European organisation Team Secret has launched its own craft beer, named AFK, with Levante Brewing Company.
The India pale ale is being touted as the “world’s very first esports branded alcoholic beverage.”
Team Secret’s logo is emblazoned on each can, making it recognisable to those who pay attention to the esports industry. Media and industry figures had a chance to sample the drink during The International 9 in August, where the organisation took home $2,059,804 (£1,667,607) following a fourth-place finish.
Pennsylvania-based Levante Brewing Company has the ability to ship AFK to esports venues, bars, and restaurants internationally. The ale is available for purchase now.
A crossover between esports and the alcohol industry is slowly but surely emerging, with Bud Light recently sponsoring Overwatch League & NBA 2K League and MillerCoors partnering with Complexity Gaming in May.
Team Secret, as well as Dota 2, competes in Rainbow Six Siege, Fortnite, Apex Legends, and PUBG Mobile. In addition to its deal with Levante Brewing Company, the organisation is partnered with the likes of CORSAIR, Uwin, ookyo, NVIDIA, Meta Threads, Secretlab, and Twitch.
Esports Insider says: We’re seeing alcohol brands attempt to make their way into the industry but this is something else. This is an instance of an esports brand branching out into another industry, hoping to utilise its pre-existing reputation to breed success in the new venture. We’ll keep an eye on how this progresses, though we have indeed already seen esports-branded beers in the past.