German automobile manufacturer Audi will sponsor Danish Counter-Strike: Global Offensive organization Astralis, the two parties announced Thursday.
With the partnership, Astralis has changed their branding colors to the ones seen in recent Audi automobile commercials. They've also adopted the tag "#untaggable." Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Astralis founder Frederik Byskov told Dot Esports, "It's fantastic news for esports and a validation of our world, that a non-endemic brand like Audi chooses to work with Astralis and Counter-Strike. I've been in esports for more than 10 years, and we only created Astralis a year ago. It's a fantastic way to celebrate the anniversary today. I'm very thankful for the work RFRSH Entertainment has put into this, making it a possibility for Astralis to enter a partnership with Audi."
Astralis launched in early 2016, following the departure of the team from Team SoloMid months prior in 2015. The organization, with assistance from Byskov, a longstanding part of the team, and former Copenhagen Wolves CEO Jakob Lund Kristensen (now of RFRSH), is one of the few player-owned organizations in professional esports.
The team's first event sporting the sponsorship will be the upcoming Turner Sports, WME|IMG and Counter-Strike developer Valve's ELeague Major on Jan. 22-29 in Atlanta's Fox Theatre. The team will compete for a chance to win its first major title and a part of a $1 million prize pool.