Gaming
S8ul levels up with League of Legends, adds a new title to its 12-game domination roster
MUMBAI: In a move that sends a clear signal to the global esports arena, S8ul Esports has charged into Riot Games’ League of Legends (LOL) circuit by acquiring a top-tier south Asian roster. With this, the Mumbai-based organisation becomes one of the few Indian entities to actively field teams across 12 premier esports titles.
The announcement marks S8ul’s formal entry into one of the world’s most competitive games. The roster features veterans of the regional LOL scene — Akshaj Shenoy (Kat Bot), Aakash Shandilya (Infi), Ahmed Shahid (Nero), Mihir Ranjan (Angelslotus) from India, Mehrab Uddin Ahmed (RTO) from Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka’s Tharuka Fernando (KratoZ).
The squad has already proven its mettle, having represented India at the Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou, where esports debuted as an official medal event. They advanced to the quarterfinals and finished fifth, besting regional rivals and raising the Indian tricolour in a field dominated by east Asian giants.
“League of Legends is one of the most iconic esports titles in the world, and we believe this is the right moment for S8ul to step onto that stage”, said S8ul co-founder & CEO Animesh Agarwal aka 8Bit Thug. “Our vision has always been to lead from the front”.
The roster enters Legends Ascend 2025, India’s first publisher-driven amateur LOL tournament, with a prize pool of Rs 10 lakh. Slated to end on 3 August, the tournament offers its champion a direct ticket to the LCP Wildcard Playoffs — the gateway to the prestigious League of Legends Championship Pacific.
The team’s past accolades speak volumes: under Temple of Kings, they claimed victories in Skyesports WD Black Cup 1 & 2, Pro League, and SMG South Asia Cup 1, 2, and 3. In 2025, they continued their winning run under Asterisk with four more titles before signing with S8ul.
“Joining S8ul is a defining moment for us”, said Akshaj ‘Kat Bot’ Shenoy, team captain. “We’ve been grinding together for years, and now we’re ready to prove our mettle at the highest level”.
S8ul now boasts a star-studded portfolio of competitive lineups in Apex Legends, Battlegrounds Mobile India, Call of Duty: Warzone, Chess, EAFC 25, Fatal Fury, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Pokémon Unite, Starcraft II, Tekken 8, Valorant, and League of Legends.
With eyes set on the global stage and a ticket to the Esports World Cup in Riyadh already secured, S8ul is proving it’s not just playing games — it’s rewriting the playbook for Indian esports.
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.
