United States Navy Signs Numerous Partnerships, Will Field CS:GO Team

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• The United States Navy signs partnerships with Twitch, ESL, and DBLTAP.
• Evil Geniuses will help select and train the Navy’s first ever Counter-Strike: Global Offensive squad.
• Content creation and activations will occur with Twitch, ESL, and DBLTAP.

The United States Navy Recruiting Command has launched an integrated esports campaign that includes partnerships with Twitch, ESL, and DBLTAP. The Navy is hoping that this partnership will provide the naval warfare service branch with opportunities to engage with the gaming community.

Part of these brand activations will see the Navy partnering with the North American esports organization Evil Geniuses to select sailors for tryouts and then pick the best to field a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team.

Additionally, Twitch will develop a six-episode miniseries that unveils how sailors rely on the same strategic thinking, sensory perception, and decision-making skills that Evil Geniuses use when competing in events and training. In 2020 at TwitchCon, the Navy also will have an activation space where its new CS:GO team will make its first official appearance alongside members of Evil Geniuses.

The partnership with ESL saw the Navy become the first-ever presenting sponsor at the BYOC (Bring Your Own Computer) activation space at DreamHack – Anaheim this past weekend and will do the same at DreamHack – Dallas, which takes place May 22-24. These onsite activations will also be filmed and showcased on DreamHack esports broadcasts and ESL channels.

Lastly, the Navy will partner with DBLTAP in developing Navy “Role Comparison” video content that will see DBLTAP editors partner with top players from high-ranking esports teams to compare different rates in the Navy with specific roles on an esports team.

These activations are part of a larger shift in the Navy’s recruiting strategy that it announced last December. The Navy announced that  it would be moving more than 97% of its advertising budget away from traditional mediums such as cable television, and would instead look to digital streaming platforms such as Twitch and YouTube.