Gaming
Haier levels up with G-League to play big in India’s gaming arena
MUMBAI: From refrigerators to frag grenades Haier is no longer just cooling your kitchen, it’s heating up India’s gaming scene. Haier Appliances India has hit the start button on its first e-sports IP with the launch of the Haier G-League, bringing the brand into the heart of India’s fast-growing gaming universe. Backed by its cutting-edge QD Mini LED TV range, the G-League is not just a tournament, it’s a bold move to connect with the joystick-wielding, meme-sharing Gen Z and millennial crowd.
Set to kick off on 4th July 2025 with the finals on 20th July, the tournament has already pulled in 2,048 teams and over 8,000 players, all vying for a grand prize of Rs 1 million. The battle unfolds in Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), streamed live on Haier India’s official Youtube channel, turning every play into primetime entertainment.
While Haier has previously dipped into sport-o-tainment as a digital streaming partner for the Indian T20 League and title sponsor of Match Centre Live for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the G-League is its first homegrown leap into India’s e-sports cosmos.
At the heart of the G-League is Haier’s QD Mini LED TV series crafted for those who crave cinematic visuals and low-latency gameplay. This isn’t just a viewing device; it’s a front-row ticket to the future of gaming, with specs that could make even a console blush.
“The G-League is more than a campaign, it’s a cultural commitment,” said Haier Appliances India president NS Satish. “We’re not just creating content, we’re entering conversations. Gaming is where Gen Z lives, and we want to meet them there with relevance, innovation and authenticity.”
With a platform that champions skill, speed, and streaming appeal, Haier is now not just in living rooms, it’s in the digital arenas where the next generation battles it out.
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Gaming
MTG gaming chief Benninghoff joins NODWIN board as esports firm primes for IPO
The Gurugram-based esports firm is pursuing a public listing, has returned to profitability and is growing revenues by 42 per cent
GURUGRAM: NODWIN Gaming is moving fast. The Gurugram-based gaming and esports company has launched a pre-IPO fundraising round, appointed UBS as lead adviser for both the round and a subsequent public listing, and landed a heavyweight board director, all in one go.
The new board member is Arnd Benninghoff, executive vice president of gaming at Stockholm-listed Modern Times Group (MTG), who has overseen the group’s strategic investments and portfolio growth since 2014. He is no stranger to building things: Benninghoff has founded and built fifteen companies, served as chief digital officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, managing director of SevenVentures, and chief executive of Holtzbrinck eLAB. He began his career as a journalist at Deutsche Presse Agentur and various TV networks, holds a Diplom-Kaufmann in business and administration from the University of Münster, and previously sat on the board of Edgeware AB.
The numbers back the ambition
NODWIN is not pitching a story without substance. The company has returned to EBITDA profitability and posted a 42 per cent year-on-year revenue surge, reaching $58.5m in the first nine months of FY2026. The pre-IPO round will combine a primary issuance to fund global expansion through organic growth and acquisitions, alongside a secondary sale to give existing shareholders some liquidity.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, said Benninghoff understands “the entire lifecycle of the gaming and media ecosystem, from the boots-on-the-ground reality of building startups to the strategic complexity of managing multi-billion dollar global portfolios.”
Benninghoff, for his part, said the company “sits at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and technology, making it one of the most exciting players in the global gaming landscape today.”
A portfolio built for the global south
Founded in 2014 by Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN has quietly assembled one of the more compelling esports portfolios outside the Western hemisphere. Its properties include DreamHack India and Comic Con India, and it recently acquired StarLadder, the Ukraine-based tournament organiser behind premier events in CS:GO and Dota 2. The company also serves as a long-term strategic marketing partner for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s most prominent fighting game tournament, helping push it into new geographies.
Its geographic focus spans South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Backers include Nazara Technologies, KRAFTON, Sony Group Corporation, JetSynthesys, and the founders’ investment vehicle Good Game Investments.
What comes next
With UBS running the books, a board freshly reinforced with European media and gaming expertise, and revenue heading in the right direction, NODWIN is laying the groundwork deliberately. The esports industry has burned investors before with big promises and thin margins. NODWIN’s return to profitability, combined with a real portfolio of owned intellectual properties across gaming, music and youth culture, gives it a more credible runway than most. The IPO clock is now ticking.
