KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes is now a majority shareholder in Team Saiyan, a Malaysian mobile esports organisation.
The organisation will be re-branded and renamed as AirAsia Saiyan.
Team Saiyan is touted as one of the top-ranked professional teams playing in the popular multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) title Mobile Legends.
The squad also competes in the Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) competition, which is sponsored by mobile phone brand Honor, GoPro, and Singapore hardware brand Armageddon.
Fernandes shared in his autobiography that his son had encouraged him to invest in esports.
In announcing his investment in Team Saiyan on Facebook, Fernandes said: “Now airlines are sponsoring football clubs, but that’s passe."
In August last year, Fernandes launched the AirAsia Allstars Esports Club for its employees.
Fourteen AirAsia employees participated in two open tournaments - FIFA Online 3 and Dota 2 - held during the Selangor Cyber Games 2017.
The club has also participated in various esports tournaments in Malaysia since then.
In January this year, AirAsia also announced to be the special sponsor and exclusive airline partner for Mineski Pro Team, a Dota 2 squad led by Malaysian Dota legend Mushi.