June 06, 2019
Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports Images
Josh Harris, left, pictured here at a Sixers game in 2017.
Sixers managing partner Josh Harris added another professional sports team to the Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment family Thursday, buying a majority stake in pro esports team Clutch Gaming from the Houston Rockets.
Harris Blitzer reportedly paid more than $30 million to acquire the majority stake, according to Bloomberg. An earlier report from ESPN reported the price had been $20 million. Harris Blitzer is expected to merge Clutch Gaming with Dignitas Gaming, the esports team Harris Blitzer acquired in 2016. It is the first merger in Riot Games’ League Championship Series.
According to Bloomberg, the team will compete in League of Legends competitions as Dignitas instead of Clutch starting in January.
We're proud to welcome @ClutchGaming to the Dignitas family and look forward to continuing our rich history in @lolesports!
— Dignitas (@dignitas) June 6, 2019
📜https://t.co/Lx5chCdI0z pic.twitter.com/1mkic49heM
The news comes just a month after Harris reportedly showed interest in Spanish soccer team AD Alcorcón, a team in the country's second-tier league. Harris is already a shareholder of English Premier League team Crystal Palace. Harris Blitzer, of course, also owns the New Jersey Devils, and the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Forbes says Harris, a University Pennsylvania alum, is one of the 1,000 wealthiest individuals in the world, placing his estimated net worth at $3.7 billion.
Elsewhere in the local esports scene, construction is expected to begin on a $50 million esports areana in South Philly this summer. The arena will be used largely by the Philadelphia Fusion, a Comcast-owned professional Overwatch team team competes in the Overwatch League.
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