Gaming
Aurora Gaming and 3DMAX advance to Skyesports Championship 2024 playoffs
Mumbai: The Skyesports Championship 2024, a $300,000 international Counter-Strike two esports tournament, is taking place at the Taj Lands End, Mumbai from July 24 to 28. As the Group Stage nears its conclusion, two teams have advanced to the prestigious Playoffs, where they will battle for glory and a shot at the lion’s share of the prize pool.
Serbia’s Aurora Gaming and France’s 3DMAX Vie for Glory: First teams to reach the playoffs
Aurora Gaming and 3DMAX have earned this accolade with flawless records so far in the Group Stage.
The 11 participating teams, which include prominent esports organizations from Mongolia, France, Turkey, India, and Russia, have been split into two groups: A and B.
In Group A, Aurora has secured their spot in the Playoffs after convincing victories against Parivsion, ENCE, and True Rippers, standing first in their group with a 3-0 record. With their advancement to the next stage, Aurora is eyeing a consecutive third trophy in Skyesports’ IPs, having previously won the $350,000 Skyesports Masters 2024 and the Skyesports Grand Slam 2024 in Pune, India.
All eyes are still on Group A as teams like The Mongolz and ENCE have to battle it out on Day 3 to make it to the Playoffs.
In Group B, 3DMAX has triumphed over Amkal, DMS, and Revenant Esports, securing a 3-0 record at the top of the group.
The action continues in the Skyesports Championship on Day 3, as the final day of the Group Stage will decide who will join 3DMAX and Aurora Gaming in the Playoffs. Fans can catch all the action live on the Skyesports YouTube and Twitch channels.
Unlike the Group Stage, the Playoffs will take place on the main stage at the prestigious 5-star hotel, the Taj Lands End in Mumbai, India.
Group A Standings
Group B Standings
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.
