5 of the best esports ads ever, including Gucci, Nike and more

July 22, 2022 World Emerging Markets

With more non-endemic brands entering the esports space, it’s no surprise that it’s projected to be worth over $1.5bn by 2023.

We round up some of the best examples of brands smashing it out of the esports arena by creating out-of-this-world ads.

Gucci and Fnatic
In 2020, luxury brand Gucci and professional esports organization Fnatic launched a new watch inspired by Fnatic’s League of Legends team. The watch was showcased in a chilling ad alongside the five League of Legends players: Martin Larsson (aka Rekkles), Zdravets Galabov (aka Hylissang), Tim Lipovšek (aka Nemesis), Gabriël Rau (aka Bwipo) and Oskar Boderek (aka Selfmade).

Nike and League of Legends

Nike ventured into the world of esports in 2020 with Chinese professional League of Legends player Uzi.

Ralph Lauren and G2 Sports
Last year, another luxury brand entered the esports leagues when Ralph Lauren teamed up with G2 League of Legends star Rekkles as the exclusive fashion outfitter for G2 Esports.

Bumble and Gen G
Professional esports organization Gen G and dating app Bumble partnered up to rebrand as Gen G Empowered by Bumble (aka Team Bumble). For a long time, gaming communities have underserved women and been a toxic environment for them. The pair wanted to develop a community around its female gamers, influencers and fans.

Erste Group and European League of Legends Championship

To encourage esports gamers and followers to ignore the haters, the European League of Legends Championship and finance providers Erste Group released an amusing ad that sees the gaming community ’debate’ whether esports is a sport or not.