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Motorsport Games Inc. is an American
video game developer A video game developer is a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large business with em ...
,
publisher Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
and
esports Esports (), short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, played individually or as teams. ...
event organizer based in
Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
. Motorsport Games is part of the Motorsport Network.


History

Motorsport Games was founded in 2018 and on August 14 the studio acquired 53.5% equity interest in
704Games 704Games Company (formerly known as Dusenberry Martin Racing) is an American video game developer and publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company acquired the license to be the exclusive developer of List of NASCAR video games, NASC ...
, at the time the current rights holder to the
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
video game series. As a result, Motorsport Games became the official developer and publisher of the NASCAR video game racing franchise. In the same month, Motorsport Games collaborated with
Automobile Club de l'Ouest The Automobile Club de l'Ouest (English: Automobile Club of the West), sometimes abbreviated to ACO, is the largest automotive group in France. It was founded in 1906 by car building and racing enthusiasts, and is most famous for being the organ ...
(ACO) to launch the Le Mans esports series competition. In September 2019, Motorsport Games released the ''
NASCAR Heat 4 ''NASCAR Heat 4'' is a racing video game simulating the 2019 NASCAR season. It was developed by Monster Games and was published by 704Games on September 13, 2019 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows via Steam. Kevin Harvick is the c ...
'' game. In May 2020, 704Games replaced Monster Games as developer for '' NASCAR Heat 5'', which was released two months later on July 10. In 2021 the company acquired Studio 397 and its ''
rFactor 2 ''rFactor 2'' is a computer racing simulator developed by Image Space Incorporated (taken over by Studio 397 in 2016) and released for Windows in 2013. Like its predecessor '' rFactor'', ''rFactor2'' is designed to be modified and used by profe ...
'' sim racing platform. ''rFactor2'' was appointed as the official sim racing platform of the all-electric FIA Formula E championship in 2022. In August 2021 former President of EA Sports and former CEO of Liverpool Football Club Peter Moore had joined the board of Motorsport Games.


2020 esports events

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic Motorsport Games produced several official esports events for
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
,
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
,
FIA Formula E World Championship Formula E, officially the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, is an open-wheel single-seater motorsport championship for electric cars. The racing series is the highest class of competition for electrically powered single-seater racing cars ...
and
FIA World Rallycross Championship The FIA World Rallycross Championship (official abbreviation is World RX) is a rallycross series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA in conjunction with series promoter Rallycross Promoter GmbH (founded by Red Bull G ...
, eNASCAR Heat Pro League and Virtual Race of Champions. Motorsport Games collaborated with
Codemasters The Codemasters Software Company Limited (trade name: Codemasters) is a British video game developer and former publisher based in Southam, England, which is a subsidiary of American corporation Electronic Arts and managed under the EA Sports ...
and
Monster Energy Monster Energy is a brand of energy drink, energy drinks that was created by Hansen Natural Company (now Monster Beverage Corporation) in April 2002. In 2022, Monster Energy had a 30.1% Market share, share of the American energy drink market, th ...
, the sponsor of the
FIA World Rallycross Championship The FIA World Rallycross Championship (official abbreviation is World RX) is a rallycross series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA in conjunction with series promoter Rallycross Promoter GmbH (founded by Red Bull G ...
, to create the ''World RX Esports Invitational'' which was held in April. In the same year in June, Motorsport Games, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest and the
FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship, abbreviated as WEC, is a world championship for automobile endurance racing organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The se ...
organized the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual race on the ''
rFactor 2 ''rFactor 2'' is a computer racing simulator developed by Image Space Incorporated (taken over by Studio 397 in 2016) and released for Windows in 2013. Like its predecessor '' rFactor'', ''rFactor2'' is designed to be modified and used by profe ...
'' gaming platform as a placeholder for the
2020 24 Hours of Le Mans The 88th 24 Hours of Le Mans (French: ''88e 24 Heures du Mans'') was a 24-hour Endurance racing (motorsport), automobile endurance race for Le Mans Prototype (LMP) and LM GTE, Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance (LMGTE) cars fielded by teams of th ...
which has been postponed from June to September as a result of the impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic in France The COVID-19 pandemic in France has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. The virus was confirmed to have reached France on 24 January 2020, when the first COVID-19 case in both Europe and France was identified in Bordeaux. T ...
. It was watched by 14.2 million television viewers and reached 8.6 million views, and was the recipient of several awards such as Autosport Pioneering and Engineering Award at the
Autosport Awards The Autosport Awards are a series of awards presented by British motorsport magazine ''Autosport'' to drivers, constructors, executives and promoters for achievements that season in auto racing and rallying. Select awards are voted for by the ...
.


IPO and 2021 acquisitions

Motorsport Games completed its
Initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
(IPO) in January 2021, ended up raising $69 million which was used for acquiring the remaining equity interest of 704Games, and for acquiring '' KartKraft'' and Studio 397. In February, Motorsport Games entered into an agreement to acquire game assets and code of PC kart racing simulator, '' KartKraft'' from Black Delta for an undisclosed amount with an aim to form a new studio called Motorsport Games Australia where the development of ''KartKraft'' will continue,
Motosport Snaps Up KartKraft; Street Sees 41% Upside
', at nasdaq.com, Feb 21, 2021
and completed the deal in March. In March, Motorsport entered into an agreement with Luminis International to acquire Studio 397, the developer of ''
rFactor 2 ''rFactor 2'' is a computer racing simulator developed by Image Space Incorporated (taken over by Studio 397 in 2016) and released for Windows in 2013. Like its predecessor '' rFactor'', ''rFactor2'' is designed to be modified and used by profe ...
'' which was completed two months later. Motorsport Games combined the Unreal graphics engine and the ''rFactor'' physics technology for '' NASCAR 21: Ignition'', which was released on October 26 the same year. The combination of the ''rFactor'' and Unreal engines was used for all the upcoming titles produced by Motorsport Games, such as
British Touring Car Championship The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), officially known as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by ...
game which was in development. In the same month, Motorsport Games entered into a license with
IndyCar IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...
to develop both IndyCar video game series, with a planned launch date in 2023, and events. Also in June, Motorsport Games announced the development of a dedicated video game title for the
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
through a licensing deal with that race's parent organizations, the
Automobile Club de l'Ouest The Automobile Club de l'Ouest (English: Automobile Club of the West), sometimes abbreviated to ACO, is the largest automotive group in France. It was founded in 1906 by car building and racing enthusiasts, and is most famous for being the organ ...
and the
FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship, abbreviated as WEC, is a world championship for automobile endurance racing organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The se ...
, originally scheduled for release in 2023. The BTCC game was originally scheduled to have been released in 2022 but was delayed for 2024. In December 2022, Motorsport Games began an equity purchase agreement with NYC-based Alumni Capital in the amount of up to $2 million in company stock, with options up to a total of $10 million expiring December 31, 2023. By October 2023, Motorsports Games was no longer working on a future NASCAR title, as the license to produce NASCAR video games was transferred to ''
iRacing ''iRacing'' is a subscription-based online sim racing video game developed and published by iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations in 2008. All in-game sessions are hosted on the publisher's servers. The game simulates real world cars, tracks, and ...
'', who have a long-standing relationship with NASCAR, with a title planned for 2025. Motorsport laid off 40% of their workforce in the following month. The same week,
TOCA TOCA, formally trading as BARC (TOCA) Ltd, is an organiser of motorsport events in the United Kingdom. The company organises and administers the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) and the support series to the BTCC, sometimes known as the ...
, the rights holder for the BTCC, ended its partnership with the company "due to ongoing fundamental breaches of the agreement by Motorsport Games". Over a week later, IndyCar terminated its agreement with the company, citing Motorsport Games' failure to deliver a game within the 2023 season. On April 15, 2025, Motorsport Games secured a $2.5 million investment from
virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a Simulation, simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video gam ...
technology company Pimax.


Controversies

On March 28, 2022, U.S. federal judge
Stephanos Bibas Stephanos Bibas (born June 18, 1969) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He was appointed to the bench in 2017 by President Donald Trump. Before his appoi ...
accepted a motion by investors Innovate 2 Corp., Continental General Insurance Company, and Leo Capital Holdings LLC to sue Motorsport Games in the
United States District Court for the District of Delaware The United States District Court for the District of Delaware (in case citations, D. Del.) is the United States district court, Federal district court having jurisdiction over the entire state of Delaware. The Court sits in Wilmington, Delaware, ...
. In the filing, the investors accuse four Motorsport Games executives of
securities fraud Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a deceptive practice in the stock or commodities markets that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information.Nasdaq The Nasdaq Stock Market (; National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the U.S. by volume, and ranked second on the list ...
listing rules after its board of directors resigned over funding disputes. The company reported losses of $7.5 million against revenue of $1.2 million in the third quarter of 2022. In January 2023, Motorsport Games organised the fourth annual
Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
virtual 24-hour endurance race, a parallel to the real-life
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
event. The race took place in Motorsport Games' sim racing video game ''
rFactor 2 ''rFactor 2'' is a computer racing simulator developed by Image Space Incorporated (taken over by Studio 397 in 2016) and released for Windows in 2013. Like its predecessor '' rFactor'', ''rFactor2'' is designed to be modified and used by profe ...
'' and featured notable motorsport drivers, such as
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
World Champion
Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
and former Formula One driver
Romain Grosjean Romain David Jeremie Grosjean (; born 17 April 1986) is a French and Swiss racing driver, who competes in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Lamborghini and serves as a reserve driver in the IndyCar Series for Prema. Grosjean competed under ...
. The event was plagued with server issues and disconnections, which lead a lot of backlash from participants. Verstappen described the event as a "clown show", and online content creator and participant Jimmy Broadbent stated that this would ultimately "damage sim racing" as a medium. Several days after the event, an anonymous employee threatened to publicly leak the
source code In computing, source code, or simply code or source, is a plain text computer program written in a programming language. A programmer writes the human readable source code to control the behavior of a computer. Since a computer, at base, only ...
for ''NASCAR Heat 5'', ''NASCAR 21: Ignition'', ''KartKraft'' and the unreleased IndyCar game unless unpaid wage payments were made.


Games

* ''
NASCAR Heat 4 ''NASCAR Heat 4'' is a racing video game simulating the 2019 NASCAR season. It was developed by Monster Games and was published by 704Games on September 13, 2019 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows via Steam. Kevin Harvick is the c ...
'' (2019, published) * '' NASCAR Heat 5'' and ''Next-Gen DLC'' (2020, 2023) * '' NASCAR 21: Ignition'' (2021) * ''
rFactor 2 ''rFactor 2'' is a computer racing simulator developed by Image Space Incorporated (taken over by Studio 397 in 2016) and released for Windows in 2013. Like its predecessor '' rFactor'', ''rFactor2'' is designed to be modified and used by profe ...
'' (2021) * '' KartKraft'' (2022) * '' NASCAR Rivals'' (2022) * '' Le Mans Ultimate'' (2024)


Cancelled games

* ''
IndyCar IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...
'' (2023) * ''
British Touring Car Championship The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), officially known as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by ...
'' (2023)


References

{{reflist


External links


Official website
Companies based in Miami Companies listed on the Nasdaq American companies established in 2017 Video game companies established in 2017 Video game companies of the United States Video game development companies Video game publishers