Better Collective has officially acquired HLTV.org and Dust2.dk. Better Collective, based in Copenhagen, Denmark, is a leading betting media group that aims to improve sports betting and gambling. HLTV.org is by the leading resource for competitive Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO) news, player statistics, and match information. Danish organization HLTV was founded in 2002 and receives over 26 million visitors per month.
Similarly, Dust2.dk, founded in 2016, leads the CSGO community in Denmark. It provides live scores, esports news, and hosts Denmark’s official Top 10 team list.
A community gem
HLTV is famous for its grassroots approach to esports and CSGO. In recent years, their thriving user base has expressed an interest in betting. Therefore, the organization has taken steps to integrate betting into its site alongside typical match statistics. Their partnership with Better Collective further solidifies their position as one of the world’s largest esports affiliations. February, in particular, showed HLTV’s increasing interest in betting as the site began heavily pushing betting communities across their social media platforms. The site experienced backlash from the community, who felt as though the site had sold out.
— á Œ (@d4vskal) February 24, 2020
According to HLTV, Better Collective purchased the organization for €34.5M or 257M DKK (about $38M USD). While Better Collective now owns HLTV, the original founders are staying aboard to handle day-to-day activities for at least the next three years. Furthermore, they’ll ensure the continuous development of the community. HLTV.org ApS CEO Martin Rosenbæk stated the following:
HLTV has always been neutral in the CSGO landscape in the sense we stand as independent. For 18 years this has always enabled us to provide unbiased news and coverage. Partnering with Better Collective gives us the much-needed backbone for HLTV.org in terms of a strong organizational setup that is required for us to continuously provide you with the best product possible. Better Collective has given HLTV management free hands to keep developing and improving the site as we have done for 18 years. We are very excited and hope you are as well.
