FACEIT partners with Visa

Visa, the American multinational financial services corporation, has partnered with the esports platform FACEIT. The deal will have them create a new dedicated gaming environment for esports fans, with Russia being their first point of focus.

The deal will be backed by an as-yet-unnamed Russian bank, while Visa and FACEIT will focus on the design and content of their upcoming platform.

Visa Russia head of strategic partnerships and fintech, Evgeniy Zelenyi commented on the deal in a release: 

“According to our estimations, the global esports market is forecasted to reach 500 million gamers by 2020. Visa is keen to contribute its payment expertise to the space and deliver added value to this audience. Given the synergy between FACEIT’s stronghold on the Russian market, the overall number of esports audience, and how receptive Russians are in general to innovative concepts, this is the right geography to start with.”

FACEIT currently supports games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds,  Brawl Stars, League of Legends, and Overwatch. What games will come to the upcoming Russian platform is currently unknown.

FACEIT co-founder & CEO, Niccolo Maisto also spoke on the partnership:

“We’re excited to work with such a globally recognized brand and to support their next step into esports. This partnership is a shining example of how a brand can become endemic to the esports community and help the overall esports ecosystem grow, which is FACEIT’s continued mission.”

Russia being singled out as the location for the project’s debut is most probably a result of the deal’s partners. Considering Visa has supported large scale events in the past, it is nice to see them also participating in projects that have direct contact with fans.