Sponsoring KRC Genk... the esports team
29.07.2026
Sponsoring a sports club: common practice. Sponsoring a club’s gaming team: less common. Why are companies like Carglass opting for a two-pronged strategy at KRC Genk? And how do Carrefour, ARAG, and Philips use esports for marketing and recruitment? A conversation with Alexander Dumon, Esports Coordinator at the Limburg-based football club.
“At Racing Genk, we’ve been focusing on esports since 2020. We do this to reach young people, specifically those under 18. Because what are they spending their time on? Gaming.”
“On one hand, we want to build a connection with them. And that goes beyond those who are already fans of our football club. In my view, you can easily support a different football team and still be a fan of Genk in esports,” Alexander explains. “On the other hand, we want to establish our brand name—especially across Europe.”
And just like with a traditional sports club, companies can sponsor an esports team to tap into gaming marketing.
Brand awareness, activations, recruitment…
“Our partnerships with sponsors vary from company to company. Simply because their goals are different. Some want to build brand awareness, others see us as part of their activations, or leverage us for their recruitment strategy.”
Alexander clarifies with four examples:
- The Foundation Cup for ARAG
- The Company Cup for Carglass
- Online activations for Carrefour
- Trade shows for Philips
1. Brand awareness for ARAG
ARAG is a legal protection insurance provider. Their logo features prominently on Genk’s esports jersey. In addition, they collaborate on brand activation.
“In the Netherlands, ARAG is a household name; here in Belgium, less so. So they wanted to work on their brand awareness through us. Their second goal: promoting online safety, specifically for youth. That’s how the idea for the Foundation Cup was born. Every Wednesday, we invite underprivileged youth to play football with us—both on the pitch and digitally.”
“To me, this is a great example of how a company can build brand awareness while tying it to an educational angle.”
2. New colleagues for Carglass
Carglass is the market leader in vehicle glass repair and replacement. “They have been sponsoring our football club for years. That partnership extends into gaming marketing, with a focus on recruiting new employees—warehouse staff, for instance, or technicians who repair or replace windshields. And those profiles game.”
“We also organize an annual Company Cup for Carglass here at the Cegeka Arena. They invite their partner companies, and we run the tournament and host a stadium tour. Our esports players are present as well.”
3. Activations for Carrefour
“For Carrefour, we focus mainly on online visibility. We do this by setting up livestreams and gaming campaigns with engaging promotions, like free giveaways. This helps highlight their products, such as gift cards for Netflix, Roblox, or Fortnite.”
“We also involve our first-team squad. When it’s a player’s birthday, we give away those gift cards on their behalf. A fun example of how a brand can execute an online activation.”
4. Events and trade shows for Philips
“Together with Corda Campus, Philips is one of our founding partners. They were convinced of the value of esports and gaming marketing right from the very start.”
“With Philips, our collaboration includes trade shows. They invite our esports team to join them at conventions and expos. Recently, I received great feedback from them: even though they had one of the smaller booths at the BAM Marketing congress, they had the most-visited booth. Our players were there, and visitors could play a match of FIFA—the perfect break between all the lectures and seminars.”
Both-and or either-or?
“What gives me the most satisfaction is that we build long-term partnerships with our sponsors. They are almost never one-year deals; the majority stay on for more than three seasons.”
“In addition, we see companies signing up strictly for the esports branch. So it’s not a matter of companies sponsoring the football club first and tacking us on as an afterthought. Not at all. We currently have six major partners, and exactly half of them work exclusively with our esports team—that’s a huge compliment.”
Looking for even more insights? Be sure to listen to the podcast episode with Alexander. Or looking to leverage gaming marketing for your brand? Let’s talk!
