Goals, based in Stockholm, has secured $20M in a Series A funding round to support the development of a new soccer game that aims to appeal to both casual fans and aspiring esports professionals.
The funding round was led by Seven Seven Six, founded by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, with participation from Northzone, Moonfire, and Cassius.
Additionally, several individuals also invested in this round:
- Peter Sellis, SVP of Product for Discord
- Wayne Mackey, founder and CEO of Statespace / Aimlabs
- Riqui Puig, LA Galaxy midfielder
- Clement Lenglet, center-back for Tottenham Hotspur
- Gerard Pique, former Barca defender
In 2021, Andreas Thorstensson, a former Counter-Strike World Champion and the founder of the esports team SK Gaming established Goals with the goal of revolutionizing the soccer game industry.
Drawing on his competitive background, Thorstensson aims to shift the focus away from hyperrealism and towards creating a fun, fast, and fluid gameplay experience.
“There are over 3.5 billion football fans in the world, and our team is united in the belief that a football game done right should be the world’s biggest video game. We’re focused on making sure we have a game that meets the needs of every fan, whether they’re looking for casual or highly competitive play, what hardware they play on, no matter where they live.”
The trend:
Goals is part of a growing trend of esports teams and creators expanding into game development. In 2018, Tempo Storm and founder Reynad started developing their own collectible card game, The Bazaar.
Last year, 100 Thieves announced Project X, while Brazil’s INTZ established and later closed Apollo Games Lab, their in-house development studio.
