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The gaming organization FaZe Clan, whose Counter Strike: Global Offensive team just won the IEM Cologne 2022 tournament, is going public through a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) merger next year in a contract that would value the company at nearly US$1 billion.
As of today, the shareholders of B. Riley Principal 150 Merger Corp (BRPM) have given their approval for the merger. According to reports, the value of the transaction is $987 million.
When FaZe and BRPM announced their intention to join their organizations in October 2021, the value of the esports firm was speculated to be greater than $1 billion at the time. In addition, it required more time to finally close the deal. Although the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) did not give its clearance to the merger until the latter part of the second quarter of 2022, many industry experts predicted that it would be completed in the first quarter of the year.
The agreement is the first of its kind for the esports industry, which is still new and expanding but has failed in previous years to achieve the degree of audience and bridging popularity required to break into the mainstream.
Despite this, FaZe is on pace to emerge as one of the first organizations in the esports industry to be sold on public markets. FaZe Holdings, Inc. will trade on the NASDAQ under the symbol $FAZE. At the time of writing, BRPM stock was trading at $9.80 a share. Once all of the transactions have been completed, the ticker symbol will be renamed to FaZe.
However, FaZe defines itself as much more than just an esports franchise. It began more than a decade ago as a collection of YouTube creators in the then-burgeoning Call of Duty scene. The majority of the organization’s revenue comes from brand endorsements and partnerships, which are promoted primarily through social media outlets and the franchise’s content developers, who are not in direct competition with one another.
The organization also has a thriving apparel brand. FaZe appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated earlier this year, achieving a degree of recognition and popularity shared by very few other esports organizations and demonstrating FaZe’s youth-focused mainstream bid.
Along with having great teams and athletes, FaZe has established a solid brand in pop culture by signing artists and sportsmen like rapper Lil Yachty, NFL quarterback Kyler Murray, and NBA superstar LeBron James’ son Bronny James.
However, even before it acquired celebrities or sponsored competitive esports teams, FaZe placed an emphasis on content creation and distribution. The organization got its start as a Call of Duty sniper clan, consisting of players such as Banks, Temperrr, Rain, and Apex, amongst others. While OpTic Gaming rose to prominence on YouTube and other social media channels, FaZe did the same.
FaZe moved into other esports sectors, such as CS:GO, Halo, Valorant, Fortnite, PUBG, and Rainbow Six, some of which have been extremely successful for the organization. This was done in order to capitalize on the sudden fame the organization had gained.
A significant portion of FaZe’s future revenue will be dependent on the organization’s capacity to develop up-and-coming talent in competitive gaming as well as the creative sector. Each division of the firm contributes to the success of the others by fostering the development of talent pipelines and ensuring that FaZe is abreast of developments in both the competitive and casual gaming scenes.
