Gaming
Techno Gamerz leads Delhi AI Legends to victory at #PlayGalaxy Cup
MUMBAI: The stage was set for one of the most anticipated creator-led esports tournaments of the year with the #PlayGalaxy Cup Z Fold Edition, a high-octane Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) tournament that brought together 48 top gamers of the country.
A total of four intense matches were played, and after a thrilling showdown, Team Delhi AI Legends, led by Techno Gamerz, emerged victorious to claim the championship trophy with a whooping cash prize of Rs 2,40,000.
Hosted by Samsung, the tournament featured 12 powerhouse teams, each led by a Hero Gamer including top stars like Techno Gamerz, Mythpat, Desi Gamers, SlayyPoint, and GamerFleet. With 4 players per team, they battled it out in high-stakes BGMI matches packed with strategy, synergy, and skill.
Sharing his excitement, Samsung India VP, head of product marketing, Aditya Babbar said, “We wanted to create a platform where India’s top gamers could showcase their skills while celebrating innovation in mobile gaming. This tournament reflected the spirit and thriving community of esports gaming.” He further added, “Here creators and players alike get a new dimension of immersion, multitasking, and more control, transforming every match into a cinematic, high-performance experience”.
With over five million+ engagement across platforms and 100M+ reach, the #PlayGalaxy Cup Z Fold Edition was one of the largest creator-driven esports showcases in India. From high-stakes zone battles to surprise clutch wins, the BGMI tournament delivered moments that will be remembered for seasons to come.
Managed by Opraahfx, Ujjwal Chaurasia aka Techno Gamerz, is India’s biggest individual gaming YouTuber with a massive 46.7 million subscribers. After leading his team to victory, he shared his excitement saying, “This was more than just a tournament. It felt like a celebration of the gaming community we’ve all helped build over the years. Leading a team and competing alongside such incredible gamers, was next level.”
As per the 2025 India Mobile Gaming Insights Report by Sensor Tower, India saw 8.45 billion mobile game downloads in FY 2024-25, making it one of world’s largest mobile gaming markets. While the gaming scene has been growing steadily, India has now firmly made its mark on the global gaming stage and events like these are pumping excitement and support to the rising gaming ecosystem.
The tournament showcased the perfect teaming of how technology and gaming go hand in hand to support the Indian gaming space. Innovative technology breaking limits and offering high octane gaming performance.
From creators with massive YouTube followings to celebrated BGMI esports pros, the roster represented the true stars of India’s gaming universe.
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.
