Guild Esports announced a new partnership with cult favorite Finn Harps FC, one of the lowest-ranked teams in EA SPORTS FIFA history. New sponsorship will see the Esports organization, co-owned by David Beckham, work with Finn Harps FC to grow the fanbase and create authentic activations in Ireland.
The new partnership will see Finn Harps work with Guild Esports to encourage Irish EA SPORTS FIFA gaming talent to join Guild’s world-class esports academy, helping them become esports stars of tomorrow, as well as branding on Harps’ first and second replica kits and on EA SPORTS FIFA 22, alongside a series of fan-led activations featuring Harps players and club staff with Guild athletes.
Founded in 1954, Finn Harps FC is a member-owned, community football club based in Ballybofey, County Donegal, at the club’s home ground of Finn Park. Playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland (SSE Airtricity League), the team rose to prominence during the 1970s, winning the FAI Cup in the 1973-74 season, and picked up a cult following that grew as Harps featured in EA SPORTS FIFA games in the early 2000’s onwards.
Guild regularly features Harps in their viral EA SPORTS FIFA show FFFFFFF, adding to the cult following the club has built up over the years, and achieving millions of views for Season One.
This new partnership between Harps and Guild will continue to grow that reputation, through Guild branding on both Harps’ first and second replica kits and on EA SPORTS FIFA 22, alongside a series of fan-led activations featuring Harps players and club staff with Guild athletes.
Guild will also see a presence around Finn Park, as the esports organization will feature prominently across matchday programs, advertising hoardings and the club’s digital and social media channels during the partnership, with the opportunity for a further year to follow.
Michelle Tierney, Chief Commercial Officer at Guild Esports said:
“We’re immensely proud of this unique partnership, and the opportunities it will offer for both Guild and Harps to create impact in Ireland’s growing esports scene. Harps have built a truly amazing reputation and following as everyone’s second favourite team on EA SPORTS FIFA, and we want to use this partnership to expand that reputation even further, and to position Guild as everyone’s favourite esports team!”
Aidan Campbell, Marketing Officer at Finn Harps, said:
“We would like to welcome everyone from Guild into the Finn Harps family. This partnership offers some genuinely exciting possibilities for Finn Harps and it began when we learned we had attracted a cult following on Guild’s FIFA show. This led to a series of meetings between our media/marketing team and Guild about the possibilities of working together on projects that could harness the huge crossover between live football and the Irish esports community.
“The team at Guild impressed us from day one with their mission and drive to offer something new to esports, so we are really looking forward to working with them to develop the many exciting ideas we have planned. We’ve had alternative offers for shirt sponsorship, but we felt this represented an unprecedented opportunity to create initiatives that will engage a younger audience with the League of Ireland.”
This new partnership with Finn Harps FC is the latest development in an exciting year for Guild which has seen them sign major partnerships with Subway, Samsung and HyperX and launched the Guild Academy, an online platform that gives personalized coaching plans to the esports stars of tomorrow. Guild has also launched an apparel line with a reinterpretation of Guild’s signature logo designed by Fergus Purcell — known for his work on Palace’s iconic Penrose logo.
