Last Updated on August 30, 2020 by Larious

Esports and entertainment outfit FaZe Clan have added a well-known name to their list of celebrity investors. Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons has staked a financial claim in the popular Esports group.

As part of the deal, Simmons will be acting as a brand ambassador for FaZe Clan. He’ll be using the gamer tag “FaZe Simmo.”

Simmons, who has previously appeared on the cover of the basketball magazine Slam with FaZe Clan member Thomas “Temperrr” Oliveira, is well-known for his connection to the group.

The NBA player is often seen adorned in FaZe gear, or hanging out with team members.

“Gaming is an important part of my life, and so it was a natural progression to personally invest in this industry,” Simmons said in a statement. “FaZe Clan represents the pinnacle of the gaming culture, and I am really looking forward to connecting with new fans around the globe.”

Who Are FaZe Clan?

Just as Simmons and FaZe Clan are forging a bond between actual sports and Esports, FaZe Clan itself is an entity that connects to a wide variety of interests and industries.

Founded in 2010, Faze Clan is considered to be a mix of an Esports organization, a clothing brand, and a gathering of creators.

The Esports division of FaZe Clan includes professionals that compete in such gaming competitions as Call of Duty, Counterstrike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, FIFA, Fortnite Battle Royale, PUBG Mobile, FIFA online and Valorant.

FaZe Clan recruits talent from across the globe. Team members come from Thailand, Canada, China, Brazil, the United States, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia, and Spain. FaZe Clan team members are some of the most popular people on video streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.

In their clothing empire, FaZe Clan includes apparel partnerships with such brands as Champion, Kappa, and Manchester City.

More recently, FaZe Clan has moved into some old-school types of technology. They’ve launched both a film and a television studio. Long-range plans include a series of feature-length films involving members of the team.

Their first film, to date an untitled work, is supposed to be released in September 2020. It’s entirely self-financed and will feature a soundtrack from Epic Records. The group plans for it to be the first of a series of films in what they are calling the FaZe Universe, describing the concept as “an immersive cinematic universe.”

They also filmed a reality show for Quibi.

Celebrity Endorsers

Simmons will add his name to a lengthy list of celebrities from both the sports and entertainment world who have invested in the FaZe Clan concept. Fellow NBA players Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets and Meyers Leonard of the Miami Heat preceded Simmons in investing in FaZe Clan.

Rapper Pit Pull heads a list of FaZe Clan investors from the music industry that also includes musicians DJ Paul, Offset, Swae Lee, Yo Gotti, and Disco Fries. Music executives Sylvia Rhone, Troy Carter and Guy Oseary are other investors, as is radio host Big Boy.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, skateboarder Nyjah Huston and Dutch international soccer player Gregory van der Wiel are others from the world of sports who support FaZe Clan. Actor Chris O’Donnell, best known for his roles in Scent Of A Woman, School Ties and Batman And Robin, is another investor.

Betting On An Esports Investment

Esports looks to be a wise investment for the future. Of all the sports on the planet, none are growing in leaps and bounds in the manner that Esports are expanding in both scope and popularity.

The realm of Esports is also biting off a bigger chunk of action in the world of Esports betting, and this seems like such a natural pairing. Just as online and mobile wagering has revolutionalized the way people bet on sports, Esports is changing the way people – especially young people – view sports.