WME/IMG's Esports Team Leaves the Hollywood Agency
- Tobias Sherman-led group helped create order in industry
- Sherman says he plans to ‘continue track records of firsts’
Fans cheer and wave batons as they watch the final round of the Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) Sports FIFA Online Championship at the Nexon Co. e-Sports Stadium in Seoul, South Korea, on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015. Video game competitions, known as eSports, have been expanding as gamers seek to shift perceptions around their craft from a basement hobby to a serious money making industry.
Photographer: Jean Chung/BloombergThe four-person team charged with building an esports portfolio for WME/IMG left the company en masse, a blow to the sports-and-entertainment giant’s nascent effort to dominate competitive video gaming.
Led by Tobias Sherman, WME/IMG helped create order in an industry that three years ago lacked the regulation, transparency and legitimacy of traditional sports. Market-research company Newzoo estimates that esports will be a $696 million industry in 2017, and may eclipse $1.4 billion by 2020.