Esports Entertainment Group (EEG) is closing down its esports-focused sportsbook Vie.gg in the UK, Spain and New Jersey, according to an email sent to its customers across these jurisdictions.
Informing Vie.gg Customers
EEG informed customers that its websites in the UK, Spain and New Jersey in the US would remain active only until the end of the month and effective November 1, 2022, would be shut down.
“We have made the difficult decision to close Vie.gg,” EEG wrote in the email, informing its customers that they would have until November 1 to log in and close their accounts.
The Vie.gg esports-focused betting operation has been active in the past two years in the UK and Spain and it was only in April 2022 that EEG launched it in New Jersey, in partnership with Bally’s Atlantic City Hotel and Casino, having acquired a temporary license from the Division of Gaming Enforcement earlier in the year.
EEG further stated in the email that any accounts that remain open at that date would undergo an automatic closure and funds remaining on players’ balances would be returned by check to the address registered on the account.
Too Costly to Continue Operating
The answer to why EEG is closing down its esports-focused sportsbook operation can be found in the words of EEG’s chief executive officer Grant Johnson, who said in an interview with NJ Gambling Sites earlier this week that the company cannot bear seven-figure costs a year for operating an esportsbook in New Jersey., with the situation in Spain and the UK not much different.
He then added that the company’s plans of raising capital were thwarted by the radical market turn and that by the time EEG received approval “the world has changed,” hence the need for restructuring to “last through to more stable markets.”
“At this time, NJ, Spain, and the UK are all jurisdictions that we don’t have the required capital to stay active in,” Johnson continued, explaining why EEG is reducing its “burn and putting some cash back in the bank,” adamant that stressful times require difficult decisions.
In May, EEG posted its third-quarter earnings report and revealed that the business would be facing significant liquidity issues going forward despite the revenue growth. The Hoboken-based full-stack esports and gambling operator also revised its previously issued full-year revenue guidance.
Addressing the near-term challenges for the business, Johnson said that the lack of liquidity has already impacted the company by not allowing it to fully monetize its Helix, ggCircuit, and EGL esports assets and resulted in a multi-million impairment charge.