We have seen this story the other way around many times. Whether it's Arsenal, Schalke 04, FC Barcelona or AS Roma, top football clubs are entering the esports arena by taking over young and promising esports organisations. What happened in Spain, however, is totally different, as an existing, professional football club has been rebranded after merging with DUX Gaming.
Internacional de Madrid Boadilla is a small team in the third division of LaLiga (it's actually called Second Division B). As season 2019/2020 ended sooner than expected due to COVID-19, they secured another year in the professional leagues. And the new season will see the team with a new name and kit, DUX Internacional de Madrid, as money is flooding into the team.
DUX Gaming is a young esports org born out of an agreement between the most famous football YouTuber in Spain, one of the best EA Sports FIFA players, Gravesen01, and a former Electronic Arts PR. DUX signed some of the most talented players in Spain to compete in FIFA 20 and NBA 2K20 tournaments. A short roster, but a very focused one.
In May, the esports org completed a round of funding and found two interesting investors, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and Real Betis striker Borja Iglesias. This fresh capital and the resulting bond to real football then helped the merger happen.