bbq Olivers will be the new name of ESC Ever, with Genesis BBQ becoming the first restaurant chain in Korea to officially sponsor an eSports team.

Today, the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA) and Genesis BBQ took place in the main branch of BBQ Chicken, officially announcing that ESC Ever will now be known as bbq Olivers. Honggeun Yoon, the chairman of Genesis BBQ, stated that the company will do more to foster the growth of eSports, dining culture, and the synergy between the two.

The team’s new brand image seems to be closely linked to its sponsor, with the name ‘Olivers’ symbolizing the company’s signature olive frying oil, along with the new logo and uniform that features a rooster.

While the name has been changed, the team will retain the same coaching staff and players as before, and it will brandish its new name and logo starting in LCK 2017, which begins on January 17th.

Founded as ESC back in 2015, the team showed potential to be a strong team by placing second in Challengers Korea 2015, winning the 2015 KeSPA Cup and the LoL tournament in IEM 2015. It came as no surprise when the team was promoted to LCK after winning Challengers Korea 2016.

With fried chicken being a quintessential part of Korean dining culture and spectator sports' stadium food, the company’s decision to sponsor an eSports team is sure to mark a significant moment in Korea’s eSports history.