Overwatch League and Call of Duty League Teams in Jeopardy After The Guard Layoffs

gamerant.com:

Esports organization The Guard is the latest entity to suffer layoffs in the gaming industry, with its parent organization looking to sell two of its esports assets: the Los Angeles Gladiators of the Overwatch League and the LA Guerillas of the Call of Duty League. The teams must be sold before the end of the year in order to remain in their respective esports leagues. Failing to secure a buyer by the season's end may result in the closure of the two teams.

The Guard, which fields teams in Call of Duty, Overwatch, Valorant, Halo, and Apex Legends, abruptly laid off its entire staff recently as fears of inflation and lack of revenue affect another gaming entity and part of a larger umbrella of downsizing in the tech industry as of late. Other esports organizations like TSM have had funding issues recently, and 100 Thieves, Faze Clan, and OpTic, have all done layoffs, but none to the level of The Guard. The Guard's parent company is Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, which operates sports teams like the NFL's Los Angeles Rams, NBA's Denver Nuggets, Arsenal FC in the Premier League, and Colorado Rapids in MLS.

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According to Esports.gg, The Guard has laid off the majority of its staff, including content creators, behind-the-scenes personnel like social media managers, human resources, and many more. Members of their esports teams remain and word from one former The Guard employee claims that organizational personnel for the teams are still employed. The LA Guerillas have begun their Call of Duty League season and the LA Gladiators' season in the Overwatch League is set to start later in the Spring. But The Guard is putting both of these teams on the market