Digital financial services company expands footprint in gaming to elevate diversity
Ally Financial Inc. and Rocket League Esports announced today that Ally is deepening its marketing presence in gaming with an investment designed to promote women esports competitors and support the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS). Through a new women’s tournament featuring Rocket League, Ally will continue to advance its 2022 pledge to reach 50/50 media spend across men’s and women’s sports, including esports.
Rocket League is an award-winning sports-action video game combining soccer and rocket-powered cars, and the RLCS is the premier professional Rocket League competition. Ally became an official sponsor of the North American RLCS in February 2023, and the relationship includes branding in RLCS broadcasts during the Winter and Spring splits. As part of the sponsorship, Ally will headline the Ally Women’s Open, a women’s Rocket League tournament in March 2023, with a $20,000 prize pool for North America and $20,000 for Europe.
“Investment in all sports, including esports, has long been biased towards men’s competition. To address this inequity, we’ve made a pledge to reach equal media spend across men’s and women’s sports over the next five years because we believe there should be a level playing field for all athletes – whether on the field, the racetrack, or in gaming,” said Bridget Sponsky, executive director of brand and partnerships at Ally. “This sponsorship gives us a way to engage with the fans and players of a massively popular industry, while providing increased exposure and income opportunities for the incredibly talented female competitors.”
Created by Women Gamers for Women Gamers
The Ally Women’s Open will be produced by Raidiant, a gaming and esports media platform, led by an all-women’s management team, whose mission is to celebrate and champion opportunities for women gamers along with providing a range of resources. The Head of Raidiant, Heather Garozzo, was the first woman inducted into the Esports Insider Hall of Fame (2019) and was inducted into the Women in Games Hall of Fame in 2021.
Ally’s presence in gaming has included unique, value-add experiences for players across a variety of popular game environments, such as Animal Crossing, Minecraft, and Twitch. The relationship with Rocket League Esports is Ally’s first esports sponsorship in competitive gaming.
In addition to sponsoring the Ally Women’s Open, Ally’s programming will include ad buys and broadcast integrations during the RLCS North American livestreams, as well as inclusions in the league’s associated social campaigns. The sponsorship is also designed to help elevate amateur and semi-pro players, known as the Bubble scene, through a Community Empowerment campaign with Rocket League Esports. These tournaments expose newer players to talent scouts, which can eventually lead to larger financial opportunities by competing in the RLCS. More details on the Bubble tournaments included in the sponsorship will be shared soon.
Watch the Ally Women’s Open on Rocket League’s Twitch Channel starting at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT on March 26.
About Ally Financial
Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY) is a financial services company with the nation’s largest all-digital bank and an industry-leading auto financing business, driven by a mission to “Do It Right” and be a relentless ally for customers and communities. The company serves more than 11 million customers through a full range of online banking services (including deposits, mortgage, point-of-sale personal lending, and credit card products) and securities brokerage and investment advisory services. The company also includes a robust corporate finance business that offers capital for equity sponsors and middle-market companies, as well as auto financing and insurance offerings through more than 23,000 dealers nationwide.
