Multiple esports industry leaders, and former executives, have called out Sentinels for overspending as the company’s financials have been revealed in an offering memorandum on its StartEngine crowdfunding page.
Sentinels revealed some of their financial issues in an offering memo on their crowdfunding investing page on StartEngine. The memo outlined the company’s executive pay, and how long the minimum and maximum funding expectation from the campaign will keep the company afloat.
The memo was first shared on social media by Hunter Grooms. Since its initial posting, multiple esports industry leaders have commented and slammed their company for its reckless spending.
Even the former CEO of G2 Esports Carlos Rodríguez, who left the company following backlash for his association with controversial influencer Andrew Tate, chimed in on the news.
“A lot of work goes into building something like this and your marketing’s been spectacular,” Carlos said. “However, you pay too much and you should fire everyone in charge of approving compensation packages. Not only have you f***ed everyone else, but also yourselves.”
Hope you secure the fundingA lot of work goes into building something like this and your marketing's been spectacularHowever you pay too much and you should fire everyone in charge of approving compensation packagesNot only have you fucked everyone else, but also yourselves
— ⭕️ CarlosR ocelote 👌🏼 (@CarlosR) August 8, 2023
Esports industry calls out Sentinels’ overspending habits
The current head of G2 Esports in North America, Rob Stamey, put out a lengthy statement about the Sentinels news.
“Let’s not act surprised when things start to go to s*** because “egos” have ran people’s livelihoods into the ground based on the business decisions they’ve made which most of the time benefit themselves rather than the heart of the company, the staff & players,” he said.
How do pro esports orgs justify paying executives hundreds of thousands of dollars to run at a massive loss? Running a healthy, profitable business in this space is achievable, we did it from bell to bell. But it requires not being an asshole and only eating what you kill.
— Adam Apicella (@MrAdamAp) August 8, 2023
Adam Apicella, the founder of Esports Engine and MLG, called into question executive pay at the company and praised his own past ventures.
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“How do pro esports orgs justify paying executives hundreds of thousands of dollars to run at a massive loss? Running a healthy, profitable business in this space is achievable, we did it from bell to bell,” he said.
According to the offering memo, every executive at Sentinels makes over $200,000 a year with the company’s CEO, Rob Moore, making over $360,000 a year.
Erin Ashley Simon, a media personality and COO of XSET, said the inflated cost of esports companies is currently not justified for their return for investors.
The overinflated cost is not justified for the return on investment for investors. As someone who has a glimpse under the hood…A financial correction is needed to increase financial stability in the industry. Well and more is needed too, important convo to have. https://t.co/EbdOwPlwfh
— Erin Ashley Simon (@erinasimon) August 8, 2023
“A financial correction is needed to increase financial stability in the industry,” she said.
M80 founder CEO, Marco Mereu, in opposition to the many doomsayers, said that people shouldn’t take the offering memo too seriously. He explained that the section many are referencing about the minimum and maximum raised through the campaign is similar to the quarterly reports FaZe Clan files with the SEC outlining the worst-case scenario for the company.
“Nothing here says SEN can’t get access to as much capital as it needs to continue to operate if they choose to pull those levers. They could and probably do have numerous sources to access to continue to operate,” he said. “Not much to see here IMO.”