Exclusive: Belong Gaming Arenas Ceases U.S. Operations

Credit: Belong

The Esports Advocate has learned that Belong Gaming Arenas will cease operations in the United States. A source informed us this morning that a majority of the staff based in the United States had been informed that they had been laid off. It is unclear as of this writing just how many people have been affected by this decision.

A spokesperson for the company’s U.S. operations confirmed the news Monday morning through email: 

“After careful consideration and a thorough evaluation of our current business operations and strategic alternatives, we have unfortunately made the difficult decision to suspend the operations of our US Belong Gaming Arenas.  

“This decision was not made lightly, and we want to express our deep gratitude to our extraordinarily talented and dedicated staff members and our valued business partners, who have been instrumental in our development and success over the last 2+ years. Their hard work, commitment, and passion for providing excellent service and world class experiences have been the backbone of our business and our culture, and we extend our heartfelt appreciation to every one of them.

“We have had the privilege of serving this wonderful and unique community, and we are immensely grateful for the trust and support you have shown us. Our team has worked tirelessly to provide an inclusive and fun environment for gamers of all kinds. We continue to evaluate our business model and strategy with the goal of continuing to serve this community, that we know and love, in the future.”

Belong Gaming still has operations in the UK, but it is unclear what the future holds for the company there, as of this writing.

In March, Belong Gaming Arenas parent company Vindex was acquired by ESL FACEIT Group. Under the terms of that deal, EFG acquired Vindex, along with its Esports Engine and Vindex Intelligence Platform subsidiaries  The gaming center business Belong Gaming Arenas was not part of that deal, and at the time EFG said that it would spun off as its own entity.  

This is a developing story….

Editor’s note: In an earlier iteration of this story was missing a word (“off”) in the first paragraph. We have corrected the error.