Mercia provides further funding to Invincibles Studio

Mercia Asset Management, headquartered in Warwickshire, has provided additional financial backing to the creators of a popular mobile football game.

Invincibles Studio has secured £1m in funding, with NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, managed by Mercia and part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, and Mercia’s own funds contributing. The funds will be used to expand on the success of the company’s Soccer Manager game by launching two new football action games.

With over 55 employees based in Preston and Leeds, Invincibles’ Soccer Manager game has over 50 million registered users from across the globe, allowing players to create their own dream team using more than 25,000 officially licensed FIFPRO players.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta serves as its global ambassador, and the game has partnered with Inter Milan, Wolverhampton Wanderers FC, the German league DFL, the Scottish Premier League and FIFPRO.

Invincibles Studio was founded in 2004 by Chris, Steven, and Andy Gore, and Peter Adams. Mercia first invested in the company in 2014 and has since secured repeat funding from Mercia, the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, and other investors to support its growth.

The company’s revenue has more than doubled over the past two years, and it has continued to expand its management team.

Chris Gore, chief executive at Invincibles, said: “Our vision for Soccer Manager was to create a truly immersive game that uses real football players and is genuinely free to play. With the support of our investors, we have continued to enhance it over the years and attract a global audience.

“Following two years of strong growth, we are excited to be working on two new football games and look forward to unveiling them in the year ahead.”

The executive team at Invincibles now includes Chris Gore as chief executive, Max Lowe as chief financial officer and chief operating officer, and Johnny Coghlan as chief marketing officer. Coghlan has been instrumental in launching popular mobile games such as Angry Birds and Cut the Rope. The company is chaired by Nick Wheelwright, who founded Playground Games and was the former CEO of Codemasters. Playground Games was later acquired by Microsoft.

Julian Viggars, of Mercia, said: “The games market is one of the fastest growing in the world, and Invincibles has become one of the leading independent football games studios within that. Following the global success of Soccer Manager, this latest investment will enable the studio to build on its reputation and reach an even wider audience with the launch of new games.”

Sean Hutchinson, at British Business Bank, added: “The games market continues to develop at a rapid rate, with businesses finding new ways to market, develop, and keep users engaged with different alternatives. Invincibles has a long history in this space and it is clear it has used funding in each stage of its growth journey to remain one of the North and UK’s most exciting game creators.”

The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.