Gaming
PUBG Mobile welcomes Airtel as preferred network of PMPL league
MUMBAI: As part of its mission to enable a superior and highly differentiated digital experience for its customers, Bharti Airtel will start supporting the esports dreams of millions of Indians.
Airtel will power the PUBG MOBILE Pro League (PMPL) as the preferred network of the coveted esports tournament and will also bring the best of PUBG Mobile esports on the Airtel Xstream app.
Bharti Airtel chief marketing officer Shashwat Sharma says: “Airtel has been consistently rated as India's best network by multiple global experts and we are thrilled to join forces with PMPL to power the country’s Esports revolution. We will also be bringing the best of Esports in India to our digital entertainment platforms as part of Airtel Thanks.”
The PUBG MOBILE Pro League (PMPL) South Asia will take place from 22 May to 14 June, where the top 20 teams are competing for a spot in the PUBG Mobile World League. PMPL South Asia will be broadcasted 18:00-22:20 IST (+5:30 GMT) on Friday to Sunday per week from 29 May to 14 June.
Tencent Games, PUBG MOBILE Global Esports, director James says: “PUBG MOBILE is always to deliver a good quality product and superior Esports experience to players and audiences around the world. With the help of Airtel high-speed network service, we have more confidence that players can enjoy wonderful PUBG MOBILE Esports tournaments."
PMPL is a new pro-level of competition to take place across four regions – Southeast Asia, South Asia and Americas (North and South America)- allowing teams to compete for a slice of the $5 million USD prize pool on offer from the 2020 program.
NODWIN Gaming co-founder and MD Akshat Rathee says: “Bringing together two of our partners who have shown a deep commitment to growing esports in India is the natural evolution of the ecosystem in India. In PUBG MOBILE, we have a partner who deeply understands the youth of India and in Airtel we have a partner who has deep customer insights. This is a match made in heaven”
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.
