• Soccer start Antoine Griezmann launched an eSports team.
• Grizi eSports will field a roster of 20 players in five different games.
• Griezmann’s brother will manage day-to-day operations.

French international player Antoine Griezmann is the latest high-profile celebrity to venture into the world of eSports. The Barcelona striker announced this week that he is setting up his own eSports team.

The footballer is no stranger to gaming as exemplified by his now infamous victory celebration at the 2018 FIFA World Cup  incorporating the Fortnite Take the L dance emote.

Grizi eSports

Helmed by his brother, Théo Griezmann, the team will be known as Grizi eSports, sporting a penguin as a logo and mascot. The brothers hope to field teams in Fortnite, League of Legends, FIFA, Counter Strike: Global Offensive, and Rainbow Six Siege.

Grizi sounds like what you might name the offspring of the pilot of the Mantis and amateur horticulturist, Greez, from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, but there you go.

The star 28-year-old player announced the news in a promotional video uploaded to Twitter . Griezmann partakes in a spot of gaming as he introduces Grizi eSports.

In an interview with French news outlet Le Parisien , Théo Griezmann explains that the team is still in its infancy with the recruitment of a roster – around 20 players – the first objective for the fledgling eSports outfit.

1,500 Applications In Less Than 10 Minutes

In that spirit, the Grizi eSports is calling for budding eSports players to apply. Théo Griezmann says:

In less than 10 minutes, we had already received over 1,500 applications to sift through. The email inbox won’t handle the load if this continues.

From there, the brothers hope to field teams at the upcoming Gamers Assembly de Poitiers in April, which regularly draws over 2,500 of the world’s best eSports teams.

Rather than merely lending his name, Antoine Griezmann will play a role in the decision-making process. Day to day duties will fall to his brother.

The soccer player’s brother explains;

Antoine and I are genuinely invested in this venture. We’ve always loved video games. I’ll act as manager, leading recruitment, finding players, organizing sponsors. But, we’ll make decisions together.

While Griezmann’s investment in eSports follows a well established trend among sports personalities, it’s the first time a sporting icon has gone the full nine yards and created a team from the get-go.

Only time will tell whether Grizi eSports can rub shoulders with the industry’s top teams, but the Griezmann name won’t do any harm when it comes to attracting players, fans, and sponsors.