Automobile giant Nissan has entered esports through partnerships with North American organisations OpTic Gaming and FaZe Clan.

Nissan will act as a jersey sponsor for both of its new partners, and team members from both organisations will have access to Nissan vehicles for branded content across digital and social platforms.

Robert Cross, Director of Media and Activation at Nissan North America discussed the venture: “For any company trying to reach the Gen Z and millennial-minded audience, streaming and esports is an enormous opportunity. We believe this partnership presents a new approach in introducing ourselves and connecting with millions of fans through their favorite gamers.”

FaZe Clan has added Nissan to its roster of partners, meaning it has joined the likes of G FUEL, SCUF Gaming, and SteelSeries. It fields competitors in Fortnite, Call of Duty, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, FIFA, Rainbow Six Siege, and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG).

Lee Trink, CEO of FaZe Clan also commented: “We are thrilled to have an innovative automotive company like Nissan as a sponsor and brand partner. We look forward to creating compelling content together for this exciting relationship.”

OpTic Gaming is also partnered with Turtle Beach, Mountain Dew AMP Game Fuel, SCUF Gaming, and DXRacer. It competes in Call of Duty, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Gears of War, Overwatch League, and League of Legends.

Ryan “OpTicJ” Musselman, President of OpTic Gaming added: “It’s an honor for OpTic to introduce Nissan to esports. Nissan has been innovating since the 1930’s, and we believe the crossover of our engaged and tech-savvy fan base will help drive Nissan’s continued history of improving the lives of vehicle owners through their unique approach of technological integration.”

Nissan is one of many automobile companies to make moves in esports in recent months: BMW sponsored Cloud9, Team Liquid announced Honda as its automotive sponsor, Mercedes-Benz purchased a stake in SK Gaming, Origen and Audi joined forces, and Kia Motors sponsored LEC.

Esports Insider says: We’re seeing an emerging trend of automobile brands entering esports, what’ll be most interesting is if these deals prove to be fruitful. There aren’t too many prominent automotive companies that have stayed away from esports at this point, proving just how important this industry’s audience really is to major industries.