WWE Entering ESports Market With "Superstar Gaming League"?
New trademark filings signposts WWE's new gaming direction.
It looks like WWE are attempting to enter the ESports market, having registered trademarks for "WWE SGL" and "Superstar Gaming League" on Monday 11 November (h/t Sports Entertainment Scoops).
Per the writeup, the trademarks were filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
WWE have secured these properties for "entertainment services, namely, the production and distribution of an ongoing show in the nature of video games; gaming services in the nature of conducting online computer game tournaments; providing a web-based system and on-line portal for customers to participate in on-line gaming, operation, and coordination of game tournaments, leagues and tours for recreational computer game playing purposes," amongst other things.
ESports' growing prominence and the huge crossover between wrestling fans and games means this makes a lot of sense for WWE, who aren't the only sports organisation to get into ESports lately, with NASCAR investing in their own league.
Let's hope that their ventures into gaming tournaments go better than their latest efforts at producing an actual game. WWE 2K20 was an absolute mess.
WWE's closest competition, AEW, collaborated with a Community Effort Orlando gaming event to produce the Fyter Fest show back in June.