$11.5 Million Raised by Nerd Street Gamers

In order to help expand its digital Esports platform, Nerd Street Gamers has managed to raise some $11.5 million. With their network of training centers having been closed due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the company was forced to take action in order to press on with its plans to grow. Heavy investment has been put forward by Founders Fund, a venture capital organization out of San Francisco.

The news comes not long after Nerd Street Gamers raised just under $12 million from retailer Five Below, with investment having been put towards building additional facilities, that will be the home of Esports teams and tournaments. Now, with their digtal platform having allowed them to overcome the effects of the pandemic, yet more venues are expected.

How Nerd Street Gamers Has Continued to Grow

Nerd Street Gamers saw its membership level increase some 218% from 2019, while its following on Twitch has also grown significantly, from 13,000 to 120,000 in just 12 months. CEO John Fazio explained just how Nerd Street Gamers has operated during these unprecedented times:

“One major way we’re addressing the current climate is through our new digital subscription service. Because we’ve had to shut down our physical venues during the pandemic, we are truly seeing now more than ever the severe access gap in technology for young people across the country to participate in remote learning, let alone play games, because of a lack of home internet access. To address this, Nerd Street Gamers recently announced a subscription service that ensures that students and gamers will have the affordable access to the technology necessary to participate in the awesome social opportunities that esports can provide despite the pandemic.”

What Such Investment Has Been Spent On

New locations opened in Philadelphia, St Louis and Austin in 2020 alone, wth Nerd banking on the fact that gamers will need access to gaming equipment once things return to somewhere close to normal. A host of new Esports venues are now in the pipeline, with some 91 employees helping Nerd Street Gamers to stay on top of its game.

Contiuning to address just how Nerd has coped so well during the pandemic, Fazio stated that: “In addition to this subscription service, we’ve also held daily digital tournaments, online camps and virtual coaching sessions during the pandemic in lieu of in-person events, and have seen great engagement and success from these programs.”

The $25 million raised by Nerd Street Gamers to date demonstrates its significant development and potential, with Vindex perhaps being its main rival. Vindex work alongside some of the leading game publishers, esports leagues, corporate sponsors, and fans around the world.