eSports
Nigma Galaxy appoints ex-Fnatic Jan Hoffmann as Head of Operations


Nigma Galaxy, the esports division of MENA transmedia powerhouse Galaxy Racer, is excited to announce the appointment of Jan Hoffmann as its new Head of Operations. In his new role, Jan will be responsible for all operational aspects of Nigma Galaxy.
Jan brings over 10 years of experience in the esports industry ranging from media, production, player, and professional management, to Nigma Galaxy. He joins the esports organisation from Rix.GG, where he was CEO. Previously, Jan was at Fnatic, where he was Head of Team Operations and was responsible for leading organisation-wide esports operations. In this role, Hoffmann also handled all internal, organisation-wide operations for two years before his departure. Before he was appointed Head of Team Operations at Fnatic, Jan progressed his way up the organisation from manager and coach to Team Director of Fnatic’s League of Legends team.
In his new role at Nigma Galaxy, Hoffmann will be responsible for all organisation-wide operations. He will oversee the organisation’s pro teams operations, ensuring that the teams have all they need to compete at the highest level. He will also be responsible for all wider Nigma Galaxy operations, which entails nearly everything from HR, logistics, financial planning, coordinating with the departments to project management together with the operations team.
Looking ahead, Jan’s focus will be to develop and build on some of the new projects, including Nigma Galaxy’s efforts in supporting female esports such as the world-class CS:GO team or its new Mobile Legends: Bang Bang team in Indonesia.
Jan Hoffmann, Head of Operations at Nigma Galaxy said: “I’m very happy to announce that I have joined Nigma Galaxy as Head of Operations. Nigma Galaxy is a world-class esports organisation always striving to be the best and to replicate and build on the success they already had in the past. Working with this experienced group of esports veterans is incredibly motivating and fills me with excitement for the things we have in store.”
Christoph Timm, Co-Founder of Nigma Galaxy commented: “We are excited to welcome Jan to Nigma Galaxy. Jan’s immense experience within the industry will be essential as we continue to grow and strive for success. Welcome to the team, Jan!”
Africa
Results: 2023 Northern Cape Online Championships

Even with load shedding causing frustration among both athletes and officials alike, Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) was able to still host a verys successful championship were all participants were able to compete and, most of all, have fun.
With the “competent” South African government stating that South Africa will have load shedding for the next two years, MSSA is already reviewing its policies in regard to load shedding and its online championships.
Load shedding has a huge impact on esports, and may end up causing online console and pc gaming to become elitist as only those who are substantially financially advantaged will be able to compete. It may also result in mobile esports becoming more popular.. A continuous and consistent electricity supply is vital to South Africa developing as a major esports nation.
Nevertheless, MSSA is more than happy with the results from the 2023 Northern Cape Championships.
There were no less than seven (7) provinces represented, and more importantly, there were more females participating since 2020. Of the 22 athletes who earned Provincial Colours, 7 of such athletes are females.
Special mention must be made of Karli Roodt (Middelburg Hoërskool) who is the first female champion in the esports title of Rocket League to earn Mpumalanga Provincial colours. Karli also qualifies for National Team Trials, and may very well end up in the National Squad and/or Protea Team.
The female esports team, VYBN Females, also had a good showing in the CSGO esports title. The team has now earned Provincial colours as well as qualifying for National Team Trials, and may very well end up in the National Squad and/or Protea Team. Of course, CSGO is just one of the six titles which MSSA has entered to contest at IESF’s 15th World Championships.
IESF’s 15th World Championships will be played to the following titles:
- Counter-Strike: GO (CSGO)
- Counter-Strike: GO (CSGO) – Female division
- DotA 2
- eFootball
- Mobile Legends, Bang Bang
- PUBGM
- Tekken 7
The winners of the 2023 Northern Cape Online Championships are:
Title | Name of player/team | Club | Colours awarded |
Clash of Clans | Martin Venter | Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom | North West |
Clash Royale – Premier | John Kim | Middies | Mpumulanga |
Clash Royale – Premier – Female | Leone Loftus | Masters of Mind Sports | Free State |
Clash Royale | Tshwarelo Tshwane | Knights Mind Sports Club | |
CS:GO – Premier
|
ZAG CS |
ZAG Academy
|
|
Josh Chapman | Western Cape | ||
Sebastian Montoya-Pelaez | Western Cape | ||
Michael de Villiers | Western Cape | ||
Josh Orelowitz | Western Cape | ||
Thomas Venables | Gauteng | ||
CS:GO – Premier – Female
|
VYBN Females |
ZAG Academy
|
|
Paula van Vuuren | Western Cape | ||
Chloe Wilson | Gauteng | ||
Rialet van Jaarsveld | Gauteng | ||
Nicky Muller | Gauteng | ||
Alexandria Kruger | Mpumulanga | ||
FIFA 23 – Premier | Antonie Botes | Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom | North West |
PUBGM – Premier
|
Team eFx |
Team eFx
|
|
Sulaimaan Musthan | KwaZulu Natal | ||
Jared Rubly | Gauteng | ||
Jarrod Pretorius | Gauteng | ||
Richard Henry | Eastern Cape | ||
Rocket League – Premier | Nick Matzopoulos | ZAG Academy | Western Cape |
Rocket League – Premier – Female | Karli Roodt | Middies | Mumulanga |
Rocket League – High Schools | Maree van der Merwe | Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom | |
Tekken 7 | Jonathan Brown | Team Playbell | Western Cape |
Sportsmanship Award | Desiree Botha | Middies |
eSports
Guild Esports pro-player has $1 million MrBeast win verified

Guild Esports, a global teams organisation and lifestyle brand, has confirmed that Fortnite pro-player, Anas El-Abd (‘Anas’), has had his $1 million MrBeast Fortnite competition win verified by organisers Epic Games and Jimmy ‘MrBeast’ Donaldson – a YouTube personality with the fourth-biggest channel on YouTube and more than 125 million subscribers.
Anas’ victory in the ‘MrBeast’s Extreme Survival Challenge’, which took place on 17 December 2022, has cemented his position as one of the top Fortnite players competing globally at a professional level.
When Anas joined Guild in 2021, he brought with him experience of the European pro scene, having played Fortnite since 2017. Anas has qualified for the game’s flagship Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) Finals 14 times over the space of four years and 13 seasons, with this latest MrBeast accolade adding to his already impressive track record.
The MrBeast tournament victory from Anas rounded off a highly successful year of competition for Guild Esports and its players in 2022, with notable wins across the RL EMEA Predator League 2022, Game Changers EMEA Series 3, Fortnite Champion Series, EA Sports FIFA 22 eChampions League and the MrBeast Challenge.
In 2023, Guild is one of the leading organisations remaining committed to Fortnite competitions, with previous Fortnite tournament victories including four FNCS titles, Gamers8 – No Build, and the recent MrBeast Extreme Survival Challenge. Guild’s current Fortnite duo Anas and Henrik Mclean (‘Hen’) are also trialling playing together. Hen brings three FNCS trophies to the partnership, while Anas has one of the most consistent and highest average placement positions.
Jasmine Skee, CEO of Guild Esports, commented: “Many congratulations to Anas, who has proven yet again that he is among the world’s best Fortnite players. We are delighted by his success, which underscores the exceptional talent within Guild’s teams. Winning tournaments, reaching ever-larger audiences and gaining new fans, supports our ongoing growth as a leading global esports organisation. We can’t wait to see how Anas and Hen get on this year collaborating further and playing as a duo for Guild.”
Anas El-Abd (‘Anas’), Fortnite player at Guild Esports, commented: “Winning the MrBeast Challenge is one of my best accomplishments since playing Fortnite. Moving forward I will be focusing on tournaments with myself and Hen. We are doing pretty well playing together now, we are both good players and were both looking for a duo, so it makes sense to try it out.”
eSports
The World’s Biggest Esports Stars Train at Kinguin’s Cutting-Edge Esports Performance Center in Warsaw – Summary of 2022

In 2022, 66 bootcamps and 20 special events were held at the Kinguin Esports Performance Center in Warsaw – the state-of-the-art esports training center for players and teams in Europe.
Kinguin EPC is where the best teams in the world train to prepare for tournaments across key esports titles including Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends, Dota 2, FIFA, Rocket League, Fortnite, VALORANT and Rainbow Six: Siege.
2022 in numbers:
- Number of bootcamps: 66
- Number of events: 20
- Longest stays: Misfits Premier – 116 days, X7 – 88 days
- The largest bootcamp: Seven Goats – 25 people
- Guests who visited EPC the most: Anonymo (6 bootcamps), Imperial (5), NAVI Javelins (4)
2022 was a thrilling year at the Kinguin Esports Performance Center being used by leading teams including Tundra Esports players, who in the following months won The Dota 2 International and FaZe Clan – winners of Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2022. The center was also visited by teams such as Imperial, Renegades, Team Falcons, MOUZ, AGO, OG, TYLOO, MIBR, NAVI, SKADE, Acend, Wisła Kraków, Anonymo, Excel, Exeed, TSM and Pasha Gaming Camp.
Paweł Książek, Head of Kinguin Esports Performance Center, said: “The Kinguin Esports Performance Center was created with the best teams in the world in mind and last year showed the importance of the EPC to esports players and teams. It is an honor to host some of the biggest esports teams and legends including the winners of the most prestigious tournaments.”
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Kinguin has been actively helping people affected by the conflict. The Kinguin Esports Performance Center is open to all Ukrainian esports players and their families free of charge. To date, it has hosted almost 30 people, and its doors are still open to Ukrainian people in need of support.
Kinguin EPC hosted 20 industry events in 2022 including SkillFactor, a talent show where young esports players competed against each other in CS:GO, Deluxe Ski Jump 2 tournament powered by Rockstar Energy Drinks, Esports Skills Camp, modern gaming colonies and practical classes in esports for the University of Physical Culture and Tourism in Pruszków.
Other key events include Intel Overclocking Masters, journalistic competitions in spinning processors, as well as broadcasts from Kinguin Legends, the world’s first tournament featuring the biggest stars in the history of the CS:GO scene.
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