Mastercard and League of Legends Are a New Kind of Sponsorship Deal
*By Carlo Versano*
Riot Games, the developer of the ever-popular "League of Legends," is partnering with Mastercard in a new kind of sponsorship deal that could become the vanguard for legacy brands that want to reach a younger demographic of gamers who have all but dismissed traditional forms of advertising.
For Riot, which has benefited from skyrocketing interest in its flagship game ー 90 million hours are watched on average during the regular season ー Mastercard was an ideal fit for a "global sponsorship for our global sport," Naz Aletaha, head of esports partnerships at Riot, said Wednesday in an interview on Cheddar.
Aletaha said "League of Legends" is proving to be a phenomenon. The company operated 14 leagues on five continents and has broken esports streaming records. Its semifinal match was held at the Oracle Arena earlier this month, on the home court of the defending NBA World Champion Golden State Warriors.
None of that was lost on Mastercard, which sees the fervor and fandom around esports as an untapped market made up of largely young people who have eschewed traditional media and its ads for interactive online worlds, which include "League of Legends."
The financial giant will debut as a sponsor at the League of Legends World Championships in South Korea on Oct. 1.
Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer for Mastercard, told Cheddar in a separate interview that this deal represents a high-level example of the "experiential" marketing that companies now crave.
"Storytelling is dead," he said. "It's all about story-making."
To that end, Aletaha explained that the first pieces of the sponsorship will include opportunities for fans to watch rehearsals in Korea and even "step in the shoes of a pro gamer" and play a live game from the championship stage and sit in a VIP section alongside the pros.
That kind of partnership, debuting at World Championships ー "the pinnacle of esports events," as Aletaha put it ー helps validate the industry as it faces obstacles, from [sexism](https://kotaku.com/inside-the-culture-of-sexism-at-riot-games-1828165483) to [stereotypes] (https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/the-future-of-esports-and-the-implications-for-advertising-and-sports-as-we-know-it/).
But Aletaha is undeterred.
"We think our future is so bright," she said.
Terms of the sponsorship were not disclosed.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/head-of-esports-partnerships-at-riot-games-talks-new-deal-with-mastercard).
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
