Azerbaijan Startup Eleven Kings on Signing with Ronaldinho and Plans to Become Global Game Platform
CBW had a conversation with Orkhan Rzayev, the Founder of Eleven Kings, an online football manager game based in Azerbaijan.
Orkhan has founded several startups- Mediamark Digital Agency in 2015 which helps global brands to improve their digital activities. In 2017 he decided to start a gaming company in order to change the football gaming world. We decided to learn more about their innovation:
For those not familiar with Eleven Kings Game, can you share a brief history?
Eleven Kings is an online football manager strategy game. Users install the App for free and start their career as a football club coach/owner. Transfers, Stadium upgrades, Game tactics & Strategies, Fan Shops, Tournaments, and other features make Eleven Kings exciting and challenging. Global and Local Ranking show the successful users in real-time.
What is the concept behind your brand?
Eleven Kings aims to become a global game & fan engagement platform. The mobile game app, Engagement platform, eMagazine, Shop, Events are part of this concept where football lovers from all over the world can engage & have fun together.
What got you into the game industry?
I'm a fan of football as well as football management games. I've played almost on every football manager platform in the world in the last 17 years. Also, I research this business itself for more than 5 years. So I know the business as a user and as an entrepreneur.
Tell us about your team and run us through your working day.
The powerful side of Eleven Kings is the team. Elshad Pirimov, co-founder and CTO creates amazing things with coding. I know Elshad for 8 years and we have worked together on several projects since 2013. Elshad also had a rich experience in Netherlands and Latvia before joining Eleven Kings. Muzaffar, Shirvan, Elshan, Rufat, Zeybullah, Elvin, Gulnar, Gulshan, Shahla, Nijat, Sarkhan are other key people who have huge beliefs and motivation to change the world for a better place.
Starting the Pandemic, we work remotely. Whatsapp, MeisterTask, and Google Meet are our daily communication platforms where we discuss, set, manage and produce crazy ideas.
What was one of the challenges of starting your company?
To start a mobile gaming company in Azerbaijan itself is a huge risk and challenge. Because there are no global mobile games from Azerbaijan yet, it's very risky to start this kind of startup in Baku. You face difficulty finding an experienced team, mentors, investment, legal solutions, almost everything becomes challenging when you start a gaming company.
What are you most passionate about when it comes to your startup?
Dream to change the world to a better place. There is one saying from Pablo Picasso, that I love very much. Says that “everything you can imagine is real”. So powerful! Today’s technology, today’s digital opportunities give us more power to change the world than ever. So every day I wake up with this passion.
What’s your biggest success so far?
Getting an agreement with the football icon Ronaldinho to join our startup is one of the most exciting things in my career. You know, sitting in the 15 m2 office in Baku, Azerbaijan, and dreaming to get Ronaldinho to your startup’s board was craziness. And not letting it stay as a dream and working on it.
After two years when I met with Ronaldinho and with his team and got an official agreement letter from the CEO of Ronaldinho’s Holding Company to join the Founders’ team of Eleven Kings Game, it was an amazing result for us. We have a huge belief and we're passionate to become the next global brand.
We wish you a big success!