Publicis Groupe has launched its Publicis Sport and Entertainment (PSE) offering in Australia through a partnership with Dare Iced Coffee.

PSE will drive Dare Iced Coffee’s e-sports strategy whilst working with Publicis media agency Starcom – which already works with Lion Dairy and Drinks, the owner of Dare.

Lion Dairy and Drinks is aiming to broaden the brand’s target audience from e-sports fans to also capture casual gaming fans and the new strategy will involve local sponsorship of ESL, the world’s largest e-sports platform, and the engagement of gaming influencers later this year.

“We’re excited to be working with Publicis Sport and Entertainment and Starcom to evolve our e-sports strategy and supercharge our engagement with this hard-to-reach audience,” Lion Dairy and Drinks’ marketing and innovation director, Darryn Wallace said.

Ashley O’Rourke will be the director of the Australian arm of PSE, reporting to Patrick Whitnall, Publicis Media’s head of content and sport ANZ.

“This new offering allows us the opportunity to create an integrated sport and entertainment solution, providing our clients with a full portfolio that includes strategic consulting, research, creative leadership, content production, PR, social, digital and experiential execution across the group,” Whitnall said.

“To do this we have hired one of the rising stars in the sector, Ashley O’Rourke, who has led some of the best-in-class sports partnerships in market.”

Publicis Groupe’s ANZ CEO, Michael Rebelo, added that PSE will allow clients to maximise the return of sponsorship investment.

“As a group, one of our strengths is our ability to provide clients with end-to-end solutions through the diverse capabilities of our agency businesses.

“While we continue to do a lot of work in sponsorship, the addition of Publicis Sport and Entertainment will further boost our ability to make sure that clients are maximising the return from their sponsorship investment within the context of their overall media and marketing strategy,” Rebelo said.

“Publicis Sport and Entertainment is already starting to work with agencies within our group.”

PSE also has a presence in the US, UK, and Europe.