A new esports consultancy firm is opening its doors, led by Denial Esports CEO Robby Ringnalda and Black Dog Venture Partners CEO Scott Kelly.
Black Dog Gaming is an extension of Black Dog Venture Partners and plans to take on esports industry clients. It’ll offer business development sales training, as well as branding, corporate management development, and funding consultations. Kelly is the backbone of marketing, sales, and fundraising, while Ringnalda brings esports experience with Denial.
Denial, however, hasn’t always seen positive press in the esports industry. The organization has fielded decent results across its portfolio of games—which includes Call of Duty and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive—but it made news due to its player treatment. Its former Halo team was reportedly shorted pay in 2015, followed by a Smash Melee pro missing salary payments in 2017, ESPN reported.
Denial’s payment issues were reportedly cleared up within days of the ESPN report. The organization has since picked up new ownership—former NFL player Hank Baskett and investor Stephen A. Crystal—in March.
Black Dog Gaming will want to steer clear of those financial issues with its burgeoning entrepreneurs. For now, the group is focusing on the future.
“I am excited to get to work with Scott, with our knowledge paired I think we can help a lot of people and companies explore the space,” Ringnalda said in a statement.
