London – Endemol, announced August 18 that the UK arm of its premium channel network (PCN), Endemol Beyond, has launched an international sports-themed channel with YouTube megastar, Olatunji – aka KSI.
Available at www.youtube.com/rulemsports, RULE’M SPORTS is a major release featuring over 150 pieces of premium sports entertainment content over the next 12 months. Fans can see KSI tested to his limits and beyond, as he gets off of his infamous gaming chair, out of his bedroom and embarks on a journey to master five sporting disciplines over the space of a year, training alongside top athletes including Louise Hazel, Amir Khan and James Haskell.
His first challenge is in the world of professional boxing before he takes on a host of other international sports including rugby, football, athletics and more.
Renowned for his energetic attitude in front of the camera, KSI has risen to YouTube superstardom with a series of hilarious gaming commentaries, observational sketches and outrageous vlogs.
Since uploading his first video to YouTube in 2010, KSI has built an 8.5m strong army of dedicated fans across both of his channels (KSIOlajideBT and KSIOlajideBTHD), whilst amassing well over 1.28 billion views in total. In a recent poll by Variety magazine he ranked as the fourth most popular personality amongst U.S. teenagers, beating Hollywood film and music A-listers such as Leonardo Di Caprio, Johnny Depp, Katy Perry and Jennifer Lawrence.
His journey from gamer to sportsman on RULE’M SPORTS will be hilarious, riotous and inspirational, goading his legions of fans to get up and get active, have a laugh, and still take time out to pick up the pad once in a while.
KSI commented, “The guys at Endemol Beyond said I was going to have loads of fun, but so far I’ve been knocked about by pro boxers and made to look crazy slow by some top athletes. Now they’re lining up some absolutely huge rugby guy for next season, and I’m starting to realise just what I’ve let myself in for! All I can say is that at the end of filming, I won’t just be a beast by name, I’ll be a beast by nature.”
Endemol Beyond UK Director, Randel Bryan, commented, “Creating unmissable content with the hottest stars of the digital video world is what Endemol Beyond is all about. Not only is KSI one of the biggest YouTubers out there, he’s also one of the most entertaining, making him the perfect host for this truly unique digital sports channel.”
“We also believe that RULE’M SPORTS addresses a dramatic short-fall in sports and fitness content created solely for today’s connected youth and we see YouTube as an ideal platform to engage with this audience in a language they understand, on any device they choose and at any time they crave it.”
The launch of RULE’M SPORTS builds on the rapid growth of Endemol Beyond, which having launched in late 2013, now counts more than 290 million monthly views and has struck international partnerships with a host of star talent for original digital video content and channels.
This has most recently included Hollywood A-listers such as Pitbull and Emmy Award winner Drea de Matteo (The Sopranos; Desperate Housewives); as well as U.S. YouTube superstars including young rap sensation, MattyB (over one billion views; 6.7 million followers); Vine comedian, Brittany Furlan (over 7 million followers) and digital fashion and beauty pioneer, Michelle Phan (over 6.8 million followers).
