Guild eSports remains confident of its new business prospects for this year

Guild Esports plc (LON:GILD), a global teams organisation and lifestyle brand, has announced that it has continued to trade in line with management expectations since reporting its results for the year ended 30 September 2021, on 31 January 2022.

The Company’s new business pipeline remains strong and several potentially significant sponsorship deals with tier 1 brands continue to be at advanced stages of negotiations and are progressing as expected. While there is no certainty when these prospects may get signed, the Company remains confident of its new business prospects for this year.

Guild’s professional esports teams continue to perform well and the Company most recently secured first place in the prestigious Fortnite Champion Series EU Final on 6 March 2022.

The following appointments are proposed to support the next phase of the Company’s growth and strengthen the technology and capital markets experience at board level.

Board appointments

Approaching our second AGM post-Listing, the Board has identified this time as an opportunity to re-focus the leadership at Guild. Simon Walters, Chris Sullivan and Andrew Drake will step down as non-executive directors at the close of this year’s AGM.

Resolutions will be proposed at the AGM to appoint Mike Edwards and Brian Stockbridge as non-executive directors.

James Savage has resigned as the Company’s executive finance director, for personal reasons, with immediate effect. An interim chief financial officer is due to start immediately and will attend all upcoming board meetings. The Company has already commenced an executive search for a permanent replacement and a further announcement will be made in due course.

Should shareholders approve the relevant resolutions at the AGM, the revised board will comprise executive director Kal Hourd, and non-executive directors Derek Lew, Mike Edwards, Brian Stockbridge and David Gardner.

Mike Edwards has over 20 years’ leadership track record in building consumer technology companies in private and public markets. He has co-founded several successful companies, including: AreaConnect.com, a consumer content company acquired by NASDAQ listed Marchex; Wyley Interactive, a mobile game engagement platform acquired by NASDAQ listed Zynga; Creative Labs, a start-up foundry that builds consumer technology companies and Leaf Mobile, a game studio listed on the TSX. Mr Edwards has also invested in early stage consumer companies such as Punch’d (later acquired by Google), Wander (later acquired by Yahoo), Summify (later acquired by Twitter), BlueBat Games (later acquired by Novomatic Group), Retsly (later acquired by Zillow) and Password Box (later acquired by Intel). He is also a co-founder of: Argo Blockchain PLC, an enterprise-scale provider of cryptocurrency mining services listed on the London Stock Exchange; Pioneer Media Holdings Inc, an investment company listed on the Canadian Stock Exchange and AQSE focussing on mobile gaming and the metaverse; Cellular Goods Plc, the first pure-play cannabinoid-based consumer brands company to join the London Stock Exchange; and NFT Investments Plc, the first publicly traded vehicle for the NFT asset class.

Brian Stockbridge has over 20 years’ experience in corporate finance, including direct investments and financing into companies, IPOs, capital raisings and mergers and acquisitions for both public and private companies. He is Chief Executive Officer of First Sentinel Corporate Finance Limited. He has held board positions on several public and private companies throughout his career, most notably with Rangers Football Club and Allegiance Insurance. Brian has also held director and management positions with Zeus Capital, Allenby Capital, Noble & Company and Grant Thornton. He served as a Regulator for the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers, where he presided a significant number of transactions, including many valued over £1bn.

Derek Lew, Non-Executive Chairman of Guild Esports, said: “I would like to thank Simon, Andrew, Chris and James on behalf of the entire Guild team for their counsel and contribution to the Company. I would also like to welcome Mike and Brian who will bring fresh and relevant boardroom oversight of Guild’s growth strategy. We have a solid executive management team under chief executive Kal Hourd and excellent prospects. As a result, the Board looks to the future with confidence.”

Notice of AGM

The Company will hold its AGM on 31 March 2022 at 9 a.m. at the offices of Fladgate LLP, 16 Great Queen Street, London, WC2B 5DG.

Notice of the AGM, together with the Form of Proxy, has been posted to shareholders today. The Notice of AGM will shortly also be available on the Company’s website www.guildesports.com.

Kal Hourd, Chief Executive of Guild Esports, said: “I am delighted to welcome our new non-executive directors to Guild and look forward with great anticipation to working with them closely to deliver on the Company’s potential and opportunities.”