategic advisor, investor and talent representative to professional athletes and companies from around the globe connected to basketball, global football and esports, today announced the hire of Avi Bhuiyan as Executive Vice President of Esports. Since joining Catalyst on December 12 2016, Bhuiyan helps lead the esports division with Bryce Blum, Executive Vice President of Esports, to further build out the company's esports practice.
Bhuiyan joins Catalyst from Riot Games, an American video game developer, publisher and esports tournament organizer, where he was an esports official for Riot's League of Legends Championship Series (NA LCS), Riot Games' flagship North American Esports league. In that position, Bhuiyan was the primary point of contact with NA LCS teams for competitive matters and developed policy, strategy, and operational initiatives during a period of strong growth for the league.
Prior to joining Riot Games, Bhuiyan was the founder and editor-in-chief of Esports Guy, a popular esports blog focusing on long-form storytelling about professional esports players. While there, he wrote, edited, designed, and managed the blog's business operations. As a writer, his pieces have also appeared in other outlets, including ESPN. Bhuiyan holds a B.A. in political science and history from the University of Michigan and a JD from The University of Texas at Austin School of Law.
"Avi's leadership in esports at Riot Games and his insider knowledge of the industry are unparalleled and I am thrilled to welcome him to the team," Blum said. "I look forward to working with him as we transform the face of esports and capitalize on the anticipated 215 million esports viewers by 2019."
"I am excited to join Bryce and the Catalyst team to fundamentally disrupt the esports industry and improve it for players, publishers, owners and fans," Bhuiyan said. "It is an honor to work alongside such well-respected professionals as Bryce, and of course Catalyst's co-founders, Happy Walters and Josh Swartz and the great team they have built around them. I can't wait to get started."
When Catalyst officially launched on November 7, 2016, it was announced that its esports division will make investments and partnerships with up-and-coming leaders in the space. Investments/partnerships that Catalyst has already made are with Super League Gaming, the first and biggest recreational league where gamers compete in movie theaters worldwide, and GumGum, a leading computer vision company that offers innovative advertising and visual intelligence solutions for brands and publishers. The team is also advising global brands like Dr. Pepper on how to most effectively invest their marketing spend in esports.
Under Blum and Bhuiyan's leadership, Catalyst will continue to look for relevant opportunities to create new leadership positions within esports.
About Catalyst Sports & Media
Catalyst Sports & Media is a strategic advisor, investor and talent representative to professional athletes and companies from around the globe connected to basketball, global football and esports. Catalyst was co-founded by veteran sports and entertainment industry leaders, Happy Walters and Josh Swartz. For more information, visit www.catalystsports.com.
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SOURCE Catalyst Sports & Media