Popular esports organization 100 Thieves has opened an official player training and business facility. Since its founding in 2017, the company, which marketsitself as an esports lifestyle brand, has skyrocketed to become one of the 10 most valuable names in competitive gaming.
100 Thieves has won major championships in both Call of Duty and Fortnite and also fields a winning League of Legends roster. In fact, the brand nearly walked away with the 2019 Call of Duty World Championship but fell short to eUnited. Despite the loss, Thieves still walked out of the 2019 Esports Awards with more nominations and awards than any other organization and won Team of the Year at the 2019 Tempest Esports Awards. The company recently reentered the competitive Counter Strike: Global Offensive scene by acquiring the former Renegades roster. On top of its esports accolades, 100 Thieves boasts a lucrative apparel business, considered among the fastest rising fashion brands in gaming.
The organization’s “first-of-its-kind” headquarters is dubbed the 100 Thieves Cash App Compound, named after the facility's sponsor, Cash App. The 15,000 square foot building, located in the Culver City area of Los Angeles, combines multiple initiatives of the company’s ecosystem under one roof. It boasts training facilities for esports players, studios for live stream broadcasting and content production, as well as retail and apparel design. It is the largest facility dedicated to esports in the U.S. 100 Thieves Founder and CEO Matthew “Nadeshot'' Haag views the Compound as the realization of the company’s efforts to create “a lifestyle brand born from gaming.”
"Los Angeles is the epicenter of esports, entertainment, and fashion, which are the three pillars we founded the company upon, so this is the perfect home for innovating on what an esports organization and lifestyle brand can be”. Haag states in the company’s press release. “I can't wait for our fans to experience the Compound."
100 Thieves describes their partnership with Cash App as “the most comprehensive sponsorship deal” in esports. In addition to funding the compound, the deal covers the company’s teams (including player jerseys) and content creation. 100 Thieves promises to announce partnerships of similar magnitude throughout the year.
The opening of the Compound marks another big move for the organization. 100 Thieves recently announced their decision to skip the 2020 Call of Duty competitive season. It’s safe to assume that Thieves will use their shiny new facility to sharpen its CoD players and possibly return with a vengeance in 2021. Still, this move sets a new bar for the growing esports industry, and it’s likely just a matter of time before other organizations follow suit.