Oakley partners with Scump, Valdes-Scantling launches esports team | ESI Digest #32

Each week, ESI Digest breaks down the weekly happenings in the esports industry, making sense of things so you don’t have to. As well as being housed on YouTube, ESI Digest is available on all major podcast platforms and is also available in written form below.

On this week’s ESI Digest we cover, Oakley’s partnership with Scump, Tribe Gaming’s deal with Razer, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Subnation Media’s new esports team, Riot Games’ MSI announcement, and WFH League Season 3.

This edition of the ESI Digest is in partnership with payments solution firm AstroPay.

Oakley unveils Scump as first sponsored esports athlete 

North American lifestyle brand Oakley has announced the signing of professional Call of Duty player Seth ‘Scump’ Abner as its first esports athlete.

The deal will see Oakley become the exclusive eyewear partner of Scump, who will wear the brand’s products during all competitive matches and on his live streams. Scump joins the likes of NFL players Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson as a member of Oakley’s ever-expanding roster.

Tribe Gaming announces Razer as peripherals partner

Photo credit: Razer / Tribe Gaming

North American organisation Tribe Gaming has announced a new partnership with gaming peripherals and accessories manufacturer Razer.

As Tribe Gaming’s official peripherals partner, the organisation will be provided with Razer products for its esports athletes and content creators. In addition, the peripherals brand will become the presenting sponsor of ‘Tribe Thursday’, a weekly YouTube series created by the mobile esports organisation.

Subnation Media joins forces with Marquez Valdes-Scantling to launch esports team

Photo credit: Subnation Media

Entertainment and holding company Subnation Media has joined forces with Green Bay Packers wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to launch Trench Made Gaming (TMG), a new esports team.

According to the release, TMG is expected to field rosters across multiple titles, with Subnation spearheading its strategy, brand partnerships, merchandising and content programming.

Riot Games announces return of MSI in 2021 with Verizon as sponsor

Riot Games has announced that after a one-year hiatus, due to COVID-19, League of Legends’ Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) will be held in Reykjavík, Iceland in 2021 with a new format.

In addition, Verizon has been named the official 5G sponsor of the publisher’s League of Legends and VALORANT global events. Previously, the telecommunications giant had sponsored individual tournaments or series.

The WFH League is back for Season 3!

Following on from the success of the competition last year, Esports Insider is proud to announce the return of the WFH League for a third season. 

Co-operated by ESI and Platform, the ‘corporate’ esports competition sees colleagues team up and go head-to-head against other companies in a multi-game tournament series.


ESI Digest, in partnership with AstroPay, is part of the ESI Network, a collection of podcasts encompassing the esports industry. For deep dives into the major areas of esports with subject matter experts, check out ESI Focus. For conversations with key personnel and major stakeholders in esports, ESI Insight is the series for you.