Gray Television Takes a Stake in One of the Fastest Growing Segments of Sports and Entertainment

Gray leading group of investors in $40 million round for Texas-based Envy Gaming

DALLAS, March 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  Gray Television, Inc. (“Gray”) (NYSE:GTN) and Envy Gaming, Inc. (“Envy”), an esports and entertainment company based in Dallas, jointly announced today that Gray is leading a $40 million investment round for the organization. As the lead investor in Envy’s Series C round, Gray will invest $28.5 million and name two directors to the Envy Gaming board of directors.

Hilton H. Howell, Jr., Gray’s Executive Chairman and CEO said, “We’re excited to lead this investment in Envy Gaming, an organization known for breaking ground and pushing the limits of what the future holds for gaming and entertainment.”

Founded in 2007, Envy includes a growing network of content creators, competitive gamers, and esports teams with global reach across multiple platforms. Envy owns and operates the world champion Dallas Empire team in the Call of Duty League, the Dallas Fuel team in the Overwatch League, and the Team Envy franchise that competes in Halo, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros, Valorant and other games.

Gray is one of the largest owners of television stations in the U.S., reaching approximately 24% of U.S. television households. Gray broadcasts over 500 separate programming streams, including roughly 160 affiliates of the Big Four broadcast networks. Gray also owns video program production, marketing, and digital businesses including Raycom Sports, Tupelo Honey, and RTM Studios. It is also the majority owner of Swirl Films.    

Envy’s business has seen significant diversification and growth in the last 12 months, including the following milestones:

• Superstar Post Malone joining the ownership group.
• Winning the inaugural Call of Duty League World Championship in 2020, which featured a $4.6 million prize pool.
• Adding two of the fastest-growing female streamers, Alexandra Botez and Andrea Botez.
• Fielding top ranked teams in North America in Valorant and Rocket League.
• Partnering with Belong Gaming Arenas to bring multiple gaming centers to North Texas.
• Opening a 21,000-square-foot state-of-the-art training facility and live production and content studio in Dallas, Texas.

“Esports and gaming is the fastest-growing area across all of media and entertainment,” said Adam Rymer, CEO of Envy Gaming. “Building global communities through content and engagement, similar to what the world has seen in the music, film and TV industries, is an endeavor we’re incredibly excited to work on with Gray as our partner.”