People Behind BLAST - Leo Malock

BLAST.tv

January 01, 1970

12:00 AM

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People Behind BLAST's next feature is on Leo Matlock. A BLAST veteran and the Chief Business Officer, Leo spearheads the commercial side of BLAST, overseeing publisher relationships and business development, media rights, sponsorship and brand partnerships as well as market development.

Before BLAST, Leo's experience came from traditional sports including football and motorsport. He was part of heading up new business for Envision Virgin Racing Formula E Team.

Leo's commercial unit play a huge factor in BLAST's continued growth, including forging partnerships with businesses to sponsor individual events/ecosystems. They also lead conversations with host cities and destinations via the Market Development team which guide BLAST and their co-production partner's decisions for event destinations.

Over the last few years, Leo has led BLAST's publisher relations growing BLAST's ecosystem count. Starting off as a Counter-Strike tournament organiser, BLAST has now grown into a multi-ecosystem organiser, with tournaments in Rainbow Six Siege, Dota 2, Fortnite and Rocket League.

Without further ado let's dive into Leo's Q&A.

BLAST Pro Series Istanbul 2018 ¦ Photo: Adela Sznajder

How long have you been at BLAST?

I joined in summer 2018, so coming up on 6 years.

Where were you before BLAST?

I worked on the commercial side of sport - originally for a charity that used sport to work with young people around the world, and then for The English Football Association across the FA Cup and England football team, and then Virgin in their special projects division on Formula E.

In that time what would you say is the biggest change from the BLAST of then vs the BLAST of now?

The industry and to an extent our business has changed a lot - however what is the same is that esports is where millions come to play, compete and be their best, and millions tune in, cheer, despair and engage in these worlds.
The games change, the business models change - our goal is to lead industry changes whilst continuing to serve an incredible entertainment and sporting product with a world class commercial offering and ambition.

You’re the Chief Business Officer here at BLAST, can you dive into what your core responsibilities are at BLAST both day-to-day and looking at the bigger picture?

Ensuring we have a flourishing commercial business from multiple business and consumer revenue streams that work in harmony and support our ambitions and the ambitions of our fans and partners.

The department covers relationships with the biggest game publishers, commercial revenue from sponsors and media rights, market development in destinations around the world, ticketing, advertising and more.

Publisher relationships have also been a major focus for BLAST in the past few years. We've moved from being solely a Counter-Strike product to operating in some of the biggest esports scenes in the world, most recently with Rocket League, Dota 2, Fortnite and Rainbow Six. Publishers will continue to be a key part to our growth and we're excited for what might come next!

Looking at the bigger picture it's about ensuring we are best in class in all we do, whether that’s making the most of our great partnership with Ubisoft through to attracting and activating huge brands and destinations who want to reach our fans and audience.

This year kicked off in exciting fashion announcing our venture with Epic Games for RLCS and FNCS. What are you most excited about regarding these two ecosystems?

We have worked with the Epic competitive team since 2021 on Fortnite and it was a pleasure to deepen our relationship, expand to Rocket League and find a new collaboration model that works for them, us, and represents a new approach to the industry’s developments.

And we’ve just had our first RLCS Major, in Copenhagen. What was that event like? Any standout moments or highlights?

The fan reaction. We have wanted to be involved in Rocket League for years - we’ve worked very hard and very fast to get up to speed. For our first event, I think the positive reaction and engagement from the fans felt very special - and they know there is more to come in London, Texas and beyond.

And what would you say is your personal highlight from your time at BLAST? Is there a standout event or achievement that comes to mind?

Leading our expansion across esports and bringing commercial success to our business with exponential and sustainable commercial growth and return. BLAST started off with Pro Series in Counter-Strike and today we’re a major rights holder across five top tier esports titles with Rainbow Six, Fortnite, Rocket League, CS2 and we’re launching a big programme in Dota2.

Looking back is great it’s wonderful to reflect on how BLAST has grown in titles - but looking forward is even better and I know we’ll continue to grow and succeed over the years ahead across more games, and new parts of the world.

BLAST Premier Spring Final 2023 in Washington D.C. ¦ Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

Esports must’ve taken you across the world over the past five years. What’s been your favourite destination and why?

We are very global but personally - I love Brasil. Our most recent event over there with Ubisoft and Rainbow 6 , the Six Invitational, really showcased the power of the fandom, with loads of fans, sponsors, media interest and great competition.

Looking ahead I think we want to do even more in the US and engage that market in new BLAST ways, as well as in other rapidly growing and important markets in South and East Asia for example.