What Rogue does

Rogue is a professional esports organization founded in 2016 and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company operates in the competitive gaming industry, fielding esports teams and competing in organized tournaments. Leadership includes co-founders Kingsley Edwards, Derek Nelson, and Frank Villarreal, who serves as CEO, with Parrish McIntyre as Chief Operating Officer; a separate listing identifies "Rogue Frank" as President, Co-Owner & Founder, suggesting either a naming variant or organizational overlap in the available records. The company maintains a small operating footprint of 11-50 employees consistent with a competitive team organization rather than a large-scale esports franchise.

The organization secured its primary known funding round in May 2017, raising approximately $1.67 million from a syndicate of investors including AngelFire Ventures, New York Angels, New York Venture Partners, and Ruttenberg Gordon Investments. No subsequent funding rounds, acquisitions, partnerships, or product launches are disclosed in the available source material, and no customer, revenue, or business model details are provided. The current operating status and competitive performance metrics are not documented in the input data.

Rogue remains a privately held entity with no disclosed IPO plans. Beyond the 2017 capital raise and founding date, the company's strategic trajectory, game titles contested, roster composition, sponsorship portfolio, and financial performance are not addressed by available sources. The input data also references other entities sharing the "Rogue" name—including a snack brand, a fitness equipment manufacturer, an AI marketing platform, and an opsec-focused blog—but these are distinct organizations and not part of the esports company being analyzed.

Name

Rogue

Legal name

Rogue

Website

https://rogue.gg

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rogue is a Las Vegas-based professional esports organization founded in 2016 that fields competitive gaming teams. The privately held company employs 11-50 staff and raised approximately $1.67M in a 2017 funding round from New York-area investors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Esports

NAICS

Sports Teams and Clubs (711211)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Esports Platforms & Competitive Gaming Networks (BPAMAKAH)

Keywords

• Professional esports organization
• Competitive gaming team
• Esports tournament participation
• Esports content and streaming
• Esports merchandise sales

Headquarters

HQ city

Las Vegas

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. High-protein snack sales: The company generates revenue through direct sales of high-protein snacks via wholesale distribution, primarily launching in Walmart stores nationwide with a digital-first approach.

Distribution channels3 records

Core offering

Rogue is a professional esports organization that fields competitive teams in esports tournaments, produces gaming-related content distributed via live streams and social media, and sells branded merchandise to fans. It generates revenue primarily through sponsorship deals, tournament prize earnings, merchandise sales, and content/media rights associated with its competitive teams.

Product overview

The sources refer to multiple distinct companies sharing the 'Rogue' name. Rogue Active Intelligence (launched March 2026) offers RogIQ, an AI-powered marketing workflow platform. Rogue Fitness, based in Columbus, Ohio, manufactures fitness equipment including power bars (Ohio Power Bar), cable machines (CTM-1), rowing machines (Echo Rower), weight plates, and accessories. The rogue.gg blog is a personal publication focused on opsec, experiments, and adtech.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• WalmartcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor retail distribution partner launching the brand in 2,800 stores nationwide beginning in July 2026.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• 100 Thieves: LA-based esports and lifestyle organization combining competitive teams with apparel and content — directly comparable in geography, business model mix, and category to Rogue.
• Cloud9: Long-running US-based esports org with rosters in multiple titles, comparable organizational scale and business model (sponsorships, merchandise, content) to a multi-team org like Rogue.
• FaZe Clan: Major US-based esports and content organization with teams across multiple titles and a heavy content/sponsorship model, the most direct structural analog to a mid-sized multi-team US org.
• Sentinels: US-based esports org with a focus on FPS titles (Valorant) and a similar mid-tier scale and sponsorship-driven revenue model, comparable as a direct peer in the NA esports ecosystem.
• Misfits Gaming: Mid-sized US/international esports organization with multi-title teams and sponsorship-driven revenue, comparable in scale and operational model to a mid-tier US org like Rogue.
• Evil Geniuses: Historic NA-based esports organization with a long-tenured brand and multi-game roster model, structurally comparable as an older US org navigating post-2022 industry headwinds.
• Golden Guardians: North American esports org with a League of Legends franchise slot and additional titles, a comparable US-based mid-tier org in terms of scale and the franchise/team operating model.
• NRG Esports: North American esports organization fielding rosters in multiple competitive titles, with a comparable operational footprint and a similar mix of competitive and content revenue streams.
• TSM (Team SoloMid): One of the most established North American professional esports organizations, fielding teams across multiple competitive titles with a similar multi-game, content-driven business model to Rogue.
• OpTic Gaming: Iconic North American esports brand with multi-title teams and a strong content/community following — a structural peer in scale, geography, and the multi-revenue-stream org model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/GoingRogueGG

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rogue