EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1708410
Filing Year: 2021
Filename: 1708410_10-K_2021_0001493152-21-021581.json

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Item 1. Business
Unless the context otherwise requires, “we,” “us,” or “the Company” refers to (i) “Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company” after the consummation of the acquisition of Simplicity Esports, LLC, (ii) “Smaaash Entertainment Inc.” before the consummation of the acquisition of Simplicity Esports, LLC but after the closing of the transactions with Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited, and (iii) I-AM Capital Acquisition Company prior to the closing of the transactions with Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited. “Simplicity Esports LLC” means our wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Esports, LLC, a Florida limited liability company, and its consolidated subsidiaries. “Simplicity One” means our 76% owned subsidiary, Simplicity One Brasil Ltda, a Brazilian limited liability company, and its consolidated subsidiaries. “Smaaash Private” means Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited, a private limited company incorporated under the laws of India, and its consolidated subsidiaries.
Industry Overview
Esports is the competitive playing of video games by amateur and professional teams for cash prizes. Esports typically takes the form of organized, multiplayer video games that include real-time strategy, fighting, first-person shooter, and multiplayer online battle arena games. As of July 7, 2021, the three largest selling esports games are Dota 2®, League of Legends® (both multiplayer online battle arena games) and Counter Strike: Global Offensive® (a first-person shooter game). Other popular games include SMITE®, StarCraft II®, Call of Duty®¸ Heroes of the Storm®, Hearthstone® and Fortnite®. Most major professional esports events and a wide range of amateur esports events are broadcast live via streaming services including twitch.tv, azubu.tv, ustream.tv and youtube.com. Esports also includes games which can be played, primarily by amateurs, in multiplayer competitions on the Sony PlayStation®, Microsoft Xbox® and WII Nintendo® systems.
Although official competitions have long been a part of video game culture, participation and spectatorship of such events have seen a global surge in popularity over the last few years with the rapid growth of online streaming. The advent of online streaming technology has turned esports into a global industry that includes professional players and teams competing in major events that are simultaneously watched in person in stadiums, and by online viewers, which regularly exceed 1,000,000 viewers for major tournaments. According to Business Insider, over 100 million viewers saw the 2019 League of Legends® World Championships in person and online. CNBC reported in April 2019 that League of Legends® World Championships attract more viewers than the Super Bowl. Much like how there is a worldwide gaming market for the sports industry, there has now developed a worldwide gaming market for the esports industry. The impact has been so significant that many video game developers are now building features into their games designed to facilitate competition.
According to Newzoo, a global leader in esports, games and mobile intelligence, the total global esports audience was 500 million in 2019, with an anticipated 27.5 million American gamers, and such global audience is expected to reach 646 million by 2023. In addition, according to Newzoo, esports produced $950 million in 2019 revenue and was projected to reach $1.1 billion in 2020 and $1.6 billion in 2023. Esports enthusiasts, which are people who watch professional esports content at least once a month, made up 201.2 million of the 2018 total, up from 143.2 million in 2017. With a compound annual growth rate (“CAGR”) (2017-2022) of +15.7%, this number is expected to reach almost 297 million in 2022. The global average revenue per esports enthusiast, which includes not only gaming revenue, but also sponsorships advertising and all other esports related revenues, is projected to be $5.45 in 2019, up +8.9% from $5.00 in 2018. The number of occasional esports viewers, (people who watch professional esports content less than once a month), is expected to reach 252.6 million in 2019, up from 221.6 million in 2018, and is projected to grow with a CAGR of +12.6% to surpass 347 million in 2022. The number of people who are aware of esports worldwide was expected to reach 1.8 billion in 2019, up from 1.6 billion in 2018. According to Newtech Mag, China and the U.S. have the largest populations of esports fans, with Brazil ranking first in Latin America, which is the fastest growing gaming market, and third globally, with 20 million fans. The increasing prominence of esports as a mainstream entertainment industry is driving the growth in awareness in most regions. Audience and awareness growth in the emerging regions of Latin America, Middle East and Africa, Southeast Asia, and Rest of Asia is largely driven by improving IT infrastructure and urbanization. We believe the rise of new franchises, such as Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds® or PubG®, is an important global growth factor as the influx of millennials should continue to drive the growth of the esports industry’s audience and in turn, the esports gaming industry.
In 2019, globally there were 885 major esports events that generated an estimated $56.3 million in ticket revenues. The total prize money of all esports events held in 2019 reached $167.4 million, a slight increase from $150.8 million in 2018. The League of Legends® World Championship was 2019’s biggest tournament by live viewership hours on Twitch and YouTube, with 105.5 million hours. It also produced $1.9 million in ticket revenues. The Overwatch® League was the most-watched league by live viewership hours on Twitch and YouTube, generating 104.1 million hours. A report by Forbes estimates that the top 12 esports teams had 2019 revenues of between $8 million and $29 million and were valued at between $120 million and $400 million.
Business Overview
We are a global esports organization, that is capitalizing on the growth in esports through three business units, Simplicity One Brasil Ltda (“Simplicity One”), Simplicity Esports, LLC (“Simplicity Esports LLC”) and PLAYlive Nation, Inc. (“PLAYlive”). We believe that we are the only Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) reporting, completely integrated-esports company that owns a League of Legends franchise. Additionally, we have the largest network of corporate and franchisee owned esports gaming centers in North America.
Our Esports Teams
We own and manage multiple professional esports teams domestically and internationally. Revenue is generated from prize winnings, corporate sponsorships, advertising, league subsidy payments and potential league revenue sharing payments from the publishers of video games.
Domestic Esports Teams - Simplicity Esports LLC
Through our wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Esports LLC, we own and manage multiple professional esports teams competing in games such as Heroes of the Storm. We are committed to growing and enhancing the esports industry, fostering the development of amateurs to compete professionally and signing established professional gamers to support their paths to greater success.
International Esports Team - Simplicity One
Since January 2020, through our 76% owned subsidiary Simplicity One, we manage Flamengo eSports, one of the leading Brazilian League of Legends® teams competing in the top tier league CBLoL. CBLoL was the most talked about esports league in the world, on Twitter for the first half of 2021, with Call of Duty League and Overwatch League ranking 2nd and 3rd respectively. Flamengo eSports was established in 2017 as the Esports division of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, a successful Brazilian sports organization, with over 30 million followers across social media accounts, known for its world-famous soccer team. Flamengo eSports’ League of Legends® team won the CBLoL Championship in September 2019, which qualified the team to compete at the 2019 League of Legends® World Championship in Europe as one of 24 teams from 13 different regions around the world. Flamengo Esports @flaesports was ranked as the 6th most tweeted about esports organization in the world, ahead of Team Liquid and Cloud 9 ranking 7th and 10th respectively, for the first half of 2021.
Online Tournaments
In response to demand from customers for online esports tournaments which was in all likelihood triggered by the social distancing protocols attendant to the COVID-19 pandemic, we introduced in March 2020 an initiative of online esports tournaments. Since March 2020, through our wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Esports LLC, we have been holding online esports tournaments in the United States. In addition, we commenced promoting these weekly online tournaments via text messages to our database of over 400,000 paying esports gaming center customers, which we acquired in our acquisition of PLAYlive. If we can convert merely 1% of these existing customers from the PLAYlive database to play in our paid online tournaments, we anticipate this business unit may generate approximately $1 million in annual revenues. At a 5% conversion rate, this business segment may generate approximately $5 million in annual revenue. Management also intends to sell sponsorship and marketing activations for these online tournaments which would create additional revenue. We also announced our initiative to offer play at home online tournaments in Brazil. These tournaments are a way for us to engage with our customer base from home during periods of required social distancing or quarantine.
Our Gaming Centers
As of August 30, 2021, we have 28 operational locations (16 corporate locations and 12 franchise locations), through our subsidiaries throughout the U.S., giving casual gamers the opportunity to play in a social setting with other members of the gaming community. In addition, aspiring and established professional gamers have an opportunity to compete in local and national esports tournaments held in our gaming centers for prizes, notoriety, and potential contracts to play for one of our professional esports teams. In this business unit, revenue is generated from franchise royalties, the sale of game time, memberships, tournament entry fees, birthday party events, corporate party events, concessions and gaming-related merchandise.
Our business plan encompasses a brick and click physical and digital approach to further recognize revenue from all verticals, which we believe to be unique in the industry. The physical centers, together with our esports teams, lifestyle brand and marketing campaigns offer opportunities for additional revenue via strategic partnerships with both endemic and non-endemic brands. Our ultimate goal is to further engage a diverse fan base with a 360-degree approach driving traffic to both our digital platform, tournaments (online and in-person), and physical real estate to maximize the monetization opportunities with these relationships. In addition, we have proprietary intellectual capital, fan engagement strategies and brand development blueprints which complement our publicly available information.
Optimally, the esports gaming centers of Simplicity Esports LLC (“Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers”) will measure between 2,000 and 4,000 square feet, with dozens of gaming stations. The Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers will feature cutting edge technology, futuristic aesthetic décor and dynamic high-speed gaming equipment. We believe our brick-and-click strategy will present attractive opportunities for sponsors and advertisers to connect with our audience, creating an intriguing monetization opportunity for sponsors and advertisers. Currently our company owned stores operate in approximately 40,000 square feet of retail space in desirable, high traffic locations.
Creating content that engages fans, sponsors and developers, while promoting our brand is one of our primary goals. In August 2021, we announced a partnership with Television Korea 24 (“ESTV”) to provide esports and gaming content for their 24-7 live linear channel around the world. ESTV can be viewed in over 45 countries including the U.S. and Brazil. We seek to reach a broad demographic encompassing the casual, amateur and professional gaming community. Our philosophy is to enhance our footprint for both endemic and non-endemic partnerships. We believe we possess a deep perception of our markets and understand the new age of branding while maintaining authenticity to the gaming community that comprises our fanbase.
As a result of COVID-19 (discussed below), all of our corporate and franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers were closed effective April 1, 2020. We commenced reopening Simplicity Gaming Centers on May 1, 2020 and have since reopened 16 corporate and 12 franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers as of August 30, 2021, the majority of which are operating at restricted capacity based on local COVID-19 regulations. See “Risk Factors-Public health epidemics or outbreaks, such as COVID-19, could materially and adversely impact our business.”
Corporate Gaming Centers
As of year end May 31, 2021, through our subsidiary entities, we currently operate 15 corporate-owned retail Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, one of which was acquired during the third fiscal quarter ended February 28, 2021 and two of which were acquired in the fourth fiscal quarter ended May 31, 2021. Subsequent to year end, we added one additional gaming center. Furthermore, we have engaged a national tenant representation real estate broker to assist in the strategic planning and negotiations for our future Simplicity Esports Gaming Center locations. We contemplate that new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers will be funded by us as well as a combination of tenant improvement allowances from landlords and sponsorships. The Company intends to continue the expansion of its corporate owned esports gaming center footprint through the buildout of new esports gaming centers. The disruptions in commercial real estate caused by COVID-19 lockdowns have allowed the Company to strengthen its existing relationships with national landlords by signing new locations with percentage rent leases. The locations will range between 2,000 and 4,000 sq ft and be primarily located inside of shopping malls.
As announced in June 2020, we are in discussions with commercial property owners regarding their desire to have us open 7,000 to 12,000 square foot Arenas at their properties. There are multiple locations available to us with a percentage of gross sales rent lease structure (as opposed to fixed rent payments), and construction funds offered by the landlord to assist with the build out and equipping of our planned Arenas. These Arenas are planned as hubs in our hub and spoke model that will see smaller corporate and franchisee owned gaming centers as spokes connected to Arenas as hubs for larger events and tournaments.
Franchised Gaming Centers
Due to interest from potential franchisees, in 2019 we launched a franchising program to accelerate the expansion of our planned nationwide footprint. We sell specific franchise territories, through our wholly owned subsidiary PLAYlive, and assist with the establishment and buildout of esports gaming centers to potential business owners that desire to use our branding, infrastructure and process to open and operate gaming centers. We currently operate 12 fully constructed franchise esports gaming centers. The 12 franchise owned gaming centers that we have acquired to date generated over $1 million of revenue in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 despite operating with limited capacity due to COVID-19 restrictions. Due to interest from potential franchisees, we have launched a franchising program to accelerate the expansion of our planned nationwide footprint. We sell specific franchise territories, through our wholly owned subsidiary PLAYlive, and assist with the establishment and buildout of esports gaming centers to potential business owners that desire to use our branding, infrastructure and process to open and operate gaming centers. Franchise revenue is generated from the sale of franchise territories, supplying furniture, equipment and merchandise to the franchisees for buildout of their centers, a gross sales royalty fee and a national marketing fee. We license the use of our branding, assist in identifying and negotiating commercial locations, assist in overseeing the buildout and development, provide access to proprietary software for point of sale, inventory management, employee training and other HR functions. Franchisees also have an opportunity to participate in our national esports tournament events, and benefit from the growing profile of our professional esports teams. Once an esports gaming center is opened, we provide operational guidance, support and use of branding elements in exchange for a monthly royalty fee calculated as 6% of gross sales. On January 1, 2020, we implemented a national marketing fee of 1% of gross sales. To date, we have sold five of these franchise territories. COVID-19 travel restrictions caused us to suspend the sale of new franchise territories from April 1, 2020 until October 1, 2020. During this time, a pipeline of interested applicants has accumulated, and we anticipate new franchise territory sales over the next 12 months as a result.
The combination of the esports gaming centers, owned or franchised by our wholly owned subsidiaries Simplicity Esports LLC or PLAYlive, provides us with what we believe is one of the largest esports gaming center footprints in North America. Over the next 12 months, existing PLAYlive esports gaming centers will be rebranded to Simplicity Esports gaming centers. All newly opened franchise esports gaming centers will be branded as Simplicity Esports gaming centers and have numerous gaming PC’s. All gaming centers in our footprint will be participating venues in our national esports tournaments.
Franchise Roll Up Strategy
We began implementing a franchise roll-up strategy in July 2020 as a result of the disruption caused by COVID-19 related stay at home orders, and the disruption it caused to the commercial real estate market. The reduction in revenues for some franchisees because of stay-at-home orders, and government mandates to remain closed created significant accrued rent payments due to landlords. We have been able to come to terms with many franchisees to acquire the assets of their gaming centers and make them corporate owned. We have simultaneously negotiated new leases with some of the largest national mall chains, including Simon Property Group and Brookfield Asset Management, and are in the process of negotiating additional locations with other landlords. The new leases involve significant reductions in or elimination of fixed rent and the addition of percentage of revenues rent terms. During the fiscal year we signed 13 letters of intent and executed definitive agreements for all of those locations, most of which were operational prior to year-end. We expect each of these locations to be profitable as a result of the significant reduced rent expense via the percentage rent structure.
Our Stream Team
The Simplicity Esports LLC and Flamengo Esports stream teams encompass over 20 commentators (commonly known as “casters”), influencers and personalities who connect to a dedicated fan base. Our electric group of live personalities represent our organization to the fullest with their own unique style. We are proud to support and present a diverse group of gamers as we engage fans across a multiple of esports genres. Our Twitch affiliation has enabled our stream team influences to reach a broad fan base. Additionally, we have created several niches within the streaming community which has enabled us to engage fans within certain titles on a 24/7 basis. Our notoriety in the industry is evidenced by our audience that views millions of minutes of Simplicity Esports’ and Flamengo Esports’ content monthly, via various social media outlets including YouTube, Twitter and Twitch. Through Simplicity Esports LLC, we have begun to implement a unique approach to ensure the ultimate fan friendly esports experience. Our intention is to have gamers involved at the grassroots level and feel a sense of unity as we compete with top class talent. Our management and players are known within the esports community and we plan to use their skills to create a seamless content creation plan helping gamers feel closer to our brand than any other in the industry.
Material Acquisitions and Licensing
Acquisition of Simplicity Esports, LLC
On January 4, 2019, the Company consummated the transactions contemplated by that certain share exchange agreement, dated December 21, 2018 (as amended by Amendment No. 1 to Share Exchange Agreement, dated December 28, 2018 and by Amendment No. 2 to Share Exchange Agreement, dated December 30, 2018, the “Share Exchange Agreement”) by and among the Company, Simplicity Esports, LLC, a Florida limited liability company (“Simplicity Esports LLC”), each of the equity holders of Simplicity Esports LLC (“Simplicity Owners”) and Jed Kaplan, in the capacity as the representative of the Simplicity Owners (the “Representative”). Pursuant to the Share Exchange Agreement the Simplicity Owners transferred all the issued and outstanding equity interests of Simplicity Esports LLC to the Company in exchange for an aggregate of 375,000 (3,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock of the Company (the “Simplicity Esports Acquisition”). As of January 4, 2019, upon the completion of the Simplicity Esports Acquisition, esports gaming became the primary business of the Company.
On January 4, 2019, the Simplicity Owners received an aggregate of 37,500 (300,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock at the closing of the Acquisition and an additional aggregate of 87,500 (700,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock on January 7, 2019. The Simplicity Owners were initially entitled to receive an additional 250,000 (2,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares upon the Company’s receipt of the approval of its stockholders to such issuance. This condition was removed as the stockholder approval was only necessary due to the Company’s stock being listed on Nasdaq. Upon completion of the Simplicity Esports LLC acquisition, the Company decided that moving off the Nasdaq was appropriate, and the 250,000 (2,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares were issued to the Simplicity Owners on March 27, 2019.
In connection with the acquisition of Simplicity Esports LLC, on January 2, 2019, the Company filed a Certificate of Amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate Amendment”) with the Delaware Secretary of State to change the Company’s name from “Smaaash Entertainment, Inc.” to “Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company”. In addition, the Company changed the ticker symbols of its common stock and public warrants to “WINR” and “WINRW,” respectively, and commenced trading of its common stock and public warrants under such new ticker symbols on the OTCQB on January 10, 2019.
Acquisition of PLAYlive Nation, Inc.
On July 30, 2019, we acquired a 100% interest in PLAYlive by way of merger pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated July 25, 2019, whereby we acquired 100% of the issued and outstanding common stock of PLAYlive from the selling stockholders (“PLAYlive Stockholders”) of PLAYlive in exchange for 150,000 (750,000 shares pre-reverse split) shares of our common stock. Following this merger, PLAYlive became our wholly owned subsidiary. On the closing date of this merger, each of the PLAYlive Stockholders entered into a one-year lock-up agreement with the Company and each of Duncan Wood, Jordan C. Jenson, and Alec T. Carpenter entered into an employment agreement with PLAYlive.
Licensing of Flamengo Esports
Effective January 20, 2020, Simplicity One Brasil entered into an Exclusive Trademark and Symbol Use License Agreement, and Other Covenants (the “License Agreement”), dated November 5, 2019 with Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (one of the most successful Brazilian sports organizations, known for its world-famous soccer team), whereby Clube de Regatas do Flamengo agreed to exclusively license its intellectual property rights (“Flamengo IP Rights”) to Simplicity One Brasil (an entity which the Company and Team One E-Sports Ltda - ME owned a 90% and 10% equity interest in, respectively), authorizing Simplicity One Brasil to use the Flamengo IP Rights on a League of Legends team in esports as well as in other modalities in esports, which will be maintained and assembled by Simplicity One Brasil during the term of the Licensing Agreement. The License Agreement has a term of three years, beginning on January 1, 2020 and ending on December 31, 2022, and may be renewed by mutual written agreement by the parties. In exchange for the exclusive license, the Company shall pay Clube de Regatas do Flamengo an annual fee for the first, second and third year in the amount of $32,300 (Reais$170,000.00), $35,150 (Reais$185,000.00), and $38,000 (Reais$200,000.00), respectively, as well as the payment of royalties in the amount of 8% of the gross revenues (less taxes) of the eSports teams pursuant to the terms of the Licensing Agreement. If either party unilaterally terminates the Agreement or gives rise to certain termination grounds set forth in the Agreement, the terminating party will pay the other party a non-compensatory fine in the amount of approximately $19,000 (Reais $100,000) to indemnify the other party, without prejudice to any losses or damages that exceed such amount.
Flamengo Esports was established in 2017 as the Esports division of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, a successful Brazilian sports organization, known for its world-famous soccer team. Flamengo Esports’ League of Legends® team won the CBLoL Championship in September 2019 and competed at the 2019 League of Legends® World Championship in Europe as one of 24 teams from 13 different regions around the world.
On April 1, 2020, the Company released multiple players and staff members from Simplicity One Brasil Ltd as part of a restructuring in an effort to make the Flamengo Esports project profitable. The Company was approved for ownership of a franchise spot in League of Legends Brazil (CBLoL) in October 2020.
In June 2020, while Simplicity One Brasil was preparing its initial application for purchasing from Riot Games a franchise in Campeonato Brasileiro de League of Legends, Simplicity One Brasil become aware that the 10%-ownership interest of Team One E-Sports Ltda (“Team One E-Sports”) in Simplicity One Brasil was in contravention of Riot Games’ policy that only one League of Legend esports team could be owned by an owner at one time because Team One had already submitted an application for purchasing a franchise for another League of Legend esports team. Accordingly, Simplicity One Brasil needed Team One E-Sports to divest itself of its 10%-equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil in order for Simplicity One Brasil to proceed with its franchise application. Therefore, on June 22, 2020, Mr. Kaplan entered into a Quota Purchase Agreement with Team One E-Sports, pursuant to which Mr. Kaplan acquired Team One Esports’ 10%-ownership equity interest for $45,000 in cash. In addition, the Company transferred a 2%-equity interest (an aggregate of 4%) to each of Laila De Braga Cavalcanti Loss and Frederico Tannure. Ms. Loss lives in Brazil and run the operations of Simplicity One Brasil, in order to comply with Riot Games’ policy requiring local ownership in Brazil in order to apply for a franchise of a league of legends sports team. Furthermore, on June 22, 2020, Mr. Kaplan agreed to forgive the debt of the Kaplan Promissory Note with a principal balance of $90,000 in exchange for the Company assigning to Mr. Kaplan a 10% equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil. In light of the restructuring of the ownership interest in Simplicity One Brasil, as of August 30, 2021, the Company, Mr. Kaplan, Ms. Cavalcanti Loss, and Mr. Tannure own a 76%, 20%, 2% and 2% equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil.
COVID-19
In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. While initially the outbreak was largely concentrated in China and caused significant disruptions to its economy, it has now spread to several other countries and infections have been reported globally.
Because COVID-19 infections have been reported throughout the United States, certain federal, state and local governmental authorities have issued stay-at-home orders, proclamations and/or directives aimed at minimizing the spread of COVID-19. Additional, more restrictive proclamations and/or directives may be issued in the future. As a result, all of our corporate and franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers were closed effective April 1, 2020. We commenced reopening Simplicity Gaming Centers on May 1, 2020 and have since reopened 15 corporate and 12 franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers, the majority of which are operating at restricted capacity based on local COVID-19 regulations. Although our franchise agreements with franchisees of Simplicity Gaming Centers require a minimum monthly royalty payment to us from the franchisees regardless of whether the franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers are operating, a limited number of the franchisees of Simplicity Gaming Centers have defaulted on their obligations to pay their minimum monthly royalty payment to us. This has resulted in either an increase in accounts receivables or a bad debt expense where account receivables are no longer collectible due to franchisee’s inability to pay the minimum monthly royalty payments owed by the franchisee. As of May 31, 2021, we have recorded an allowance for doubtful accounts of approximately $28 thousand and have written off $112 thousand, partly in conjunction with taking back certain franchises and converting them to company owned stores. We have experienced an increase in our account receivables, net of the allowance for doubtful accounts of approximately $32 thousand during the year ended May 31, 2021 and an increase of $128 thousand for the year ended May 31, 2020, as there were no accounts receivable at year end May 31, 2019. Notwithstanding our efforts to support franchisees and still collect on receivables, it is unclear exactly how much of the increase in accounts receivables is attributable to the impact of COVID-19. We have waived the minimum monthly royalty payment obligations from July 2020 through present day and are instead billing the franchisees a true-up of 6% of gross sales without a minimum. We continue to assess possible similar accommodations to the franchisees in light of the impact of COVID-19. Additionally, the disruptions in commercial real estate caused by COVID-19 lockdowns have allowed the Company to strengthen its existing relationships with national landlords by signing new locations with percentage rent leases.
The ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s operations is unknown and will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the duration of the COVID-19 outbreak, new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and any additional preventative and protective actions that governments, or the Company, may direct, which may result in an extended period of continued business disruption, reduced customer traffic and reduced operations. Any resulting financial impact cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is anticipated to have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The measures taken to date adversely impacted the Company’s business during the year ended May 31, 2021 and will potentially continue to impact the Company’s business. Management expects that all of its business segments, across all of its geographies, will be impacted to some degree, but the significance of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Company’s business and the duration for which it may have an impact cannot be determined at this time.
Corporate History
Formation
We were initially a blank check company organized under the laws of the State of Delaware on April 17, 2017 under the name I-AM Capital Acquisition Company. We were formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. Although we were not limited to a particular industry or geographic region for purposes of consummating a business combination, we focused on businesses with a connection to India. On November 20, 2018, we changed our name from I-AM Capital Acquisition Company to Smaaash Entertainment, Inc. On January 2, 2019, we changed our name from Smaaash Entertainment, Inc. to Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company.
Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited
Business Combination
On November 20, 2018, the Company and Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited, a private limited company incorporated under the laws of India (“Smaaash Private”), consummated the transactions (the “Transactions” or the “Business Combination”) contemplated by the share subscription agreement (as amended, the “Subscription Agreement”), following the approval at the special meeting of the stockholders of the Company held on November 9, 2018 (the “Special Meeting”).
Pursuant to the Subscription Agreement, the purchase price of $150,000 was paid by the Company to Smaaash Private in exchange for 294,360 newly issued equity shares of Smaaash Private at the closing of the Transactions (the “Closing”), representing less than 1% of Smaaash Private at such time.
At the time of the Closing, AHA Holdings Private Limited (“AHA Holdings”) and Shripal Morakhia (together with AHA Holdings, the “Smaaash Founders”) agreed to transfer all of their ownership interest in Smaaash Private (the “Additional Smaaash Shares”) to the Company in exchange for newly issued shares of our Common Stock (the “Transferred Company Shares”).
In furtherance of the foregoing, at the Closing, the Company issued an aggregate of 250,000 shares of its common stock to the Smaaash Founders as an upfront portion of the Transferred Company Shares (the “Upfront Company Shares”). In connection with the issuance of the Upfront Company Shares, the Company and the Smaaash Founders entered into an escrow agreement pursuant to which the Upfront Company Shares would be held in escrow and will be either, (i) if the Additional Smaaash Shares are not transferred in full to the Company within the designated six-month period, cancelled, or (ii) if the Additional Smaaash Shares are transferred in full to the Company within the designated six-month period, released from escrow and the number of Upfront Company Shares will be deducted from the Transferred Company Shares that will be issued to the Smaaash Founders upon the delivery of the Additional Smaaash Shares. Pursuant to the terms of the escrow agreement, the Upfront Company Shares have been cancelled because the Additional Smaaash Shares were not transferred in full to the Company in the designated six-month period.
In connection with the Closing, the Company changed its name from I-AM Capital Acquisition Company to Smaaash Entertainment Inc. changed its stock symbols for its Common Stock, Public Rights and Public Warrants to “IAM,” “IAMXR,” and “IAMXW,” respectively, and entered into a master franchise agreement (“Master Franchise Agreement”) and a master license and distribution agreement (“Master Distribution Agreement”) with Smaaash Private. After the Closing, the Company’s primary assets consisted of shares in Smaaash Private and the rights granted under the Master Franchise Agreement and the Master Distribution Agreement.
Business of Smaaash Private
At the time of closing of the Smaaash transaction, Smaaash Private operated 40 games and entertainment centers (“Smaaash Centers”), including 39 Smaaash Centers in India and one international Smaaash Center in the U.S., in addition to carrying out product sales of its games and equipment that Smaaash has developed in-house, supported by its sponsorship and other revenues.
Smaaash Private’s core concept was to offer an interactive, immersive and fun experience to customers at its Smaaash Centers, blending Augmented Reality (“AR”) and Virtual Reality (“VR”) and other games, indoor entertainment, and attractive food and beverage options, customized to the tastes and preferences of a diverse set of customers across age groups, genders and backgrounds, including corporate customers, families, friends and children. Smaaash Private’s game concepts are supported by its in-house technology, value engineering and systems integration capabilities.
Master Franchise Agreement
Under the Master Franchise Agreement, Smaaash Private granted to the Company an exclusive right to establish and operate Smaaash Centers (as defined under the Master Franchise Agreement) and to sublicense the right to establish and operate Smaaash Centers to third party franchisees, and a license to use the products and other services developed by Smaaash Private with respect to the Smaaash Centers, in the United States (“Territory”). Further, Smaaash Private has granted to the Company the limited license to use the Trademarks of Smaaash Private (as set out in the Master Franchise Agreement) for the purposes of establishing and operating the Smaaash Centers in the Territory. The Master Franchise Agreement has been executed on an arms’ length basis between Smaaash Private and the Company.
On November 29, 2018, the Company and Smaaash Private executed an addendum to the Master Franchise Agreement (the “Amendment”). Pursuant to the Amendment, Smaaash Private granted the Company the exclusive rights to set up family and entertainment centers under the name “Total Sports Center” in the United States (“Total Sports Centers”) in which 51% of the investment will be borne by the Company and 49% by Smaaash Private. Smaaash Private will be responsible for identifying the locations for setting up, managing and controlling the Total Sports Centers and will carry out all the fit out requirements for such centers. Smaaash Private will also appoint the management team for the centers. Smaaash Private will be entitled to 3% of the net revenue of each center, subject to conditions to be confirmed by the parties.
Master License and Distribution Agreement
Under the Master Distribution Agreement, Smaaash Private granted to the Company an exclusive right to purchase from Smaaash Private specialized video game equipment and products related to sports and recreational activities (“Products”) in the territory under the brand name of Smaaash Private and sell them with a 15% markup to the customers which will be the sub-franchisees of the Company who will operate the Smaaash Centers, as specified in the Master Franchise Agreement.
Shift of Business Focus to Esports Gaming
Following the January 2019 acquisition of Simplicity Esports LLC described below, we determined to shift our current primary focus to esports gaming. Accordingly, we did not generate any revenues from Smaaash in 2019. The Master Franchise Agreement, as amended, and the Master Distribution Agreement continue in full force and effect, however, and we may now or in the future pursue Smaaash Private business opportunities.
Polar and K2
On November 2, 2018, the Company entered into a stock purchase agreement with each of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. (“Polar”) and K2 Principal Fund L.P. (“K2”), pursuant to which Polar and K2 agreed to sell up to 61,250 (490,000 pre-reverse split) and 27,500 (220,000 pre-reverse split) shares, respectively, of the Company’s common stock to the Company 30 days after the consummation of the transactions at a price of $89.84 ($11.23 pre-reverse split) contemplated by the share subscription agreement with Smaaash Private.
On December 20, 2018, the Company, Polar, K2 and the Escrow Agent, entered into an Amendment (the “Amendment”), pursuant to which, among other things, the stock purchase agreements with Polar and K2 were amended to (x) reduce the purchase price per share payable by the Company at the closing of the Stock Sales from $89.84 ($11.23 pre-reverse split) per share to (1) first $48.00 ($6.00 pre-reverse split) per share up to 20% of the original number of Shares (as defined in the respective Purchase Agreement), (2) then $40.00 ($5.00 pre-reverse split) per remaining share up to 20% of the original number of Shares, (3) then $32.00 ($4.00 pre-reverse split) per remaining share up to 20% of the original number of Shares, (4) then $24.00 ($3.00 pre-reverse split) per remaining Share up to 20% of the original number of Shares, and (5) then $16.00 ($2.00 pre-reverse split) per remaining Share up to 20% of the original number of Shares, (y) to extend the outside date of the closing of the Stock Sales until January 18, 2019, and (z) to authorize the issuance of $3,542,700 and $1,590,600 from the Escrow Account to Polar and K2, respectively, as partial payment for the Shares prior to the final closing of the Stock Sales.
The Amendment also included provisions regarding the reduction of the exercise price and amendment of redemption provisions of the Company’s Public Warrants and Private Placement Warrants. On August 18, 2019, the Company held a special meeting of its public warrant holders to approve the foregoing. However, these proposals were not approved by the requisite votes.
Nasdaq Delisting
On December 10, 2018, the Company received a written notice (the “Notice”) from the Listing Qualifications Division of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”) indicating that the Company has not complied with the requirements of IM-5101-2 of the listing rules of Nasdaq (the “Listing Rules”).
The Notice stated that after its Business Combination, the Company had not demonstrated that its common stock met Listing Rule 5505(b)(1) that requires a market value of publicly held shares of at least $15 million. Additionally, the Company has not provided evidence that its common stock has at least 300 round lot holders as required by Listing Rule 5505(a)(3) and that its warrant has at least 400 round lot holders as required by Listing Rule 5515(a)(4). Finally, the Company does not comply with Listing Rule 5515(a)(2) which requires that for initial listing of a warrant the underlying security must be listed on Nasdaq.
On January 7, 2019, the Company received a second written notice from Nasdaq informing it that the Company failed to comply with Listing Rule 5250(e)(2) which requires companies listed on Nasdaq to timely file notification forms for the Listing of Additional Shares (the “LAS Notification”).
The Company was required to submit the LAS Notification 15 days prior to the issuance of the securities, however, the Company filed the LAS Notification for the issuance of the Series A-1 Note and Series A-2 Note and for the share exchange under our Share Exchange Agreement after such 15-day periods. Nasdaq notified the Company that each of these matters serves as an additional and separate basis for delisting the Company’s securities and that the review panel will consider these matters in rendering a determination regarding the Company’s continued listing on Nasdaq.
Management of Simplicity Esports and Gamily Company has decided that moving from The Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”) to the OTCQB is more appropriate for the Company at this time, while the Company builds out its planned network of retail esport centers.
On April 1, 2019, the Company was notified by Nasdaq that it would delist the Company’s common stock and warrants. The Company’s common stock and warrants were previously suspended from trading on Nasdaq, effective January 25, 2019.
On April 2, 2019, Nasdaq filed a Notification of Removal from Listing and/or Registration under Section 12(b) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 on Form 25 with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the Company’s common stock and warrants. As a result, the Company’s common stock and warrants were delisted from Nasdaq effective April 2, 2019.
The Company’s common stock and warrants currently have been quoted on the OTCQB under the symbols “WINR” and “WINRW,” respectively.
Registration Rights
Pursuant to a registration rights agreement the Company entered into with its initial stockholders and initial purchasers of the Private Units (and constituent securities) at the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company is required to register certain securities for sale under the Securities Act. These holders are entitled under the registration rights agreement to make up to three demands that the Company register certain of its securities held by them for sale under the Securities Act and to have the securities covered thereby registered for resale pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders have the right to include their securities in other registration statements filed by the Company. The Company will bear the costs and expenses of filing any such registration statements.
Unit Purchase Option
The Company sold to the underwriters (and/or their designees), for $100, an option to purchase up to a total of 250,000 Units (which increased to 260,000 Units upon the partial exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option), exercisable at $11.50 per Unit (or an aggregate exercise price of $2,990,000) upon the closing of the Initial Public Offering. The UPO may be exercised for cash or on a cashless basis, at the holder’s option, at any time during the period commencing on the later of the first anniversary of the effective date of the registration statement relating to the Initial Public Offering and the closing of the Company’s initial Business Combination and terminating on the fifth anniversary of such effectiveness date. The Units issuable upon exercise of this UPO are identical to those offered in the Initial Public Offering, except that the exercise price of the warrants underlying the Units sold to the underwriters is $13.00 per share.
Acquisition of Simplicity Esports, LLC
In connection with the Simplicity Esports Acquisition, the Simplicity Owners received an aggregate of 37,500 (300,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock at the closing on January 4, 2019, an additional aggregate of 87,500 (700,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock on January 7, 2019 and the remaining 250,000 (2,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares in March of 2019.
In connection with the Simplicity Esports Acquisition, on January 2, 2019, the Company filed a Certificate of Amendment to the Company’s Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate Amendment”) with the Delaware Secretary of State to change the Company’s name from “Smaaash Entertainment, Inc.” to “Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company.” In addition, the Company changed the ticker symbols of its common stock and public warrants to “WINR” and “WINRW,” respectively, and commenced trading of its common stock and public warrants under such new ticker symbols on the OTCQB on January 10, 2019.
During the year, the Company acquired thirteen gaming centers from prior franchisees in various locations throughout the United States. On a consolidated basis, the Company paid for these acquisitions by issuing shares of stock to former franchise owners in return for the property, plant and equipment, the inventory on hand at the time of the acquisition and the leasehold improvements of the leased spaces. As part of the acquisition effort, the Company was able to renegotiate the lease terms with the landlords in order to provide more favorable operating terms to the Company.
Equity Line
On March 12, 2020, the Company entered into a Common Stock Purchase Agreement with Triton Funds LP (“Triton”), dated as of March 11, 2020, pursuant to which, upon the terms and subject to the conditions thereof, Triton was committed to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock at an aggregate price of up to $500,000 (the “Maximum Commitment Amount”) over the course of the commitment period which ends on the earlier of (i) the date on which Triton purchases the Maximum Commitment Amount and (ii) December 31, 2020 (the “Equity Line”). In connection with the execution of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement, the Company registered the resale of up to 90,625 (725,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock issuable under the Equity Line in the amount of the Maximum Commitment Amount pursuant to a registration statement declared effective by the SEC on March 30, 2020.
On April 9, 2020, the Company delivered a Purchase Notice to Triton pursuant to the terms of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement requiring Triton to acquire 15,625 (125,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock, which resulted in $87,700 in proceeds to the Company. Pursuant to the terms of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement, on April 9, 2020, the Company instructed the transfer agent to issue 15,625 (125,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock to a custodial account of Triton. These shares were issued in reliance on Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
During the year ended May 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company applied for a loan payable under the Payroll Protection Plan (“PPP”). As of the year end, the Company owes $83.000 and $41,000 respectively. The Company is applying for permanent relief for the loans payable under the PPP federal guidelines.
Debt Obligations
10% Fixed Convertible Promissory Note
On April 29, 2020 (the “Effective Date”), the Company issued a 10% Fixed Convertible Promissory Note (the “Harbor Gates Note”), with a maturity date of October 29, 2020 (the “Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $152,500 in favor of Harbor Gates Capital, LLC (“Harbor Gates”). Pursuant to the terms of the Harbor Gates Note, the Company agreed to pay to Harbor Gates $152,500 (the “Principal Sum”) and to pay “guaranteed” interest on the principal balance at an amount equivalent to 10% of the Principal Sum, to the extent such Principal Sum and “guaranteed” interest and any other interest, fees, liquidated damages and/or items due to Harbor Gates have not been repaid or converted into Company common stock in accordance with the terms of the Harbor Gates Note. The Harbor Gates Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $2,500. Accordingly, on the Effective Date, Harbor Gates delivered $150,000 to the Company in exchange for the Harbor Gates Note.
In addition to the “guaranteed” interest, and upon the occurrence of an Event of Default (as hereinafter defined), additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 20% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law.
The Company may prepay the Harbor Gates Note according to the following schedule:
Days Since
Effective Date
Payment Amount
Under
115% of Principal Amount (as hereinafter defined) so paid
31-60
120% of Principal Amount so paid
61-90
125% of Principal Amount so paid
91-180
135% of Principal Amount so paid
135% of the remaining unpaid and unconverted Principal Amount, plus all accrued and unpaid interest will be due and payable on the Maturity Date. “Principal Amount” refers to the sum of (i) the original principal amount of the Harbor Gates Note (including the OID); (ii) all guaranteed and other accrued but unpaid interest under the Harbor Gates Note; (iii) any fees due under the Harbor Gates Notes; (iv) liquidated damages; and (v) any default payments owing under the Harbor Gates Note, in each case previously paid or added to the Principal Amount.
Pursuant to the terms of the Harbor Gates Note, the Company agreed to issue Harbor Gates shares of Company common stock in two tranches as follows:
(i) 1,250 shares of common stock within three trading days of the Effective Date; and
(ii) In the event the average of the three volume weighted average prices for the Company’s common stock during the three consecutive trading days immediately preceding the date which is the 180th day following the Effective Date is less than $8.00 per share, then Harbor Gates will be entitled, and the Company will issue to Harbor Gates additional shares of common stock as set forth in the Harbor Gates Note.
If an Event of Default (as defined in the Promissory Note) occurs, the outstanding Principal Amount of the Harbor Gates Note owing in respect thereof through the date of acceleration, shall become, at Harbor Gates’ election, immediately due and payable in cash at the “Mandatory Default Amount”. The Mandatory Default Amount means 35% of the outstanding Principal Amount of the Harbor Gates Note will be automatically added to the Principal Sum of the Harbor Gates Note and tack back to the Effective Date for purposes of Rule 144 promulgated under the 1934 Act. Commencing five days after the occurrence of any Event of Default that results in the eventual acceleration of the Harbor Gates Note, the Harbor Gates Note will accrue additional interest, in addition to the Harbor Gates Note’s “guaranteed” interest, at a rate equal to the lesser of 20% per annum or the maximum rate permitted under applicable law.
If the Harbor Gates Note is not retired on or before the Maturity Date, then at any time and from time to time after the Maturity Date, and subject to the terms hereof and restrictions and limitations contained in the Harbor Gates Note, Harbor Gates has the right, at Harbor Gates’ sole option, to convert in whole or in part the outstanding and unpaid Principal Amount under the Harbor Gates Note into shares of the Company’s common stock at the Variable Conversion Price. The “Variable Conversion Price” will be equal to the lower of: (a) $8.00, or (b) 70% of the lowest volume weighted average price of the Company’s common stock during the 15 consecutive trading days prior to the date on Harbor Gates elects to convert all or part of the Harbor Gates Note.
On July 2, 2020, the Company repaid $152,500 and $15,2500 in accrued interest and $33,550 in prepayment penalty in full satisfaction of the 10% Convertible Promissory Harbor Gates Note.
Kaplan Promissory Note
On May 12, 2020 (the “Issue Date”), the Company issued a promissory note (the “Kaplan Note”) in the principal sum of $90,000 in favor of Jed Kaplan, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, interim Chief Financial Officer, member of the Company’s Board of Directors and greater than 5% stockholder of the Company. The Kaplan Note matured on October 12, 2020 (the “Maturity Date”). The Company used the proceeds of the Kaplan Note to fund the operations of Simplicity One Brasil Ltda, the Company’s majority owned subsidiary (“Simplicity Brasil”).
Pursuant to the terms of the Kaplan Note, the Company agreed to pay to Mr. Kaplan the lesser of (i) the principal sum of $90,000 (the “Maximum Commitment”), or (ii) the aggregate principal amount of all direct advances of the proceeds of the Kaplan Note (each, an “Advance”), together with any interest thereon, and any and all other amounts which may be due and payable thereunder from time to time.
Subject to the terms of the Kaplan Note, Mr. Kaplan agreed to make one direct Advance to and for the benefit of the Company on the Issue Date in the amount of $45,000, and one additional Advance to and for the benefit of the Company at such time as the Company may request during the two-month period following the Issue Date. The total of the aggregate principal balance of all Advances (collectively referred to herein as the “Principal Amount”) outstanding at any time shall not exceed the Maximum Commitment. Advances made by Mr. Kaplan to the Company under the Kaplan Note which have been repaid may not be borrowed again.
Prior to the Maturity Date or an Event of Default (as hereinafter defined), the Principal Amount outstanding under the Kaplan Note will bear interest at a rate of 3% (the “Interest Rate”). From and after the Maturity Date or upon and during the continuance of an Event of Default, interest will accrue on the unpaid Principal Amount during any such period at an annual rate (the “Default Rate”) equal to 10% plus the Interest Rate; provided, however, that in no event will the Default Rate exceed the maximum rate permitted by law.
The Company could prepay the Kaplan Note, in whole or in part, without a prepayment penalty, at any time provided that an Event of Default has not then occurred.
As of May 31, 2020, advances under the terms of this note were $64,728. On various dates subsequent to May 31, 2020, Mr. Kaplan funded $25,272 pursuant to the Kaplan Promissory Note. With the contributions subsequent to May 31, 2020, the principal balances outstanding and due Mr. Kaplan amounted to $90,000. On June 22, 2020, Mr. Kaplan agreed to forgive the debt of the Kaplan Promissory Note with a principal balance of $90,000 in exchange for the Company assigning to Mr. Kaplan a 10% equity interest in Simplicity One, a subsidiary of the Company.
Self-Amortization Promissory Note
On June 18, 2020 (the “Issue Date”), the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “SPA”) with an accredited investor (the “Holder”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% self-amortization promissory note (the “Amortization Note”) with a maturity date of June 18, 2021 (the “Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $550,000. Pursuant to the terms of the Amortization Note, the Company agreed to pay to $550,000 (the “Principal Sum”) to the Holder and to pay interest on the Principal Sum at the rate of 12% per annum. The Amortization Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $55,000. Accordingly, on the Closing Date (as defined in the SPA), the Holder paid the purchase price of $495,000 in exchange for the Amortization Note. In addition, pursuant to the terms of the SPA, the Company agreed to issue 6,875 shares of the Company’s common stock to the Holder as additional consideration.
The Company may prepay the Amortization Note at any time prior to the date that an Event of Default (as defined in the Amortization Note) (each an “Event of Default”) occurs at an amount equal to 100% of the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest with no prepayment premium. The Amortization Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the Amortization Note or SPA.
The Company is required to make amortization payments to the Holder according to the following schedule:
Payment Date Payment Amount
10/16/2020 $ 66,125.00
11/16/2020 $ 66,125.00
12/16/2020 $ 66,125.00
01/18/2021 $ 66,125.00
02/18/2021 $ 66,125.00
03/18/2021 $ 66,125.00
04/16/2021 $ 66,125.00
05/18/2021 $ 66,125.00
06/18/2021 $ 65,921.26
Total: $ 594,921.26
In connection with the November 23, 2020 SPA discussed below, we repaid principal and interest of $198,375.
Upon the Holder’s provision of notice to the Company of the occurrence of any Event of Default, which has not been cured within five calendar days as provided in the Amortization Note, the Amortization Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to the Holder, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125% (the “Default Amount”). Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 15% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law. The Company shall have the right to pay the Default Amount in cash at any time, provided, however that the Holder may convert the Amortization Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% contained in the Amortization Note) at any time after the date that is five calendar days after the Amortization Note becomes immediately due and payable as a result of an Event of Default until the Company has repaid the Amortization Note in cash. If the aforementioned event occurs, the conversion price will be equal to the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock on the trading day immediately preceding the date of the respective conversion. The Company intends to repay the Amortization Note in accordance with its terms so that no amount under the Amortization Note is converted into shares of the Company’s common stock.
While any portion of this Note is outstanding, if the Company receives cash proceeds of more than $2,000,000.00 (the “Minimum Threshold”) in the aggregate from public offerings or private placements to investors, the Company shall, within two business days of Company’s receipt of such proceeds, inform the Holder of such receipt, following which the Holder shall have the right in its sole discretion to require the Company to immediately apply up to 50% of all proceeds received by the Company after the Minimum Threshold is reached to repay the outstanding amounts owed under this Note. As of_____the Company repaid principal and interest of $ in satisfaction of the outstanding note.
August 7, 2020 Self-Amortization Promissory Note
On August 7, 2020 (the “Issue Date”), the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “SPA”) with FirstFire Global Opportunities Fund, LLC, an accredited investor (the “Holder”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% self-amortization promissory note (the “Self-Amortization Note”) with a maturity date of August 7, 2021 (the “Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $333,333. Pursuant to the terms of the Self-Amortization Note, the Company agreed to pay $333,333 (the “Principal Sum”) to the Holder and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum. The Amortization Note carries an original issue discount of $33,333. Accordingly, on the Closing Date (as defined in the SPA), the Holder paid the purchase price of $300,000 in exchange for the Self-Amortization Note. In addition, pursuant to the terms of the SPA, the Company agreed to issue 4,167 shares of the Company’s common stock to the Holder as additional consideration.
The Company may prepay the Self-Amortization Note at any time prior to the date that an Event of Default (as defined in the Amortization Note) (each an “Event of Default”) occurs at an amount equal to 100% of the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest with no prepayment premium. The Self-Amortization Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the Self-Amortization Note or SPA.
The Company is required to make amortization payments to the Holder according to the following schedule:
Payment Date Payment Amount
12/07/2020 $ 40,075.75
01/07/2021 $ 40,075.75
02/08/2021 $ 40,075.75
03/08/2021 $ 40,075.75
04/07/2021 $ 40,075.75
05/07/2021 $ 40,075.75
06/07/2021 $ 40,075.75
07/07/2021 $ 40,075.75
08/07/2021 $ 39,952.34
Total: $ 360,558.34
On March 10, 2021, we repaid the outstanding principal and interest on the Self-Amortization Note.
Upon the Holder’s provision of notice to the Company of the occurrence of any Event of Default, which has not been cured within five calendar days as provided in the Amortization Note, the Amortization Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to the Holder, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125% (the “Default Amount”). Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 15% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law. The Company shall have the right to pay the Default Amount in cash at any time, provided, however that the Holder may convert the Amortization Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% contained in the Amortization Note) at any time after the date that is five calendar days after the Amortization Note becomes immediately due and payable as a result of an Event of Default until the Company has repaid the Amortization Note in cash. If the aforementioned event occurs, the conversion price will be equal to the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock on the trading day immediately preceding the date of the respective conversion. The Company intends to repay the Amortization Note in accordance with its terms so that no amount under the Amortization Note is converted into shares of the Company’s common stock.
While any portion of this Note is outstanding, if the Company receives cash proceeds of more than $2,000,000.00 (the “Minimum Threshold”) in the aggregate from public offerings or private placements to investors, the Company shall, within two business days of Company’s receipt of such proceeds, inform the Holder of such receipt, following which the Holder shall have the right in its sole discretion to require the Company to immediately apply up to 50% of all proceeds received by the Company after the Minimum Threshold is reached to repay the outstanding amounts owed under this Note.
November 23, 2020 Self-Amortization Promissory Note
On November 25, 2020, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “November 2020 SPA”), dated as of November 23, 2020 (the “Effective Date”), with an accredited investor (the “Holder”) pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% self-amortization promissory note (the “November Amortization Note”) with a maturity date of November 23, 2021 (the “Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $750,000. Pursuant to the terms of the November Amortization Note, the Company agreed to pay to $750,000 (the “Principal Sum”) to the Holder and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum. The Company received net proceeds of $441,375, net of original issue discount of $75,000, origination fees of $35,250, and the partial repayment of principal and interest of $198,375 on the June 18, 2020 Note. In connection with the November Amortization Note, during the first twelve months of this note, interest equal to $90,000 shall be guaranteed and earned in full as of the Effective Date, provided, however, that if the November Amortization Note is repaid in its entirety on or prior to February 23, 2021, then the interest shall be accrued on a per annum basis based on the number of days elapsed as of the repayment date from the Effective Date.
In connection with the November 23, 2020 SPA, the Company is required to issue warrants equal to 375,000 divided by the Exercise Price (as defined below) (the “Warrant Shares”) (whereby such number may be adjusted from time to time pursuant to the terms and conditions of this Warrant) at the Exercise Price per share then in effect. For purposes of this Warrant, the term “Exercise Price” shall mean 110% of the public offering price of the Company’s common stock under the public offering contemplated by the registration statement on Form S-1 filed by the Company on October 23, 2020 (the “Uplist Offering”), provided, however, that if the Uplist Offering has not been consummated on or before May 23, 2021, then the Exercise Price shall mean the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock on December 23, 2020, subject to adjustment as provided in the warrant (including but not limited to cashless exercise), and the term “Exercise Period” shall mean the period commencing on the earlier of (i) the date of the Company’s consummation of the Uplist Offering or (ii) May 23, 2021, and ending on the five-year anniversary thereof. In connection with the issuance of these warrants, on the initial measurement date, the relative fair value of the warrants of $157,438 was recorded as a debt discount and an increase in paid-in capital.
The Company may prepay the Amortization Note at any time prior to the date that an Event of Default (as defined in the Amortization Note) (each an “Event of Default”) occurs at an amount equal to 100% of the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest (no prepayment premium). The Amortization Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the November Amortization Note or the November 2020 SPA.
The Company is required to make amortization payments to the Holder according to the following schedule:
Payment Date Payment Amount
2/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
3/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
4/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
5/21/2021 $ 84,000.00
6/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
7/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
8/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
9/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
10/22/2021 $ 84,000.00
11/23/2021 $ 84,000.00
Total: $ 840,000.00
On February 19, 2021, we repaid the outstanding principal and interest on the November Amortization Note.
Upon the Holder’s provision of notice to the Company of the occurrence of any Event of Default, which has not been cured within five (5) calendar days (provided, however, that this cure period shall not apply to certain events of default as set forth in the November Amortization Note), the November Amortization Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to the Holder, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125% (the “Default Amount”). Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default (as hereinafter defined), additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 15% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law. The Company shall have the right to pay the Default Amount in cash at any time, provided, however that the Holder may convert the November Amortization Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% contained in the Amortization Note) at any time after the date that is five (5) calendar days after the November Amortization Note becomes immediately due and payable as a result of an Event of Default until the Company has repaid the Amortization Note in cash. If the aforementioned event occurs, the conversion price will be equal to the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock on the trading day immediately preceding the date of the respective conversion.
The Holder shall have the right, at any time following an Uncured Default Date (as defined in this Note), to convert all or any portion of the then outstanding and unpaid principal amount and interest (including any default interest) into shares of the Company’s common stock at the Conversion Price. Following the Uncured Default Date, the Conversion Price shall equal the lesser of (i) 105% multiplied by the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock or (ii) the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock immediately preceding the date of the respective conversion (the “Conversion Price”).
Amendments to the Series A-2 Exchange Convertible Note
On or about December 20, 2018, the Company issued that certain Series A-2 exchange convertible note in the original principal amount of $1,000,000 (the “Series A-2 Note”) to Maxim.
On June 18, 2020, the Company and Maxim entered into that certain first amendment to the Series A-2 Note (the “First Amendment”), pursuant to which such parties agreed to the following: (i) Maxim’s resale of the Company’s common stock (the “Common Stock”) underlying the Series A-2 Note shall be limited to 10% of the daily volume of the Common Stock on each respective trading day, (ii) the maturity date of the Series A-2 Note was extended to December 31, 2020, (iii) the principal amount of the Series A-2 Note was increased by $100,000 and (iv) the conversion price was reduced from $15.44 ($1.93 pre-reverse split) to $9.20 ($1.15 pre-reverse split).
On December 31, 2020, the Company and Maxim entered into a second amendment to the Series A-2 Note to extend the maturity date of Series A-2 Note to February 15, 2021.
February 19, 2021 12% Promissory Note and Securities Purchase Agreement
On February 19, 2021, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “SPA”) dated as of February 19, 2021, with an accredited investor (the “Holder”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% promissory note (the “Note”) with a maturity date of February 19, 2022 (the “Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $1,650,000. In addition, the Company issued 10,000 shares of its common stock to the Holder as a commitment fee pursuant to the SPA. Pursuant to the terms of the Note, the Company agreed to pay to $1,650,000 (the “Principal Sum”) to the Holder and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum (provided that the first twelve months of interest shall be guaranteed). The Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $165,000. Accordingly, on the Closing Date (as defined in the SPA), the Holder paid the purchase price of $1,485,000 in exchange for the Note. The Company intends to use the proceeds for its operational expenses, the repayment of those certain self-amortization promissory notes previously issued to the Holder on June 18, 2020 and November 23, 2020, and the repayment of certain other existing debt obligations. The Holder may convert the Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% in the Note) at any time at a conversion price equal to $11.50 per share.
The Company may prepay the Note at any time prior to the date that an Event of Default (as defined in the Note) (each an “Event of Default”) occurs at an amount equal to 100% of the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest (no prepayment premium). The Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the Note or SPA.
The Company is required to make an interim payment to the Holder in the amount of $363,000, on or before August 19, 2021, towards the repayment of the balance of the Note.
Upon the Holder’s provision of notice to the Company of the occurrence of any Event of Default, which has not been cured within five (5) calendar days (provided, however, that this five (5) calendar day cure period shall not apply to any event of default under Sections 3.1, 3.2, and 3.19 of the Note), the Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to the Holder, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125% (the “Default Amount”). Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 15% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law.
FirstFire Global 12% Promissory Note and Securities Purchase Agreement
On March 10, 2021, the Company, entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “First Fire SPA”) dated as of March 10, 2021, with FirstFire Global Opportunities Fund, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Holder”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% promissory note with a maturity date of March 10, 2022, in the principal sum of $560,000. The Company received net proceeds of $130,606, net of OID of $56,000, net of origination fees of $8,394, and the repayment of principal and interest of $365,000 on the August 7, 2020 Note. In addition, the Company issued 3,394 (27,152 pre-reverse split) shares of its common stock to the Holder as a commitment fee pursuant to the SPA. Pursuant to the terms of the Note, the Company agreed to pay to $560,000 (the “Principal Sum”) to the Holder and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum (provided that the first twelve months of interest shall be guaranteed). The Note carries an OID of $56,000. Accordingly, on the Closing Date (as defined in the First Fire SPA), the Holder paid the purchase price of $504,000 in exchange for the Note. The Holder may convert the Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% in the Note) at any time at a conversion price equal to $11.50 per share.
The Company may prepay the Note at any time prior to the date that an Event of Default (as defined in the Note) (each an “Event of Default”) occurs at an amount equal to 100% of the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued and unpaid interest (no prepayment premium). The Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the Note or SPA.
The Company is required to make an interim payment to FirstFire in the amount of $123,200, on or before September 10, 2021, towards the repayment of the balance of the Note.
Upon FirstFire’s provision of notice to the Company of the occurrence of any Event of Default, which has not been cured within five (5) calendar days (provided, however, that this five (5) calendar day cure period shall not apply to any event of default under Sections 3.1, 3.2, and 3.19 of the Note), the Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to FirstFire, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125% (the “Default Amount”). Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, additional interest will accrue from the date of the Event of Default at the rate equal to the lower of 15% per annum or the highest rate permitted by law.
GS Capital Securities Purchase Agreement & Note
On June 16, 2021, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “GS SPA”) dated as of June 10, 2021, with GS Capital Partners, LLC (“GS Capital”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% promissory note (the “GS Note”) with a maturity date of June 10, 2023 (the “GS Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $333,333. In addition, the Company issued 3,125 shares of its common stock to GS as a commitment fee pursuant to the GS SPA. Pursuant to the terms of the GS Note, the Company agreed to pay to $300,000.00 (the “GS Principal Sum”) to GS and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum (provided that the first six months of interest shall be guaranteed and the remaining 18 months of interest shall be deemed earned in full if any amount is outstanding under the GS Note after 180 days from June 10, 2021). The GS Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $33,333. Accordingly, GS paid the purchase price of $300,000.00 in exchange for the GS Note. The Company intends to use the proceeds for working capital and to pay off an existing promissory note issued by the Company in favor of Maxim. GS may convert the GS Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% in the GS Note; provided however, that the limitation on conversion may be waived (up to 9.99%) by GS upon, at the election of GS, not less than 61 days’ prior notice to the Company) at any time at a conversion price equal to $11.50 per share, as the same may be adjusted as provided in the GS Note.
The Company may prepay the GS Note at any time prior to maturity in accordance with the terms of the GS Note. The GS Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the GS Note or the GS SPA.
Upon the occurrence of any Event of Default (as defined in the GS Note), which has not been cured within three calendar days, the GS Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to GS, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the principal amount then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125%.
Pursuant to the terms of the GS SPA, the Company also issued to GS a three-year warrant to purchase 156,250 shares of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price equal to (i) 110% of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the Company’s common stock; or (ii) prior to the determination of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the common stock and following such time if the uplisting contemplated in clause (i) is not completed by November 1, 2021, $10.73.
The Company also agreed to prepare and file with the SEC a registration statement covering the resale of all shares issued or issuable pursuant to the GS SPA, including shares issued upon conversion of the GS Note or exercise of the GS Warrant. The Company agreed to use its commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement filed with the SEC within 90 days following June 10, 2021 and to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC within 120 days following June 10, 2021.
PLAYlive Nation Merger
On July 25, 2019, the Company entered an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with Esports Merger Sub, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company (“Merger Sub”), PLAYlive, Duncan Wood, Robert J. Steinberger, Eric J. Charneski, Jordan C. Jenson, and Alec T. Carpenter (collectively, Messrs. Wood, Steinberger, Charneski, Jenson and Carpenter are referred to herein as the “PLAYlive Stockholders”), and Mr. Wood in his capacity as representative of the Stockholders (the “Stockholder Representative”), pursuant to which the Company agreed to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding common stock of PLAYlive by way of a merger (the “PLAYlive Merger”) pursuant to which Merger Sub merged with and into PLAYlive, with PLAYlive surviving the Merger and continuing as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, in exchange for 750,000 shares of the Company’s common stock (the “Merger Consideration”). The PLAYlive Merger closed on July 30, 2019.
The name of the surviving corporation remained “PLAYlive Nation, Inc.,” the Certificate of Incorporation of the surviving corporation is the certificate of incorporation of PLAYlive, and the bylaws of the surviving corporation are the bylaws of PLAYlive. The directors and officers of Merger Sub immediately prior to the effective time of the PLAYlive Merger became the directors and officers, respectively, of PLAYlive.
At the effective time of the PLAYlive Merger, by virtue of the PLAYlive Merger and without any action on the part of Merger Sub, PLAYlive or the holders of shares of PLAYlive common stock, each share of PLAYlive common stock issued and outstanding immediately prior to the effective time of the PLAYlive Merger, upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement was cancelled and extinguished and was converted automatically into the right to receive the per share Merger Consideration upon surrender of the certificate representing such shares of PLAYlive common stock as provided in the Merger Agreement. Each share of common stock of Merger Sub issued and outstanding immediately prior to the effective time of the Merger was converted into and exchanged for one validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable share of common stock of PLAYlive. Each stock certificate of Merger Sub evidencing ownership of any such shares continues to evidence ownership of such shares of capital stock of PLAYlive.
Promptly following the effective time of the PLAYlive Merger, the Company made available for exchange in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement that portion of the Merger Consideration issuable pursuant to the Merger Agreement in exchange for outstanding PLAYlive common stock, provided, however, that the Company deposited into escrow 75,000 shares of Company common stock out of the aggregate Merger Consideration otherwise issuable to the PLAYlive Stockholders pursuant to the Merger Agreement as partial security for the indemnification obligations set forth in the Merger Agreement. No fractional shares were issued in connection with the PLAYlive Merger. The number of shares of Company common stock issued to each PLAYlive Stockholder in connection with the PLAYlive Merger (after aggregating all fractional shares of Company common stock that otherwise would have been received by such holder) were rounded up to the next whole share in lieu of such fractional share.
At the closing of the PLAYlive Merger, PLAYlive was required to have not less than $10,000 in cash net of issued but uncleared checks, ACHs, and drafts, on deposit in PLAYlive’s principal bank account (“Minimum Cash”). Within 60 days after the closing date, the Company may deliver a notice to the Stockholder Representative setting forth a description of any item which caused Minimum Cash to exceed or fall below $10,000 and the actual amount of Minimum Cash on deposit in PLAYlive’s principal bank account as of the closing (a “Minimum Cash Adjustment Notice”). If the actual amount of Minimum Cash as of the closing is more than $10,000, then the Company will pay to the Stockholder Representative (for distribution to the PLAYlive Stockholders), the amount by which Minimum Cash exceeds $10,000 provided, however, in no event shall the cash payment exceed an amount that will permit the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement to qualify for the intended tax treatment. If the actual amount of Minimum Cash as of the closing is less than $10,000, then the Stockholder Representative (on behalf of the PLAYlive Stockholders) will pay to the Company the amount by which Minimum Cash is less than $10,000.
Concurrently with execution of the Merger Agreement, the PLAYlive Stockholders executed and delivered a restrictive covenant agreement as provided in the Merger Agreement. At closing, each of Messrs. Wood, Jenson, and Carpenter entered into an employment agreement with PLAYlive, and each of the PLAYlive Stockholders entered into a one-year lock-up agreement with the Company.
The PLAYlive Merger is intended to be a reorganization within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and the Merger Agreement is intended to be a “plan of reorganization” within the meaning of the regulations promulgated under Section 368(a) of the Code and for the purpose of qualifying as a tax-free transaction for federal income tax purposes.
Private Unit Offering
In 2019, the Company sold an aggregate of 987,500 units (the “Units”) at a purchase price of $2.00 per Unit to 12 accredited investors in exchange for receipt of $1,975,000. Each unit consists of (i) one share of common stock, and (ii) a 5-year warrant to purchase one share of common stock at a purchase price of $4.00.
Settlement Agreement
In March 2019, the Company entered into a settlement agreement with its prior attorney. The settlement agreement called for $200,000 to be paid upon signing the settlement agreement and then another $525,000 to be paid over-time. As of May 31, 2021, the Company owed this attorney $125,000.
Debt Conversion
On May 31, 2019, we issued 100,000 shares of Common Stock to affiliates of Polar in exchange for Polar’s forgiveness of $143,476 owed by us to Polar under that certain Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of November 2, 2018, between Polar and us.
Overview of Smaaash Entertainment Private Limited
Smaaash Private operates state-of-the-art games and entertainment centers (“Smaaash Centers”) in India, in addition to carrying out product sales of its games and equipment that Smaaash has developed in-house, supported by its sponsorship and other revenues. Smaaash Private’s core concept is to offer an interactive, immersive and fun experience to customers at its Smaaash Centers, blending Augmented Reality (“AR”) and Virtual Reality (“VR”) and other games, indoor entertainment, and attractive food and beverage options, customized to the tastes and preferences of a diverse set of customers across age groups, genders and backgrounds, including corporate customers, families, friends and children.
Following the January 2019 acquisition of Simplicity Esports LLC, we determined to shift our current primary focus to the Simplicity Esports LLC business. Accordingly, we do not anticipate generating any material revenues from Smaaash in the next 12 months. The Master Franchise Agreement, as amended, and the Master Distribution Agreement continue in full force and effect, however, and we may now or in the future pursue Smaaash business opportunities.
Restructuring the Ownership in Simplicity One Brasil, LTDA
In June 2020, while Simplicity One Brasil Ltda (“Simplicity One Brasil”) was preparing its initial application for purchasing a franchise in Campeonato Brasileiro de League of Legends, Simplicity One Brasil become aware that the 10%-ownership interest of Team One E-Sports Ltda (“Team One E-Sports”) in Simplicity One Brasil was in contravention of Riot Games’ policy that only one League of Legend esports team could be owned by an owner at one time because Team One had already submitted an application for purchasing a franchise for another League of Legend esports team. Accordingly, Simplicity One Brasil needed Team One E-Sports to divest itself of its 10%-equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil in order for Simplicity One Brasil to proceed with its franchise application. Therefore, on June 22, 2020, Mr. Kaplan entered into a Quota Purchase Agreement with Team One E-Sports, pursuant to which Mr. Kaplan acquired Team One Esports’ 10%-ownership equity interest for $45,000 in cash. In addition, the Company transferred a 2%-equity interest (an aggregate of 4%) to each of Laila De Braga Cavalcanti Loss and Frederico Tannure. Ms. Loss lives in Brazil and run the operations of Simplicity One Brasil, in order to comply with Riot Games’ policy requiring local ownership in Brazil in order to apply for a franchise of a league of legends sports team. Furthermore, on June 22, 2020, Mr. Kaplan agreed to forgive the debt of the Kaplan Promissory Note with a principal balance of $90,000 in exchange for the Company assigning to Mr. Kaplan a 10% equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil. In light of the restructuring of the ownership interest in Simplicity One Brasil, as of August 30, 2021, the Company, Mr. Kaplan, Ms. Cavalcanti Loss, and Mr. Tannure own a 76%, 20%, 2% and 2% equity interest in Simplicity One Brasil.
Recent Developments
Form S-8 Registration Statement
On March 18, 2021, the Company filed a registration statement on Form S-8 for the purpose of resale or reoffer thereof, of 18,125 (145,000 pre-reverse split) shares of the Company’s common stock issued prior to the filing of such registration statement and held by the selling stockholder named therein in connection with such selling stockholder’s provision of services to the Company. On June 4, 2021, the Company filed a registration statement on Form S-8 for the purpose of resale or reoffer thereof, of 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock reserved for issuance pursuant to the Company’s 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan.
Appointment of Mr. Kaplan as Chairman, Mr. Franklin as Chief Executive Officer and Mr. Lau as Chief Financial Officer; New Executive Officer Agreements
On March 25, 2021, our board of directors appointed Jed Kaplan, our then-Chief Executive Officer, Interim Chief Financial Officer and a member of the Board, as Chairman of the Board, effective March 29, 2021. Also on March 25, 2021, Mr. Kaplan submitted his resignation as Chief Executive Officer and Interim Chief Financial Officer. On the same date, our board of directors appointed Roman Franklin, our then- President and Chief Operating Officer and a member of the Board, as our Chief Executive Officer, effective March 29, 2021. Also on March 25, 2021, our board of directors appointed Knicks Lau to serve as our Chief Financial Officer, effective March 29, 2021. Donald R. Caldwell, who served as Chairman of the Board until March 29, 2021, continues to serve as a member of our board of directors and as Chairman of the Audit Committee and Chairman of the Compensation Committee.
In connection with Mr. Franklin’s appointment, on March 25, 2021, the Company entered into an employment agreement, dated as of March 29, 2021 by and between the Company and Mr. Franklin. See “Executive Compensation-Executive Officer and Director Compensation-Executive Employment Agreements” for information regarding Mr. Franklin’s employment agreement.
In connection with Mr. Lau’s appointment, on March 23, 2021, the Company entered into an employment agreement, dated as of March 29, 2021 by and between the Company and Mr. Lau. See “Executive Compensation-Executive Officer and Director Compensation-Executive Employment Agreements” for information regarding Mr. Lau’s employment agreement. On May 7, 2021, the Board of Directors of the Company appointed Laila Cavalcanti Loss to serve as a member of the Company’s Board of Directors. On May 10, 2021, Knicks Lau resigned as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer for personal reasons. On May 11, 2021, the Company’s Board of Directors appointed Nancy Hennessey as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, effective May 17, 2021.
In connection with Ms. Hennessey’s appointment as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer effective May 17, 2021, on May 11, 2021, the Company entered into an employment agreement, dated as of May 17, 2021 by and between the Company and Ms. Hennessey. See “Executive Compensation-Executive Officer and Director Compensation-Executive Employment Agreements” for information regarding Ms. Hennessey’s employment agreement.
In May 2021, the Company hired Julianne Blanchette to serve as its Corporate Secretary to assist with Board of Directors and corporate governance matters.
Tiger Trout SPA
On March 31, 2021, the Company entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement (this “Agreement”) by and between the Company and Tiger Trout Capital Puerto Rico, LLC (“Tiger Trout”), pursuant to which the Company agreed to issue and sell to Tiger Trout an aggregate of 125,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”) at a purchase price of $12.00 per share, for a total purchase price of $1,500,000.
The Agreement provides that the sale will occur in two tranches, as follows:
● The Company agreed to issue and sell to Tiger Trout on March 31, 2021 41,667 shares of Common Stock (the “First Tranche Shares”) at a purchase price of $12.00 per share, for a total purchase price of $500,004 (the “First Tranche Purchase Price”). The closing of the purchase and sale of the First Tranche Shares is referred to herein as the “First Closing”.
● Subject to the satisfaction or waiver, by the party for whose benefit such conditions exist, of the conditions to the Second Closing (as hereinafter defined), at such time and pursuant to the terms and conditions in the Agreement, the Company agreed to issue and sell to Tiger Trout 83,333 shares of Common Stock (the “Second Tranche Shares” and together with the First Tranche Shares, the “Shares”) at a purchase price of $12.00 per share, for a total purchase price of $999,996 (the “Second Tranche Purchase Price” and together with the First Tranche Purchase Price, the “Purchase Price”). The closing of the purchase and sale of the Second Tranche Shares is referred to herein as the “Second Closing”.
In the Agreement, the Company agreed that, following the First Closing, the Company will utilize its commercially reasonable efforts to file a resale registration statement (the “Registration Statement”) pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) for the resale of the Shares, and will use its commercially reasonable efforts to have such registration statement declared effective by the Commission within 30 calendar days, but not more than 90 calendar days after March 31, 2021.
The Company also agreed to, among other things, (i) make and keep adequate current public information available, as those terms are understood and defined in Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act, and (ii) file with the SEC in a timely manner all reports and other documents required of the Company under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act so long as the Company remains subject to such requirements and the filing of such reports and other documents as required for the applicable provisions of Rule 144.
The obligations of Tiger Trout to consummate the Second Closing is subject to certain conditions, including, but not limited to: (i) the Registration Statement shall have become effective, and (ii) from March 31, 2021 to the date of the Second Closing, trading in the shares of Common Stock shall not have been suspended by the Commission of the Company’s principal Trading Market (as defined in the Agreement), and, at any time prior to the date of the Second Closing, trading in securities generally as reported by Bloomberg L.P. shall not have been suspended or limited, or minimum prices shall not have been established on securities whose trades are reported by such services, or on any Trading Market, nor shall a banking moratorium have been declared either by the United States or New York State authorities nor shall there have occurred any material outbreak or escalation of hostilities or other national or international calamity of such magnitude in its effect on, or any material adverse change in, any financial market which, in each case, in the reasonable judgment of Tiger Trout, makes it impracticable or inadvisable to purchase the Second Tranche Shares at the Second Closing.
On April 28, 2021, the Company filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with File No. 333-255584, to register up to 125,000 (1,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares of the Company’s common stock by Tiger Trout pursuant to the Agreement, and the Form S-1 was declared effective by the SEC on May 10, 2021.
The Agreement contains customary representations and warranties of the Company and the Purchaser and other customary covenants and agreements. The Agreement may be terminated by either the Company or Tiger Trout if the Second Closing has not occurred by the date that is 90 calendar days after March 31, 2021. As of August ___, 2021, the Agreement is still in effect.
FMW Media Works
Effective April 1, 2021, in connection with compensation for services to be rendered, the Company issued 12,500 (100,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock to FMW Media Works.
Maxim Note Payable
On April 14, 2021, the Company and Maxim entered into the third amendment to the Series A-2 Note with Maxim pursuant to which the Company and Maxim agreed to the following:
(i) The maturity date of the Series A-2 Note is extended to October 15, 2021.
(ii) The principal balance of the Series A-2 Note is increased by $50,000 as of April 14, 2021.
(iii) The Series A-2 Note was not repaid in its entirety (in cash and/or shares of the Company’s common stock pursuant to conversion(s) of the Series A-2 Note) on or before April 30, 2021, and accordingly, the principal balance of the Series A-2 Note increased by an additional $50,000.
(iv) The Series A-2 Note was not repaid in its entirety (in cash and/or shares of the Company’s common stock pursuant to conversion(s) of the Series A-2 Note) on or before May 15, 2021, and accordingly, the principal balance of the Series A-2 Note increased by an additional $50,000.
(v) If the Series A-2 Note is not repaid in its entirety (in cash and/or shares of the Company’s common stock pursuant to conversion(s) of the Series A-2 Note) on or before July 15, 2021, the principal balance of the Series A-2 Note will increase by an additional $100,000.
(vi) If the Series A-2 Note is not repaid in its entirety (in cash and/or shares of the Company’s common stock pursuant to conversion(s) of the Series A-2 Note) on or before September 15, 2021, the principal balance of the Series A-2 Note will increase by an additional $100,000, representing a total cumulative increase in the principal balance of $350,000 if the Series A-2 Note is not repaid in its entirety on or before September 15, 2021.
(vii) The Company will, within five business days after the Company’s receipt of the Second Tranche Purchase Price of $999,996, pay $500,000 to Maxim, which will reduce the principal owed under the Series A-2 Note by $500,000.
While any portion of the Series A-2 Note is outstanding, if the Company receives cash proceeds from public offerings or private placements of the Company’s common stock to investors (except with respect to proceeds from officers and directors of the Company), the Company will, within five business days of the Company’s receipt of such proceeds, inform Maxim or such receipt, following which Maxim will have the right in its sole discretion to require the Company to immediately apply up to 25% of such proceeds received by the Company to repay the outstanding amounts owed under the Series A-2 Note. The parties understand that (a) each dollar applied toward repayment pursuant to this clause (viii) will reduce the balance owed under the Series A-2 Note by one dollar, and (b) this clause (viii) will not apply to the Tiger Trout transaction.
Form S-1 Registration Statement
On April 28, 2021, the Company filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with File No. 333-255584, to register up to 125,000 (1,000,000 pre-reverse split) shares of the Company’s common stock issued to Tiger Trout Capital Puerto Rico, LLC, a Puerto Rico limited liability company, which was declared effective by the SEC on May 10, 2021.
Resignation of Knicks Lau; Appointment of Nancy Hennessey as Chief Financial Officer and Appointment of Laila Cavalcanti Loss as a Director; New Executive Officer Agreement and Corporate Secretary
June 11 FirstFire Global 12% Promissory Note and Securities Purchase Agreement
On June 11, 2021, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “FirstFire SPA”) dated as of June 10, 2021, with FirstFire Global Opportunities Fund, LLC (“FirstFire”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% promissory note (the “FirstFire Note”) with a maturity date of June 10, 2023 (the “FirstFire Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $1,266,666. In addition, the Company issued 11,875 shares of its common stock to FirstFire as a commitment fee pursuant to the FirstFire SPA. Pursuant to the terms of the FirstFire Note, the Company agreed to pay to $1,266,666 (the “FirstFire Principal Sum”) to FirstFire and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum (provided that the first six months of interest shall be guaranteed and the remaining 18 months of interest shall be deemed earned in full if any amount is outstanding under the FirstFire Note after 180 days from June 10, 2021). The FirstFire Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $126,666. Accordingly, FirstFire paid the purchase price of $1,140,000 in exchange for the FirstFire Note. The Company intends to use the proceeds for working capital and to pay off an existing promissory note issued by the Company in favor of Maxim. FirstFire may convert the FirstFire Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% in the FirstFire Note; provided however, that the limitation on conversion may be waived (up to 9.99%) by FirstFire upon, at the election of FirstFire, not less than 61 days’ prior notice to the Company) at any time at a conversion price equal to $11.50 per share, as the same may be adjusted as provided in the FirstFire Note.
The Company may prepay the FirstFire Note at any time prior to maturity in accordance with the terms of the FirstFire Note. The FirstFire Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the FirstFire Note or the FirstFire SPA.
Upon the occurrence of any Event of Default (as defined in the FirstFire Note), which has not been cured within three calendar days, the FirstFire Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to FirstFire, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the FirstFire Principal Sum then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125%.
Pursuant to the terms of the FirstFire SPA, the Company also issued to FirstFire a three-year warrant (the “FirstFire Warrant”) to purchase 593,750 shares of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price equal to (i) 110% of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the Company’s common stock; or (ii) prior to the determination of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the common stock and following such time if the uplisting contemplated in clause (i) is not completed by November 1, 2021, $10.73.
The Company also agreed to prepare and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission a registration statement covering the resale of all shares issued or issuable pursuant to the FirstFire SPA, including shares issued upon conversion of the FirstFire Note or exercise of the FirstFire Warrant. The Company agreed to use its commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement filed with the SEC within 90 days following June 10, 2021 and to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC within 120 days following June 10, 2021.
GS Capital Securities Purchase Agreement & Note
On June 16, 2021, the Company entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “GS SPA”) dated as of June 10, 2021, with GS Capital Partners, LLC (“GS Capital”), pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% promissory note (the “GS Note”) with a maturity date of June 10, 2023 (the “GS Maturity Date”), in the principal sum of $333,333. In addition, the Company issued 3,125 shares of its common stock to GS as a commitment fee pursuant to the GS SPA. Pursuant to the terms of the GS Note, the Company agreed to pay to $300,000.00 (the “GS Principal Sum”) to GS and to pay interest on the principal balance at the rate of 12% per annum (provided that the first six months of interest shall be guaranteed and the remaining 18 months of interest shall be deemed earned in full if any amount is outstanding under the GS Note after 180 days from June 10, 2021). The GS Note carries an original issue discount (“OID”) of $33,333. Accordingly, GS paid the purchase price of $300,000.00 in exchange for the GS Note. The Company intends to use the proceeds for working capital and to pay off an existing promissory note issued by the Company in favor of Maxim. GS may convert the GS Note into the Company’s common stock (subject to the beneficial ownership limitations of 4.99% in the GS Note; provided however, that the limitation on conversion may be waived (up to 9.99%) by GS upon, at the election of GS, not less than 61 days’ prior notice to the Company) at any time at a conversion price equal to $11.50 per share, as the same may be adjusted as provided in the GS Note.
The Company may prepay the GS Note at any time prior to maturity in accordance with the terms of the GS Note. The GS Note contains customary events of default relating to, among other things, payment defaults, breach of representations and warranties, and breach of provisions of the GS Note or the GS SPA.
Upon the occurrence of any Event of Default (as defined in the GS Note), which has not been cured within three calendar days, the GS Note shall become immediately due and payable and the Company shall pay to GS, in full satisfaction of its obligations hereunder, an amount equal to the principal amount then outstanding plus accrued interest multiplied by 125%.
Pursuant to the terms of the GS SPA, the Company also issued to GS a three-year warrant to purchase 156,250 shares of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price equal to (i) 110% of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the Company’s common stock; or (ii) prior to the determination of the per share offering price of the offering made in connection with any uplisting of the common stock and following such time if the uplisting contemplated in clause (i) is not completed by November 1, 2021, $10.73.
The Company also agreed to prepare and file with the SEC a registration statement covering the resale of all shares issued or issuable pursuant to the GS SPA, including shares issued upon conversion of the GS Note or exercise of the GS Warrant. The Company agreed to use its commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement filed with the SEC within 90 days following June 10, 2021 and to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC within 120 days following June 10, 2021.
Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American Listing, Reverse Stock Split and Increase in Authorized Shares of Common Stock
We intend to list our common stock and warrants on the Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American. There is no assurance that our listing application will be approved by the Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American.
In order to obtain Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American listing approval, we obtained approval of our board of directors and shareholders of (i) a reverse stock split of the outstanding shares of our common stock in the range from one-for-two (1-for-2) to one-for-ten (1-for-10), which ratio was to be selected by the board of directors and (ii) an increase in our authorized shares of common stock from 20,000,000 to 36,000,000 shares of common stock.
On August 17, 2020, we filed a Certificate of Amendment to increase the authorized shares of common stock from 20,000,000 to 36,000,000. Accordingly, our authorized capital stock consists of (i) 36,000,000 shares of common stock, and (ii) 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock.
On November 17, 2020, our board of directors approved the reverse stock split in a ratio of 1-for-8 and on November 17, 2020, we filed an amended and restated certificate of amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, implementing the reverse stock split in a ratio of 1-for-8, effective November 19, 2020; provided, however, the reverse stock split became effective for trading purposes on November 20, 2020 when it had been processed by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”). The reverse stock split is intended to allow us to meet the minimum share price requirement of the Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American. There is no assurance that our listing application will be approved by the Nasdaq Capital Market or NYSE American.
Information About Our Executive Officers
Roman Franklin. Mr. Franklin has been a member of our Board of Directors since August 16, 2017, and our President since December 31, 2018. Mr. Franklin was promoted to Chief Executive Officer in March 2021. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Franklin was Chief Investment Officer of SMC Global USA from March 2016 until December 31, 2016, and prior, President of Franklin Financial Planning from 2005 to 2016. Roman Franklin is a 16-year veteran of the financial services industry. By the age of 22 he held FINRA Series 7, Series 66, and Life, Health, and Variable Insurance Licenses. In 2005, he founded a fee-only registered investment advisory firm. In 2008, he was one of the youngest recipients of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (“NAPFA”) Registered Financial Advisor (RFA) designation. In 2015, he was elected as a Board Member of the NAPFA, South Region Board of Directors, overseeing more than a dozen states from Texas, to Florida, to North Carolina. Mr. Franklin has experience in domestic and international investments, and has been involved in multiple international business transactions. Mr. Franklin holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Barry University and an M.B.A. in Finance from the Graduate School of Business at Stetson University. His civic organization roles include School Advisory Council for Volusia County Schools, City of DeLand Economic Development Committee, and the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs of Central Florida.
We believe Mr. Franklin’s strong expertise in finance and international and domestic business transactions qualifies him to serve on our Board of Directors.
Nancy Hennessey. Ms. Hennessey joined the Company as Chief Financial Officer in May 2021. Prior to this she worked as the Senior Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis and as a consultant to the Chief Executive Officer of Travel and Leisure, formerly Wyndham Destinations, an NYSE listed $5 billion market cap company. From 1990 to 2011, Ms. Hennessey served multiple companies as Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Hennessey began her career by working for Ernst & Young as a Senior Auditor from 1986 until 1990. Ms. Hennessey is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a BBA and MBA in Public Accounting from the Lubin School of Business at Pace University.
We believe Ms. Hennessey’s extensive experience in corporate finance qualifies her to serve as an Executive Officer of the Company.
Employees
As of August 30, 2021, we had approximately 20 full-time employees and 30 part-time employees. None of our employees is represented by a union. We consider our relations with our employees to be good.
Legal Proceedings
On August 5, 2020, a lawsuit styled Duncan Wood v. PLAYlive Nation, Inc. and Simplicity eSports and Gaming Company (Case No. 20-1043) was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. The complaint alleges unlawful failure to make timely and reasonable payment of wages, breach of contract, breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing and unjust enrichment. The plaintiff seeks monetary damages for compensation alleged to be owed, treble damages, interest on all wage compensation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and other relief as the Court deems just and proper. On October 30, 2020, Mr. Wood and Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company executed a mutual General Release and the lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice.
From time to time, we are involved in various claims and legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business. To the knowledge of our management, there are no legal proceedings currently pending against us which we believe would have a material effect on our business, financial position or results of operations and, to the best of our knowledge, there are no such legal proceedings contemplated or threatened.
Properties
Our corporate headquarters are located at 7000 W. Palmetto Park Road, Suite 505, Boca Raton, Florida 33433, where we lease approximately 250 rentable square feet of office space from an unaffiliated third party. This lease expires on June 1, 2022. Terms of the office lease provide for a base rent payment of $800 per month. In total we lease approximately 40,000 rentable square feet of retail and office space from unaffiliated third parties in 17 locations in Florida, Oregon, Texas, California, Missouri, Montana, and Washington State for our corporate offices and gaming centers. These leases expire at various times, with the first expiration being May of 2022 and the last being July of 2030. Terms of the office and retail leases currently provide for aggregate base rent payments of approximately $39,000 per month with annual price escalations. We believe that these facilities are adequate for our current and near-term future needs.

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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Item 1A. Risk Factors
RISK FACTORS
An investment in our securities carries a significant degree of risk. You should carefully consider the following risks, as well as the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including our historical financial statements and related notes included elsewhere herein, before you decide to purchase our securities. Any one of these risks and uncertainties has the potential to cause material adverse effects on our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results which could cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements expressed by us and a significant decrease in the value of our common shares and warrants. Refer to “Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements”.
We may not be successful in preventing the material adverse effects that any of the following risks and uncertainties may cause. These potential risks and uncertainties may not be a complete list of the risks and uncertainties facing us. There may be additional risks and uncertainties that we are presently unaware of, or presently consider immaterial, that may become material in the future and have a material adverse effect on us. You could lose all or a significant portion of your investment due to any of these risks and uncertainties.
Below is a summary of material risks, uncertainties and other factors that could have a material effect on the Company and its operations:
● our history of losses;
● our inability to attract sufficient demand for our services and products;
● our ability to successfully execute our growth and acquisition strategy and manage effectively our growth;
● changes in the competitive environment in our industry and the markets we serve, and our ability to compete effectively;
● our dependence on a strong brand image;
● our cash needs and the adequacy of our cash flows and earnings;
● our ability to access additional capital;
● our dependence upon our executive officers, founders and key employees;
● our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel;
● our reliance on our technology systems, the impact of technological changes and cybersecurity risks;
● changes in applicable laws or regulations;
● our ability to protect our trademarks or other intellectual property rights;
● potential litigation from competitors or customers;
● public health epidemics or outbreaks (such as the novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19)) and our responses to such events could materially and adversely impact our business; and
● the possibility that we may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors.
Risks Related to Our Business
We have a relatively limited operating history and limited revenues to date and thus are subject to risks of business development and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
Because we have a relatively limited operating history and limited revenues to date, you should consider and evaluate our operating prospects in light of the risks and uncertainties frequently encountered by early-stage operating companies in rapidly evolving markets. These risks include:
● that we may not have sufficient capital to achieve our growth strategy;
● that we may not develop our product and service offerings in a manner that enables us to be profitable and meet our customers’ requirements;
● that our growth strategy may not be successful; and
● that fluctuations in our operating results will be significant relative to our revenues.
Our future growth will depend substantially on our ability to address these and the other risks described in this section. If we do not successfully address these risks, our business could be significantly harmed.
We have a history of operating losses and our management has concluded that factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern and our auditor has included an explanatory paragraph relating to our ability to continue as a going concern in its audit report for the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020.
To date, we have not been profitable and have incurred significant losses and cash flow deficits. For the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020 we reported net losses of $6,283,083 and $2,665,779, respectively, and negative cash flow from operating activities of $1,283,979 and $1,522,486 respectively. As of May 31, 2021, we had an aggregate accumulated deficit of $12,380,154. We anticipate that we will continue to report losses and negative cash flow. Our management has concluded that our historical recurring losses from operations and negative cash flows from operations as well as our dependence on private equity and financings raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern and our auditor has included an explanatory paragraph relating to our ability to continue as a going concern in its audit report for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 and 2020.
Our consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. These adjustments would likely include substantial impairment of the carrying amount of our assets and potential contingent liabilities that may arise if we are unable to fulfill various operational commitments. In addition, the value of our securities, including common stock issued in this offering, would be greatly impaired. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon generating sufficient cash flow from operations and obtaining additional capital and financing, including funds to be raised in this offering. If our ability to generate cash flow from operations is delayed or reduced and we are unable to raise additional funding from other sources, we may be unable to continue in business even if this offering is successful. For further discussion about our ability to continue as a going concern and our plan for future liquidity, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations-Ability to Continue as a Going Concern.”
We are a holding company and depend upon our subsidiaries for our cash flows.
We are a holding company. All of our operations are conducted, and almost all of our assets are owned, by our subsidiaries. Consequently, our cash flows and our ability to meet our obligations depend upon the cash flows of our subsidiaries and the payment of funds by these subsidiaries to us in the form of dividends, distributions or otherwise. The ability of our subsidiaries to make any payments to us depends on their earnings, the terms of their indebtedness, including the terms of any credit facilities and legal restrictions. Any failure to receive dividends or distributions from our subsidiaries when needed could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.
Future acquisitions or strategic investments could disrupt our business and harm our business, results of operations or financial condition.
We may in the future explore potential acquisitions of companies or strategic investments to strengthen our business. Even if we identify an appropriate acquisition candidate, we may not be successful in negotiating the terms or financing of the acquisition, and our due diligence may fail to identify all of the problems, liabilities or other shortcomings or challenges of an acquired business.
Acquisitions involve numerous risks, any of which could harm our business, including:
● straining our financial resources to acquire a company;
● anticipated benefits may not materialize as rapidly as we expect, or at all;
● diversion of management time and focus from operating our business to address acquisition integration challenges;
● retention of employees from the acquired company;
● cultural challenges associated with integrating employees from the acquired company into our organization;
● integration of the acquired company’s accounting, management information, human resources and other administrative systems;
● the need to implement or improve controls, procedures and policies at a business that prior to the acquisition may have lacked effective controls, procedures and policies; and
● litigation or other claims in connection with the acquired company, including claims from terminated employees, former stockholders or other third parties.
Failure to appropriately mitigate these risks or other issues related to such strategic investments and acquisitions could result in reducing or completely eliminating any anticipated benefits of transactions, and harm our business generally. Future acquisitions could also result in dilutive issuances of our equity securities, the incurrence of debt, contingent liabilities, amortization expenses or the impairment of goodwill, any of which could have a material adverse effect on business, results of operations or financial condition.
We may require additional funding for our growth plans, and such funding may result in a dilution of your investment.
We attempted to estimate our funding requirements in order to implement our growth plans. If the costs of implementing such plans should exceed these estimates significantly or if we come across opportunities to grow through expansion plans which cannot be predicted at this time, and our funds generated from our operations prove insufficient for such purposes, we may need to raise additional funds to meet these funding requirements.
These additional funds may be raised by issuing equity or debt securities or by borrowing from banks or other resources. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain any additional financing on terms that are acceptable to us, or at all. If we fail to obtain additional financing on terms that are acceptable to us, we will not be able to implement such plans fully if at all. Such financing even if obtained, may be accompanied by conditions that limit our ability to pay dividends or require us to seek lenders’ consent for payment of dividends, or restrict our freedom to operate our business by requiring lender’s consent for certain corporate actions.
Further, if we raise additional funds by way of a rights offering or through the issuance of new shares, any shareholders who are unable or unwilling to participate in such an additional round of fund raising may suffer dilution in their investment.
We may not have sufficient capital to fund our ongoing operations, effectively pursue our strategy or sustain our growth initiatives.
After the consummation of the acquisition of Simplicity Esports LLC and PLAYlive Nation, Inc., our remaining liquidity and capital resources may not be sufficient to allow us to fund our ongoing operations, effectively pursue our strategy or sustain our growth initiatives. If we require additional capital resources, we may seek such funds directly from third party sources; however, we may not be able to obtain sufficient equity capital and/or debt financing from third parties to allow us to fund our expected ongoing operations or we may not be able to obtain such equity capital or debt financing on acceptable terms or conditions. Factors affecting the availability of equity capital or debt financing to us on acceptable terms and conditions include:
● Our current and future financial results and position;
● the collateral availability of our otherwise unsecured assets;
● the market’s, investors and lenders’ view of our industry and products;
● the perception in the equity and debt markets of our ability to execute our business plan or achieve our operating results expectations; and
● the price, volatility and trading volume and history of our Common Stock.
If we are unable to obtain the equity capital or debt financing necessary to fund our ongoing operations, pursue our strategy and sustain our growth initiatives, we may be forced to scale back our operations or our expansion initiatives, and our business and operating results will be materially adversely affected.
Our growth strategy depends on the availability of suitable locations for our Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers and our ability to open new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers and operate them profitably.
A key element of our growth strategy is to extend our brand by opening corporate owned as well as franchising retail Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers in locations in the United States that we believe will provide attractive returns on investment. We have identified numerous sites for potential corporate Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers and many other sites for potential franchised esports gaming centers, in the United States, however, desirable locations for additional Simplicity Esports Gaming Center openings may not be available at an acceptable cost when we identify a particular opportunity for a new Simplicity Esports Gaming Center.
In addition, our ability to open new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers on a timely and cost-effective basis, or at all, is dependent on a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including our ability or the ability of the selected franchisee to:
● reach acceptable agreements regarding the lease of the locations;
● comply with applicable zoning, licensing, land use and environmental regulations;
● raise or have available an adequate amount of cash or currently available financing for construction and opening costs;
● timely hire, train and retain the skilled management and other employees necessary to meet staffing needs;
● obtain, for acceptable cost, required permits and approvals, including liquor licenses; and
● efficiently manage the amount of time and money used to build and open each new Simplicity Esports Gaming Center.
If we succeed in opening new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers on a timely and cost-effective basis, we may nonetheless be unable to attract enough customers to the new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers because potential customers may be unfamiliar with our brands or concepts, or our entertainment and menu options might not appeal to them. Our new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers may not meet or exceed our performance targets, including target cash-on-cash returns. New Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers may even operate at a loss, which could have a significant adverse effect on our overall operating results.
Our operations of Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers are significantly dependent on changes in public and customer tastes and discretionary spending patterns. Our inability to successfully anticipate customer preferences or to gain popularity for such Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers games may negatively impact our profitability.
Our success depends significantly on public and customer tastes and preferences, which can be unpredictable. If we are unable to successfully anticipate customer preferences or increase the popularity of the games offered at the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, the per capita revenue and overall customer expenditures at the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers may decrease, and thereby negatively impact our profitability. In response to such developments, we may need to increase our marketing and product development efforts and expenditures, adjust our game or product sale pricing, modify the games themselves, or take other actions, which may further erode our profit margins, or otherwise adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. In particular, we may need to expend considerable cost and effort in carrying out extensive research and development to assess the potential interest in a game, testing and launching new games, and to remain abreast with continually evolving technology and trends, as well as the success and popularity of Simplicity stream team’s casters, influencers and personalities among Simplicity Esports LLC’s dedicated fan base.
While we may incur significant expenditures of this nature, including in the future as we continue to expand our operations, there can be no assurance that any such expenditures or investments by us will yield expected or commensurate returns or results, within a reasonable or anticipated time, or at all.
The nature of our business exposes us to negative publicity or customer complaints, including in relation to, among other things, accidents, injuries or thefts at the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, or health and safety concerns arising from improper use of our game equipment or at our food and beverage venues.
Our business inherently exposes us to negative publicity or customer complaints as a result of accidents, injuries, or in extreme cases, deaths, arising from instances of air-borne, water-borne or food-borne contagion or illness, food contamination, spoilage, tampering, equipment failure, improper use of our equipment, fire, explosion, terrorist attacks or civil riots, and other safety or security issues, such as kidnapping, or associated risks arising from other actual or perceived non-compliance with safety, quality or service standards or norms in relation to the various game, entertainment and food and beverage attractions at the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers. Even isolated or sporadic incidents or accidents may have a negative impact on our brand image and reputation, and the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers’, or games’ or our own popularity with customers. The considerable expansion of social media in recent years has compounded the effect of any potential negative publicity.
We cannot guarantee that our or our franchisee’s employee training, internal controls and other precautions will be sufficient to prevent any such occurrence at the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, in relation to our Simplicity global virtual reality gaming and fully integrated esports platform, or to control or mitigate any negative consequences. In addition, we or our franchisees rely on third-party security and housekeeping staff for certain non-core functions, as well as certain technology vendors and partners. Although we monitor vendors and partners and, in certain cases, may have a contractual indemnity or recourse in case of any default on their part, our ability to assure a safe and satisfactory experience to our customers is necessarily limited to the extent of our or our franchisees’, dependence on third parties, from time to time. Moreover, we may not be able to distance or insulate ourselves from any adverse publicity or reputational damage arising from any act, omission or negligence on the part of a vendor or other third party, which may negatively affect a customer’s experience at any of the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers.
We or our franchisees may not be able to operate in the United States, or obtain and maintain licenses and permits necessary for such operation, in compliance with laws, regulations and other requirements, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial condition.
Each Simplicity Esports Gaming Center will be subject to licensing and regulation by alcoholic beverage control, amusement, health, sanitation, safety, building code and fire agencies in the country, state, county and/or municipality in which the Simplicity Esports Gaming Center is located. In the United States, each Simplicity Esports Gaming Center with a restaurant or bar will be required to obtain a license to sell alcoholic beverages on the premises from a state authority and, in certain locations, county and municipal authorities. Typically, licenses must be renewed annually and may be revoked or suspended for cause at any time. In some states, the loss of a license for cause with respect to one Simplicity Esports Gaming Center may lead to the loss of licenses at all Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers in that state and could make it more difficult to obtain additional licenses in that state. Alcoholic beverage control regulations relate to numerous aspects of the daily operations of each Simplicity Esports Gaming Center, including minimum age of patrons and employees, hours of operation, advertising, wholesale purchasing, inventory control and handling and storage and dispensing of alcoholic beverages. Our failure or a failure by a franchisee in obtaining and maintaining the required licenses, permits and approvals at any one Simplicity Esports Gaming Center could impact the continuing operations of existing Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, or delay or prevent the opening of new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers. Although we do not anticipate any material difficulties occurring in the future, the failure to receive or retain a liquor license, or any other required permit or license, in a particular location, or to continue to qualify for, or renew licenses, could have a material adverse effect on operations and our ability to obtain such a license or permit in other locations.
As a result of operating certain entertainment games and attractions, including skill-based games that offer redemption prizes, the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers in the United States are subject to amusement licensing and regulation by the countries, states, provinces, counties and municipalities in which our Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers are located. These laws and regulations can vary significantly by country, state, province, county, and municipality and, in some jurisdictions, may require us to modify our business operations or alter the mix of redemption games and simulators we offer. Moreover, as more states in the United States and local communities implement legalized gambling, the laws and corresponding enabling regulations may also be applicable to our redemption games and regulators may create new licensing requirements, taxes or fees, or restrictions on the various types of redemption games we offer. Furthermore, other states, provinces, counties and municipalities may make changes to existing laws to further regulate legalized gaming and illegal gambling. Adoption of these laws, or adverse interpretation of existing laws, after we have established a Simplicity Esports Gaming Center in the jurisdiction could require the existing center in these jurisdictions to alter the mix of games, modify certain games, change the mix of prizes that we may offer or terminate the use of specific games, any of which could adversely affect our operations.
We are also subject to laws and regulations governing our relationship with our employees, including those related to minimum wage requirements, exempt status, overtime, health insurance mandates, working and safety conditions, immigration status requirements, child labor, and non-discrimination. Additionally, changes in federal labor laws, including card verification regulations, could result in portions of our workforce being subjected to greater organized labor influence, which could result in an increase to our labor costs. A significant portion of Simplicity Esports Gaming Center personnel will be paid at minimum wage rates established by federal, state and municipal law. Increases in the minimum wage result in higher labor costs, which may be only partially offset by price increases and operational efficiencies.
We are also subject to the rules and regulations of the Federal Trade Commission and various state laws regulating the offer and sale of franchises. The Federal Trade Commission and various state laws require that we furnish a franchise disclosure document containing certain information to prospective franchisees, and a number of states require registration of the franchise disclosure document with state authorities. State laws that regulate the franchisor-franchisee relationship presently exist in a substantial number of states, and bills have been introduced in Congress from time to time that would provide for federal regulation of the franchisor-franchisee relationship. The state laws often limit, among other things, the duration and scope of non-competition provisions, the ability of a franchisor to terminate or refuse to renew a franchise and the ability of a franchisor to designate sources of supply. We shall endeavor to make sure that any franchise disclosure document we provide, together with any applicable state versions or supplements, and franchising procedures, comply in all material respects with both the Federal Trade Commission guidelines and all applicable state laws regulating franchising in those states in which we have offered franchises.
If we and our franchisees fail to comply with such laws and regulations, we may be subject to various sanctions and/or penalties and fines or may be required to cease operations until we achieve compliance, which could have an adverse effect on our business and our financial results.
Our growth through franchising may not occur as rapidly as we currently anticipate and may be subject to additional risks.
As part of our growth strategy, we will continue to seek franchisees to operate Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers in certain strategic domestic locations or venues. We believe that our ability to recruit, retain and contract with qualified franchisees will be increasingly important to our operations as we expand. Our franchisees are dependent upon the availability of adequate sources of financing in order to meet their development obligations. Such financing may not be available to our franchisees, or only available upon disadvantageous terms. Our franchise strategy may not enhance our results of operations.
Expanding through franchising exposes our business and brand to risks because the quality of the franchised operations will be beyond our immediate control, including risks associated with our confidential information, intellectual properties (including trademarks) and brand reputation. Even if we have contractual remedies to cause franchisees to maintain operational standards, enforcing those remedies may require litigation and therefore our image and reputation may suffer, unless and until such litigation is successfully concluded.
We could face liability from or as a result of our franchisees.
Various state and federal laws will govern the relationship between us and our franchisees and the potential sale of a franchise. If we fail to comply with these laws, we could be liable for damages to franchisees and fines or other penalties. A franchisee or government agency may bring legal action against us based on the franchisee/franchisor relationship. Also, under the franchise business model, we may face claims and liabilities based on vicarious liability, joint-employer liability, or other theories or liabilities. Such legal actions could result in expensive litigation with our franchisees or government agencies that could adversely affect both our profit and our important relations with our franchisees. In addition, regulatory or legal developments could result in changes to laws or the franchisor/franchisee relationship that could negatively impact the franchise business model and, accordingly, our profit.
We may not be able to compete favorably in the highly competitive out-of-home and home-based entertainment market in the United States, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.
The out-of-home entertainment market in the United States is highly competitive. Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers that we or our franchisees operate will compete for customers’ discretionary entertainment dollars with providers of out-of-home entertainment, including localized attraction facilities such as movie theatres, sporting events, bowling alleys, sports activity centers, arcades and entertainment centers, nightclubs and restaurants as well as theme parks. Many of the entities operating these businesses are larger and have significantly greater financial resources, a greater number of locations, have been in business longer, have greater name and brand recognition and are better established in the local markets where Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers are planned to be located. As a result, they may be able to invest greater resources than we can in attracting customers and succeed in attracting customers who would otherwise come to the Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers we or our franchisees operate. In the United States, the legalization of casino gambling in geographic areas near any future Simplicity Esports Gaming Center would create the possibility for adult entertainment alternatives, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition. We will also face competition from local, regional and national establishments that offer entertainment experiences similar to us. Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers we or our franchisees operate will also face competition from increasingly sophisticated home-based forms of entertainment, such as internet and video gaming and home movie streaming and delivery. If we fail to compete favorably in the competitive out-of-home and home-based entertainment markets it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Our senior management team has limited experience in establishing, operating, licensing rights to and franchising entertainment centers and related products.
The members of our senior management team have extensive backgrounds in finance and the management of financial services businesses, however, they have limited prior experience in establishing, operating, licensing rights to and franchising entertainment centers. We will need to expand our management team, to include individuals with expertise in establishing and operating entertainment centers as well as individuals with expertise in product licensing and franchise operations. If we are unable to recruit professionals with acceptable backgrounds in establishing and operating entertainment centers and with backgrounds in product licensing and financing, we may not be able to pursue our growth strategy which could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Our success depends upon our ability to recruit and retain qualified management and operating personnel at Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers.
We and our franchisees must attract, retain and motivate a sufficient number of qualified management and operating personnel in order to maintain consistency in our service, hospitality, quality and atmosphere of our Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers. Qualified management and operating personnel are typically in high demand. If we and our franchisees are unable to attract and retain a satisfactory number of qualified management and operating personnel, labor shortages could delay the planned openings of new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers which could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Acquisitions, other strategic alliances and investments could result in operating difficulties, dilution, and other harmful consequences that may adversely impact our business and results of operations.
Acquisitions are an important element of our overall corporate strategy and use of capital, and these transactions could be material to our financial condition and results of operations. We expect to continue to evaluate and enter into discussions regarding a wide array of potential strategic transactions. The process of integrating an acquired company, business, or product has created, and will continue to create, unforeseen operating difficulties and expenditures. The areas where we face risks may include, but are not limited to:
● diversion of management’s time and focus from operating our business to acquisition integration challenges;
● failure to successfully further develop the acquired business or product lines;
● implementation or remediation of controls, procedures and policies at the acquired company;
● integration of the acquired company’s accounting, human resources and other administrative systems, and coordination of product, engineering and sales and marketing functions;
● transition of operations, users and customers onto our existing platforms;
● reliance on the expertise of our strategic partners with respect to market development, sales, local regulatory compliance and other operational matters;
● failure to obtain required approvals on a timely basis, if at all, from governmental authorities, or conditions placed upon approval, under competition and antitrust laws which could, among other things, delay or prevent us from completing a transaction, or otherwise restrict our ability to realize the expected financial or strategic goals of an acquisition;
● in the case of foreign acquisitions, the need to integrate operations across different cultures and languages and to address the particular economic, currency, political and regulatory risks associated with specific countries;
● cultural challenges associated with integrating employees from the acquired company into our organization, and retention of employees from the businesses we acquire;
● liability for or reputational harm from activities of the acquired company before the acquisition or from our strategic partners, including patent and trademark infringement claims, violations of laws, commercial disputes, tax liabilities and other known and unknown liabilities; and
● litigation or other claims in connection with the acquired company, including claims from terminated employees, customers, former shareholders or other third parties.
Our failure to address these risks or other problems encountered in connection with our past or future acquisitions and investments or strategic alliances could cause us to fail to realize the anticipated benefits of such acquisitions, investments or alliances, incur unanticipated liabilities, and harm our business generally.
Our acquisitions could also result in dilutive issuances of our equity securities, the incurrence of debt, contingent liabilities or amortization expenses, or impairment of goodwill and purchased long-lived assets, and restructuring charges, any of which could harm our financial condition or results of operations and cash flows. Also, the anticipated benefits of many of our acquisitions may not materialize.
Our insurance coverage may not adequately protect us against all future risks, which may adversely affect our business and prospects.
We maintain insurance coverage, including for fire, acts of god and perils, terrorism, burglary, money, loss of profit, fidelity guarantee, fixed glass and sanitary fitting, electronic equipment, machinery breakdown, portable equipment, sign boards, commercial general liability, marine transit, and directors’ and officers’ liability insurance, as well as employee health and medical insurance, with standard exclusions in each instance. While we maintain insurance in amounts that we consider reasonably sufficient for a business of our nature and scale, with insurers that we consider reliable and credit worthy, we may face losses and liabilities that are uninsurable by their nature, or that are not covered, fully or at all, under our existing insurance policies. Moreover, coverage under such insurance policies would generally be subject to certain standard or negotiated exclusions or qualifications and, therefore, any future insurance claims by us may not be honored by our insurers in full, or at all. In addition, our premium payments under our insurance policies may require a significant investment by us.
To the extent that we suffer loss or damage that is not covered by insurance or that exceeds our insurance coverage, the loss will have to be borne by us and our business, cash flow, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be adversely affected.
Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, investments and results of operations.
We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we are required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
We are dependent upon our executive officers and directors and their departure could adversely affect our ability to operate.
Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our executive officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our executive officers and directors. We do not have key-man insurance on the life of any of our directors or executive officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or executive officers could have a detrimental effect on us.
Our executive officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.
We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, executive officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. While our employment agreements with our key executive officers contain non-compete provisions, we do not have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.
We are an emerging growth company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.
We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”), and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor internal controls attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our Common Stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of any November 30 before that time, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the following May 31. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.
Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may require substantial financial and management resources.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls. As long as we remain an emerging growth company, we will not be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting.
Provisions in our third amended and restated certificate of incorporation, as amended, and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Common Stock and could entrench management.
Our third amended and restated certificate of incorporation, as amended, contains provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include a staggered board of directors and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred shares, which may make more difficult the removal of management and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
If we fail to keep pace with changing industry technology and consumer preferences, we will be at a competitive disadvantage.
The Simplicity products and services compete within industries that are characterized by swiftly changing technology, evolving industry standards, frequent new and enhanced product introductions, rapidly changing consumer preferences and product obsolescence. In order to continue to compete effectively, we need to respond quickly to technological changes and to understand their impact on customers’ preferences. We may take significant time and resources to respond to these technological changes and changes in consumer preferences. Our business and results of operations may be negatively impacted if our products and services fail to keep pace with these changes.
Various product safety laws and governmental regulations applicable to the distributor of Simplicity Esports LLC’s and/or PLAYlive Nation, Inc.’s products may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Our distribution of Simplicity Esports LLC’s and/or PLAYlive Nation, Inc.’s products will be subject to numerous federal, state, provincial, local and foreign laws and regulations, including laws and regulations with respect to product safety, including regulations enforced by the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission. We and our franchisees could incur costs in complying with these regulations and, if they fail to comply, could incur significant penalties. A failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations, or concerns about product safety, may also lead to a recall or post-manufacture repair of selected Simplicity Esports LLC’s and/or PLAYlive Nation, Inc.’s products, resulting in the rejection of the products by our franchisees, lost sales, increased customer service and support costs, and costly litigation.
Public health epidemics or outbreaks, such as COVID-19, could materially and adversely impact our business.
In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. While initially the outbreak was largely concentrated in China and caused significant disruptions to its economy, it has now spread to several other countries and infections have been reported globally.
Because COVID-19 infections have been reported throughout the United States, certain federal, state and local governmental authorities have issued stay-at-home orders, proclamations and/or directives aimed at minimizing the spread of COVID-19. Additional, more restrictive proclamations and/or directives may be issued in the future. As a result, all of our corporate and franchised Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers were closed effective April 1, 2020. We commenced reopening Simplicity Gaming Centers on May 1, 2020 and have since reopened one corporate and 21 franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers as of June 28, 2020. Although our franchise agreements with franchisees of Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers require a minimum monthly royalty payment to us from the franchisees regardless of whether the franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers are operating, there is a potential risk that franchisees of Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers will default in their obligations to pay their minimum monthly royalty payment to us.
The ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s operations is unknown and will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the duration of the COVID-19 outbreak, new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and any additional preventative and protective actions that governments, or the Company, may direct, which may result in an extended period of continued business disruption, reduced customer traffic and reduced operations. Any resulting financial impact cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is anticipated to have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The measures taken to date will impact the Company’s business for the fiscal fourth quarter and potentially beyond. Management expects that all of its business segments, across all of its geographies, will be impacted to some degree, but the significance of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Company’s business and the duration for which it may have an impact cannot be determined at this time.
Risks Relating to Our Esports Business
Our esports businesses are substantially dependent on the continuing popularity of the esports industry as a whole.
The esports industry is in the early stages of its respective development. Although the esports industry has experienced rapid growth, consumer preferences may shift and there is no assurance this growth will continue in the future. We have taken steps to diversify their businesses and mitigate these risks to an extent and continue to seek out new opportunities in the esports industry. However, due to the rapidly evolving nature of technology and online gaming, the esports industry may experience volatile and declining popularity as new options for online gaming and esports become available, or consumer preferences shift to other forms of entertainment, and as a consequence, our businesses and results of operations may be materially negatively affected.
Our esports business faces intense and wide-ranging competition, which may have a material negative effect on our business and results of operations.
The success of our esports business is dependent upon the performance and/or popularity of its teams. Simplicity Esports LLC’s teams compete, in varying respects and degrees, with other live sporting events, and with sporting events delivered over television networks, radio, the Internet and online services, mobile applications and other alternative sources. For example, our esports teams compete for attendance, viewership and advertising with a wide range of alternatives available in major metropolitan areas. During some or all of the esports season, our teams face competition, in varying respects and degrees, from professional and collegiate basketball, hockey, baseball, football, and soccer, among others.
As a result of the large number of options available, we face strong competition for the sports and gaming fan. We must compete with other esports teams, traditional sports teams and sporting events, in varying respects and degrees, including on the basis of the quality of the teams we field, their success in the leagues, tournaments and genres in which they compete, our ability to provide an entertaining environment at any esports games that we host at our centers, prices charged for tickets and the viewing availability of our teams on multiple media alternatives. Given the nature of esports and sports in general, there can be no assurance that we will be able to compete effectively, including with companies that may have greater resources than we have, and as a consequence, our business and results of operations may be materially negatively affected by competition.
Our businesses are substantially dependent on the continued popularity and/or competitive success of Simplicity Esports LLC’s teams, which cannot be assured.
Our future financial results will be dependent on the Simplicity teams becoming and remaining popular with our fan base and, in varying degrees, on the teams achieving in-game success, which can generate fan enthusiasm, resulting in sustained ticket and merchandise sales during the season. Furthermore, success in the regular season at certain tournaments may qualify one or more of our esports teams for participation in post-season playoffs, which provides us with additional revenue from prize money by increasing the number of games played by our sports teams and, more importantly, by generating increased excitement and interest in our esports teams, which can improve attendance in subsequent seasons. There can be no assurance that any of our esports teams, will develop a significant fan base, maintain continued popularity or compete in post-season play in the future.
Defection of our esports players to other teams or managers could hinder our success.
We compete with other esports athlete management businesses to sign and retain world class esports players, some of which have greater resources or brand recognition and popularity than ours. Our players may choose to defect to other esports organizations for various reasons, including that they have been made a superior offer or they have chosen to pursue new or other opportunities. The loss or defection of any of our esports players could have negative consequences on our businesses and results of operations. While we take or intend to take, all appropriate steps to retain our players and protect their interests, there can be no assurances that players will not defect to other esports organizations.
The actions of the various esports leagues and tournaments may have a material negative effect on our business and results of operations.
The governing bodies of the various esports leagues and tournaments, under certain circumstances, can take actions that they deem to be in the best interests of their respective leagues or tournaments, which may not necessarily be consistent with maximizing our results of operations and which could affect our esports teams in ways that are different than the impact on other esports teams. For example they can take actions relating to the rights to telecast the games of league members or tournament participants, including the Simplicity team, licensing of the rights to produce and sell merchandise bearing the logos and/or other intellectual property of our esports teams and the leagues or tournaments, and the internet-based activities of our esports teams. Certain of these decisions by the esports leagues and tournaments could have a material negative effect on our business and results of operations. From time to time, we may disagree with or challenge actions that the leagues or tournaments take or the power and authority they assert.
We may be unable to effectively manage the growth in the scope and complexity of our business, including our expansion into the esports business which is untested and into adjacent business opportunities.
Our future success depends, in part, on our ability to manage our expanded business, including our aspirations for continued expansion. We intend to dedicate resources to a new business model that is largely untested, as is the case with esports. We do not know to what extent our future expansions will be successful. Further, even if successful, the growth of our business could create significant challenges for our management, operational, and financial resources, and could increase existing strain on, and divert focus from, our core businesses. If not managed effectively, this growth could result in the over-extension of our operating infrastructure, and our management systems, information technology systems, and internal controls and procedures may not be adequate to support this growth. Failure to adequately manage our growth in any of these ways may cause damage to our brand, damage our reputation or otherwise negatively impact our business.
Our industry is subject to rapid technological change, and if we do not adapt to, and appropriately allocate our resources among, emerging technologies and business models, our business may be negatively impacted.
Technology changes rapidly in the interactive entertainment industry. We must continually anticipate and adapt our products, services and business models to emerging technologies and delivery platforms in order to stay competitive. Forecasting our revenues and profitability for these new products, services and business models is inherently uncertain and volatile, and if we invest in the development of interactive entertainment products or services incorporating a new technology or for a new platform that does not achieve significant commercial success, whether because of competition or otherwise, we may not recover the often substantial “up front” costs of developing and marketing those products and services, or recover the opportunity cost of diverting management and financial resources away from other products or services. Further, our competitors may adapt to an emerging technology or business model more quickly or effectively than we do, creating products that are technologically superior to ours, more appealing to consumers, or both.
If, on the other hand, we elect not to pursue the development of products or services incorporating a new technology or for new platforms, or otherwise elect not to pursue new business models, that achieve significant commercial success, it may have adverse consequences. It may take significant time and resources to shift product development resources to that technology, platform or business model, as the case may be, and may be more difficult to compete against existing products and services incorporating that technology or for that platform or against companies using that business model.
Many elements of our business are unique, evolving and relatively unproven. Our business and prospects depend on the continuing development of live streaming of competitive esports gaming. The market for esports and amateur online gaming competition is relatively new and rapidly developing and are subject to significant challenges. Our business relies upon our ability to cultivate and grow an active gamer community, and our ability to successfully monetize such community through tournament fees, subscriptions for our esports gaming services, and advertising and sponsorship opportunities. In addition, our continued growth depends, in part, on our ability to respond to constant changes in the esports gaming industry, including rapid technological evolution, continued shifts in gamer trends and demands, frequent introductions of new games and titles and the constant emergence of new industry standards and practices. Developing and integrating new games, titles, content, products, services or infrastructure could be expensive and time-consuming, and these efforts may not yield the benefits we expect to achieve at all. We cannot assure you that we will succeed in any of these aspects or that the esports gaming industry will continue to grow as rapidly as it has in the past.
We may encounter difficulties in integrating Simplicity Esports LLC’s esports businesses or otherwise realizing the anticipated benefits of the transaction.
As part of our business strategy, from time to time, we acquire, make investments in, or enter into strategic alliances and joint ventures with complementary businesses. The acquisition of Simplicity Esports LLC involves significant risks and uncertainties, including: (i) the potential for Simplicity Esports LLC’s business to underperform relative to our expectations and the acquisition price, (ii) the potential for Simplicity Esports LLC’s business to cause our financial results to differ from expectations in any given period, or over the longer-term, (iii) unexpected tax consequences from the acquisition, or the tax treatment of Simplicity Esports LLC’s business’s operations going forward, giving rise to incremental tax liabilities that are difficult to predict, (iv) difficulty in integrating Simplicity Esports LLC’s business, its operations and its employees in an efficient and effective manner, (v) any unknown liabilities or internal control deficiencies assumed as part of the acquisition, and (vi) the potential loss of key employees of Simplicity Esports LLC’s businesses. Further, the transaction may involve the risk that our senior management’s attention will be excessively diverted from our other operations, the risk that the gaming industry does not evolve as anticipated and that any intellectual property or personnel skills acquired do not prove to be those needed for our future success, and the risk that our strategic objectives, cost savings or other anticipated benefits are otherwise not achieved.
Our business may be harmed if our licensing partners, or other third parties with whom we do business, act in ways that put our brand at risk.
We anticipate that our business partners shall be given access to sensitive and proprietary information or control over our intellectual property in order to provide services and support to our teams. These third parties may misappropriate our information or intellectual property and engage in unauthorized use of it or otherwise act in a way that places our brand at risk. The failure of these third parties to provide adequate services and technologies, the failure of third parties to adequately maintain or update their services and technologies or the misappropriation or misuse of this information or intellectual property could result in a disruption to our business operations or an adverse effect on our reputation and may negatively impact our business.
Our business is highly dependent on the success and availability of video game platforms manufactured by third parties.
We expect to derive a substantial portion of our revenues from esports games played on game platforms manufactured by third parties, such as Sony’s PS4®, Microsoft’s Xbox One®, and Nintendo’s Wii U® and Switch®, and PCs. The success of our business will be driven in large part by our ability to accurately predict which platforms will be successful in the marketplace. We also rely on the availability of an adequate supply of these video game consoles and the continued support for these consoles by their manufacturers. We may be required to commit significant resources well in advance of the anticipated introduction of a new platform. If increased costs are not offset by higher revenues and other cost efficiencies, our business could be negatively impacted. If the platforms for which we invested resources do not attain significant market acceptance, we may not be able to recover our costs, which could be significant.
The games we support are subject to scrutiny regarding the appropriateness of their content. If the publishers and distributors we partner with fail to receive their target ratings for certain titles, or if retailers refuse to sell such titles due to what they perceive to be objectionable content, it could have a negative impact on our business.
Console and PC games are subject to ratings by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (the “ESRB”), a self-regulatory body based in the U.S. that provides U.S. and Canadian consumers of interactive entertainment software with ratings information, including information on the content in such software, such as violence, nudity or sexual content, along with an assessment of the suitability of the content for certain age groups. Certain other countries have also established content rating systems as prerequisites for product sales in those countries. In addition, certain stores use other ratings systems, such as Apple’s use of its proprietary “App Rating System” and Google Play’s use of the International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) rating system. If the software publishers that supply our games are unable to obtain the ratings they have targeted for their products, it could have a negative impact on our business. In some instances, the software publishers and developers may be required to modify their products to comply with the requirements of the rating systems, which could delay or disrupt the release of any given product, or may prevent its sale altogether in certain territories, which would limited its availability for use in the games that our teams play.
We will depend on servers to operate our games with online features. If we were to lose server functionality for any reason, our business may be negatively impacted.
Our business at our game centers will rely on the continuous operation of servers, some of which are owned and operated by third parties. Although we shall strive to maintain more than sufficient server capacity, and provide for active redundancy in the event of limited hardware failure, any broad-based catastrophic server malfunction, a significant service-disrupting attack or intrusion by hackers that circumvents security measures, a failure of disaster recovery service or the failure of a company on which we are relying for server capacity to provide that capacity for whatever reason would likely degrade or interrupt the functionality of our games with online features, and could prevent the operation of such games altogether, any of which could result in the loss of sales for, or in, such games.
We also rely on networks operated by third parties, such as the PlayStation® Network, Xbox Live® and Steam®, for the functionality of the games we use which have online features. An extended interruption to any of these services could adversely affect our ability to operate our games with online features, negatively impacting our business.
Further, insufficient server capacity could also negatively impact our game center business. Conversely, if we overestimate the amount of server capacity required by our business, we may incur unnecessary additional operating costs.
The esports gaming industry is very “hit” driven. We may not have access to “hit” games or titles.
Select game titles dominate competitive esports and online gaming, including League of Legends, Minecraft, Fortnite and Overwatch, and many new games titles are regularly introduced in each major industry segment (console, mobile and PC free-to-download). Despite the number of new entrants, only a very few “hit” titles account for a significant portion of total revenue in each segment.
The size and engagement level of our online and in person gamers are critical to our success and are closely linked to the quality and popularity of the esports game publishers with which we have licenses. Esports game publishers on our gaming platform, including those who have entered into license agreements with us, may leave us for other gaming platforms or leagues which may offer better competition, and terms and conditions than we do. Furthermore, we may lose esports game publishers if we fail to generate the number of gamers to our tournaments and league competitions expected by such publishers. In addition, if popular esports game publishers cease to license their games to us, or our live streams fail to attract gamers, we may experience a decline in gamer traffic, subscriptions and engagement, which may have a material and adverse impact on our results of operations and financial conditions.
We must continue to attract and retain the most popular esports gaming titles in order to maintain and increase the popularity of our leagues, tournaments and competitions, and ensure the sustainable growth of our gamer community. We must continue to identify and enter into license agreements with esports gaming publishers developing “hit’ games that resonate with our community on an ongoing basis. We cannot assure you that we can continue to attract and retain the same level of first-tier esports game publishers and our ability to do so is critical to our future success.
If we fail to keep our existing gamers highly engaged, to acquire new gamers, to successfully implement a membership model for our gaming community, our business, profitability and prospects may be adversely affected.
Our success depends on our ability to maintain and grow the number of gamers attending and participating in our in-person and online tournaments and competitions, and using our gaming platform, and keeping our gamers highly engaged. Of particular importance is the successful deployment and expansion of our membership model to our gaming community for purposes of creating predictable recurring revenues.
In order to attract, retain and engage gamers and remain competitive, we must continue to develop and expand our leagues, including internationally, produce engaging tournaments and competitions, successfully license the newest “hit” esports games and titles, implement new technologies and strategies, improve features of our gaming platform and stimulate interactions in our gamer community.
A decline in the number of our gamers in our ecosystem may adversely affect the engagement level of our gamers, the vibrancy of our gamer community, or the popularity of our league play, which may in turn reduce our monetization opportunities, and have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. If we are unable to attract and retain gamers, our revenues may decline and our results of operations and financial condition may suffer.
We cannot assure you that our online and in person gaming platform and centers will remain sufficiently popular with gamers to offset the costs incurred to operate and expand them. It is vital to our operations that we remain sensitive and responsive to evolving gamer preferences and offer first-tier esports game content that attracts our gamers. We must also keep providing gamers with new features and functions to enable superior content viewing, and social interaction. Further, we will need to continue to develop and improve our gaming platform and centers and to enhance our brand awareness, which may require us to incur substantial costs and expenses. If such increased costs and expenses do not effectively translate into an improved gamer experience and long-term engagement, our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
Risks Related to International Operations
The risks related to international operations, in particular in countries outside of the United States, could negatively affect the Company’s results.
It is expected that the Company will derive between 15% to 20% of its revenue from transactions denominated in currencies other than the United States dollar, such as Brazil, and the Company expects that receivables with respect to foreign sales will account for a significant amount of its total accounts and receivables. As such, the Company’s operations may be adversely affected by changes in foreign government policies and legislation or social instability and other factors which are not within the control of the Company, including, but not limited to, recessions in foreign economies, expropriation, nationalization and limitation or restriction on repatriation of funds, assets or earnings, longer receivables collection periods and greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable, changes in consumer tastes and trends, renegotiation or nullification of existing contracts or licenses, changes in gaming policies, regulatory requirements or the personnel administering them, currency fluctuations and devaluations, exchange controls, economic sanctions and royalty and tax increases, risk of terrorist activities, revolution, border disputes, implementation of tariffs and other trade barriers and protectionist practices, taxation policies, including royalty and tax increases and retroactive tax claims, volatility of financial markets and fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, difficulties in the protection of intellectual property particularly in countries with fewer intellectual property protections, the effects that evolving regulations regarding data privacy may have on the Company’s online operations, adverse changes in the creditworthiness of parties with whom the Company has significant receivables or forward currency exchange contracts, labor disputes and other risks arising out of foreign governmental sovereignty over the areas in which the Company’s operations are conducted. The Company’s operations may also be adversely affected by social, political and economic instability and by laws and policies of such foreign jurisdictions affecting foreign trade, taxation and investment. If the Company’s operations are disrupted and/or the economic integrity of its contracts is threatened for unexpected reasons, its business may be harmed.
The Company’s international activities may require protracted negotiations with host governments, national companies and third parties. Foreign government regulations may favor or require the awarding of contracts to local contractors or require foreign contractors to employ citizens of, or purchase supplies from, a particular jurisdiction. In the event of a dispute arising in connection with the Company’s operations in a foreign jurisdiction where it conducts its business, the Company may be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of foreign courts or may not be successful in subjecting foreign persons to the jurisdictions of the courts of United States or enforcing American judgments in such other jurisdictions. The Company may also be hindered or prevented from enforcing its rights with respect to a governmental instrumentality because of the doctrine of sovereign immunity. Accordingly, the Company’s activities in foreign jurisdictions could be substantially affected by factors beyond the Company’s control, any of which could have a material adverse effect on it. The Company believes that management’s experience to date in commercializing its products, services and solutions in Brazil may be of assistance in helping to reduce these risks. Some countries in which the Company may operate may be considered politically and economically unstable.
Doing business in the industries in which the Company operates often requires compliance with numerous and extensive procedures and formalities. These procedures and formalities may result in unexpected or lengthy delays in commencing important business activities. In some cases, failure to follow such formalities or obtain relevant evidence may call into question the validity of the entity or the actions taken. Management of the Company is unable to predict the effect of additional corporate and regulatory formalities which may be adopted in the future including whether any such laws or regulations would materially increase the Company’s cost of doing business or affect its operations in any area.
The Company may in the future enter into agreements and conduct activities outside of the jurisdictions where it currently carries on business, which expansion may present challenges and risks that the Company has not faced in the past, any of which could adversely affect the results of operations and/or financial condition of the Company.
The Company is subject to foreign exchange and currency risks that could adversely affect its operations, and the Company’s ability to mitigate its foreign exchange risk through hedging transactions may be limited.
The Company expects that it will derive between 15% and 20% of its revenues in currencies other than the United States dollar; however, a substantial portion of the Company’s operating expenses are incurred in United States dollars. Fluctuations in the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar, the Real (Brazil) and other currencies may have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition and operating results. The Company’s consolidated financial results are affected by foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. Foreign currency exchange rate exposures arise from current transactions and anticipated transactions denominated in currencies other than United States dollars and from the translation of foreign-currency-denominated balance sheet accounts into United States dollar-denominated balance sheet accounts. The Company is exposed to currency exchange rate fluctuations because portions of its revenue and expenses are denominated in currencies other than the United States dollar, particularly the Real. In particular, uncertainty regarding economic conditions in Brazil pose risk to the stability of the Real. Exchange rate fluctuations could adversely affect the Company’s operating results and cash flows and the value of its assets outside of United States. If a foreign currency is devalued in a jurisdiction in which the Company is paid in such currency, then the Company’s customers may be required to pay higher amounts for the Company’s products or services, which they may be unable or unwilling to pay.
While the Company may enter into forward currency swaps and other derivative instruments intended to mitigate the foreign currency exchange risk, there can be no assurance the Company will do so or that any instruments that the Company enters into will successfully mitigate such risk. If the Company enters into foreign currency forward or other hedging contracts, the Company would be subject to the risk that a counterparty to one or more of these contracts defaults on its performance under the contracts. During an economic downturn, a counterparty’s financial condition may deteriorate rapidly and with little notice, and the Company may be unable to take action to protect its exposure. In the event of a counterparty default, the Company could lose the benefit of its hedging contract, which may harm its business and financial condition. In the event that one or more of the Company’s counterparties becomes insolvent or files for bankruptcy, its ability to eventually recover any benefit lost as a result of that counterparty’s default may be limited by the liquidity of the counterparty. The Company expects that it will not be able to hedge all of its exposure to any particular foreign currency, and it may not hedge its exposure at all with respect to certain foreign currencies. Changes in exchange rates and the Company’s limited ability or inability to successfully hedge exchange rate risk could have an adverse impact on the Company’s liquidity and results of operations.
We may be unable to obtain licenses in new jurisdictions where our customers operate.
We are subject to regulation in any jurisdiction where our customers access our website. To expand into any such jurisdiction, we may need to be licensed, or obtain approvals of our products or services. If we do not receive, or receive a revocation of a license in a particular jurisdiction for our products or services, we would not be able to sell or place our products or services in that jurisdiction. Any such outcome could materially and adversely affect our results of operations and any growth plans for our business.
Privacy concerns could result in regulatory changes and impose additional costs and liabilities on the Company, limit its use of information, and adversely affect its business.
Personal privacy has become a significant issue in the United States, Brazil, Europe, and many other countries in which the Company currently operates and may operate in the future. Many federal, state, and foreign legislatures and government agencies have imposed or are considering imposing restrictions and requirements about the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information obtained from individuals. Changes to laws or regulations affecting privacy could impose additional costs and liability on the Company and could limit its use of such information to add value for customers. If the Company were required to change its business activities or revise or eliminate services, or to implement burdensome compliance measures, its business and results of operations could be harmed. In addition, the Company may be subject to fines, penalties, and potential litigation if it fails to comply with applicable privacy regulations, any of which could adversely affect the Company’s business, liquidity and results of operation.
The Company’s results of operations could be affected by natural events in the locations in which it operates or where its customers or suppliers operate.
The Company, its customers, and its suppliers have operations in locations subject to natural occurrences such as severe weather and other geological events, including hurricanes, earthquakes, or flood that could disrupt operations. Any serious disruption at any of the Company’s facilities or the facilities of its customers or suppliers due to a natural disaster could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s revenues and increase its costs and expenses. If there is a natural disaster or other serious disruption at any of the Company’s facilities, it could impair its ability to adequately supply its customers, cause a significant disruption to its operations, cause the Company to incur significant costs to relocate or re-establish these functions and negatively impact its operating results. While the Company intends to seek insurance against certain business interruption risks, such insurance may not adequately compensate the Company for any losses incurred as a result of natural or other disasters. In addition, any natural disaster that results in a prolonged disruption to the operations of the Company’s customers or suppliers may adversely affect its business, results of operations or financial condition.
Risks Related to Regulation
The Company is subject to various laws relating to trade, export controls, and foreign corrupt practices, the violation of which could adversely affect its operations, reputation, business, prospects, operating results and financial condition.
We are subject to risks associated with doing business outside of the United States, including exposure to complex foreign and U.S. regulations such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the “FCPA”) and other anti-corruption laws which generally prohibit U.S. companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. Violations of the FCPA and other anti-corruption laws may result in severe criminal and civil sanctions and other penalties. It may be difficult to oversee the conduct of any contractors, third-party partners, representatives or agents who are not our employees, potentially exposing us to greater risk from their actions. If our employees or agents fail to comply with applicable laws or company policies governing our international operations, we may face legal proceedings and actions which could result in civil penalties, administration actions and criminal sanctions. Any determination that we have violated any anti-corruption laws could have a material adverse impact on our business. Changes in trade sanctions laws may restrict the Company’s business practices, including cessation of business activities in sanctioned countries or with sanctioned entities.
Violations of these laws and regulations could result in significant fines, criminal sanctions against the Company, its officers or its employees, requirements to obtain export licenses, disgorgement of profits, cessation of business activities in sanctioned countries, prohibitions on the conduct of its business and its inability to market and sell the Company’s products or services in one or more countries. Additionally, any such violations could materially damage the Company’s reputation, brand, international expansion efforts, ability to attract and retain employees and the Company’s business, prospects, operating results and financial condition.
Regulations that may be adopted with respect to the internet and electronic commerce may decrease the growth in the use of the internet and lead to the decrease in the demand for Esports’ products and services.
The Company may become subject to any number of laws and regulations that may be adopted with respect to the internet and electronic commerce. New laws and regulations that address issues such as user privacy, pricing, online content regulation, taxation, advertising, intellectual property, information security, and the characteristics and quality of online products and services may be enacted. As well, current laws, which predate or are incompatible with the internet and electronic commerce, may be applied and enforced in a manner that restricts the electronic commerce market. The application of such pre-existing laws regulating communications or commerce in the context of the internet and electronic commerce is uncertain. Moreover, it may take years to determine the extent to which existing laws relating to issues such as intellectual property ownership and infringement, libel and personal privacy are applicable to the internet. The adoption of new laws or regulations relating to the internet, or particular applications or interpretations of existing laws, could decrease the growth in the use of the internet, decrease the demand for esports’ products and services, increase esports’ cost of doing business or could otherwise have a material adverse effect on esports’ business, revenues, operating results and financial condition.
Risk Factors Relating to Our Securities and Capital Structure
We have not paid dividends on our Common Stock in the past and do not expect to pay dividends on our Common Stock in the future. Any return on investment in our common stock may be limited to the value of our Common Stock.
We have never paid cash dividends on our Common Stock and do not anticipate paying cash dividends on our Common Stock in the foreseeable future. The payment of dividends on our Common Stock would depend on earnings, financial condition, and other business and economic factors affecting us at such time as our board of directors may consider relevant. If we do not pay dividends on our Common Stock, our Common Stock may be less valuable because a return on your investment will only occur if its stock price appreciates.
Trading on the OTC Markets is volatile and sporadic, which could depress the market price of our common stock and make it difficult for our security holders to resell their common stock and/or warrants.
Our Common Stock and Public Warrants are quoted on the OTCQB tier of the OTC Markets Group, Inc. (“OTC Markets”). Trading in securities quoted on the OTC Markets is often thin and characterized by wide fluctuations in trading prices, due to many factors, some of which may have little to do with our operations or business prospects. This volatility could depress the market price of our common stock for reasons unrelated to operating performance. Moreover, the OTC Markets is not a stock exchange, and trading of securities on the OTC Markets is often more sporadic than the trading of securities listed on a quotation system like Nasdaq or a stock exchange like the NYSE American. These factors may result in investors having difficulty reselling any shares of our common stock.
Our stock price is likely to be highly volatile because of several factors, including a limited public float.
The market price of our Common Stock and Public Warrants have been volatile in the past and the market price of our Common Stock and Public Warrants and Private Placement Warrants are likely to be highly volatile in the future. You may not be able to resell shares of our Common Stock and/or Private Placement Warrants following periods of volatility because of the market’s adverse reaction to volatility.
Other factors that could cause such volatility may include, among other things:
● actual or anticipated fluctuations in our operating results;
● we may have a low trading volume for a number of reasons, including that a large portion of our stock is closely held;
● overall stock market fluctuations;
● announcements concerning our business or those of our competitors;
● actual or perceived limitations on our ability to raise capital when we require it, and to raise such capital on favorable terms;
● conditions or trends in the industry;
● litigation;
● changes in market valuations of other similar companies;
● future sales of common stock;
● departure of key personnel or failure to hire key personnel; and
● general market conditions.
Any of these factors could have a significant and adverse impact on the market price of our Common Stock and/or Private Placement Warrants. In addition, the stock market in general has at times experienced extreme volatility and rapid decline that has often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the trading price of our Common Stock and/or Private Placement Warrants, regardless of our actual operating performance.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish or cease publishing research or reports about the Company, its business, or its market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our securities adversely, the price and trading volume of our securities could decline.
The trading market for our securities will be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts may publish about us, our business, our market, or our competitors. Securities and industry analysts do not currently, and may never, publish research on the Company. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of the Company, our stock price and trading volume would likely be negatively impacted. If any of the analysts who may cover the Company change their recommendation regarding our securities adversely, or provide more favorable relative recommendations about our competitors, the price of our securities would likely decline. If any analyst who may cover the Company were to cease coverage of the Company or fail to regularly publish reports on it, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
Our common stock has in the past been a “penny stock” under SEC rules, and our warrants may be subject to the “penny stock” rules. It may be more difficult to resell securities classified as “penny stock.”
In the past, our common stock was a “penny stock” under applicable SEC rules (generally defined as non-exchange traded stock with a per-share price below $5.00). Unless we successfully list our common stock and our warrants on a national stock exchange, or maintain a per-share price above $5.00, these rules impose additional sales practice requirements on broker-dealers that recommend the purchase or sale of penny stocks to persons other than those who qualify as “established customers” or “accredited investors.” For example, broker-dealers must determine the appropriateness for non-qualifying persons of investments in penny stocks. Broker-dealers must also provide, prior to a transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from the rules, a standardized risk disclosure document that provides information about penny stocks and the risks in the penny stock market. The broker-dealer also must provide the customer with current bid and offer quotations for the penny stock, disclose the compensation of the broker-dealer and its salesperson in the transaction, furnish monthly account statements showing the market value of each penny stock held in the customer’s account, provide a special written determination that the penny stock is a suitable investment for the purchaser, and receive the purchaser’s written agreement to the transaction.
Legal remedies available to an investor in “penny stocks” may include the following:
● If a “penny stock” is sold to the investor in violation of the requirements listed above, or other federal or states securities laws, the investor may be able to cancel the purchase and receive a refund of the investment.
● If a “penny stock” is sold to the investor in a fraudulent manner, the investor may be able to sue the persons and firms that committed the fraud for damages.
However, investors who have signed arbitration agreements may have to pursue their claims through arbitration.
These requirements may have the effect of reducing the level of trading activity, if any, in the secondary market for a security that becomes subject to the penny stock rules. The additional burdens imposed upon broker-dealers by such requirements may discourage broker-dealers from effecting transactions in our securities, which could severely limit the market price and liquidity of our securities. These requirements may restrict the ability of broker-dealers to sell our common stock or our Private Placement Warrants and may affect your ability to resell our common stock and our Private Placement Warrants.
Many brokerage firms will discourage or refrain from recommending investments in penny stocks. Most institutional investors will not invest in penny stocks. In addition, many individual investors will not invest in penny stocks due, among other reasons, to the increased financial risk generally associated with these investments.
For these reasons, penny stocks may have a limited market and, consequently, limited liquidity. We can give no assurance at what time, if ever, our common stock or our Private Placement Warrants will not be classified as a “penny stock” in the future.
A sale of a substantial number of shares of our Common Stock may cause the price of the Common Stock to decline.
If our stockholders sell substantial amounts of our Common Stock in the public market, the market price of our Common Stock could fall. These sales also may make it more difficult for us to sell our equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and price that we deem reasonable or appropriate. This risk is significant because of concentrated positions of our Common Stock held by a small group of investors.
Because certain of our stockholders control a significant number of shares of our Common Stock, they may have effective control over actions requiring stockholder approval.
Our directors, executive officers and principal stockholders, and their respective affiliates, beneficially own approximately 30.4% of our outstanding shares of Common Stock. Accordingly, our executive officers, directors and principal stockholders, and their respective affiliates, will have significant influence on the ability to control the Company and the outcome of issues submitted to our stockholders.
If the benefits of any proposed acquisition of do not meet the expectations of investors, stockholders or financial analysts, the market price of our Common Stock may decline.
If the benefits of any proposed acquisition of do not meet the expectations of investors or securities analysts, the market price of our Common Stock prior to the closing of the proposed acquisition may decline. The market values of our Common Stock at the time of the proposed acquisition may vary significantly from their prices on the date the acquisition target was identified.
In addition, broad market and industry factors may materially harm the market price of our Common Stock irrespective of our operating performance. The stock market in general has experienced price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of the particular companies affected. The trading prices and valuations of these stocks, and of our securities, may not be predictable. A loss of investor confidence in the market for retail stocks or the stocks of other companies which investors perceive to be similar to us could depress our stock price regardless of our business, prospects, financial conditions or results of operations. A decline in the market price of our securities also could adversely affect our ability to issue additional securities and our ability to obtain additional financing in the future.
Changes in accounting principles and guidance, or their interpretation, could result in unfavorable accounting charges or effects, including changes to our previously filed financial statements, which could cause our stock price to decline.
We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). These principles are subject to interpretation by the SEC and various bodies formed to interpret and create appropriate accounting principles and guidance. A change in these principles or guidance, or in their interpretations, may have a significant effect on our reported results and retroactively affect previously reported results.
Being a public company results in additional expenses, diverts management’s attention and could also adversely affect our ability to attract and retain qualified directors.
As a public reporting company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act. These requirements generate significant accounting, legal and financial compliance costs and make some activities more difficult, time consuming or costly and may place significant strain on our personnel and resources. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting. In order to establish the requisite disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting, significant resources and management oversight are required.
As a result, management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns, which could have an adverse and even material effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. These rules and regulations may also make it more difficult and expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance. If we are unable to obtain appropriate director and officer insurance, our ability to recruit and retain qualified officers and directors, especially those directors who may be deemed independent, could be adversely impacted.
We are an “emerging growth company” and our election to delay adoption of new or revised accounting standards applicable to public companies may result in our financial statements not being comparable to those of some other public companies. As a result of this and other reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies, our securities may be less attractive to investors.
As a public reporting company with less than $1,070,000,000 in revenue during our last fiscal year, we qualify as an “emerging growth company” under the JOBS Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of certain reduced reporting requirements and is relieved of certain other significant requirements that are otherwise generally applicable to public companies. In particular, as an emerging growth company we:
● are not required to obtain an attestation and report from our auditors on our management’s assessment of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002;
● are not required to provide a detailed narrative disclosure discussing our compensation principles, objectives and elements and analyzing how those elements fit with our principles and objectives (commonly referred to as “compensation discussion and analysis”);
● are not required to obtain a non-binding advisory vote from our stockholders on executive compensation or golden parachute arrangements (commonly referred to as the “say-on-pay,” “say-on-frequency” and “say-on-golden-parachute” votes);
● are exempt from certain executive compensation disclosure provisions requiring a pay-for-performance graph and CEO pay ratio disclosure;
● may present only two years of audited financial statements and only two years of related Management’s Discussion & Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”); and
● are eligible to claim longer phase-in periods for the adoption of new or revised financial accounting standards under §107 of the JOBS Act.
We intend to take advantage of all of these reduced reporting requirements and exemptions, including the longer phase-in periods for the adoption of new or revised financial accounting standards under §107 of the JOBS Act. Our election to use the phase-in periods may make it difficult to compare our financial statements to those of non-emerging growth companies and other emerging growth companies that have opted out of the phase-in periods under §107 of the JOBS Act.
Certain of these reduced reporting requirements and exemptions were already available to us due to the fact that we also qualify as a “smaller reporting company” under SEC rules. For instance, smaller reporting companies are not required to obtain an auditor attestation and report regarding management’s assessment of internal control over financial reporting; are not required to provide a compensation discussion and analysis; are not required to provide a pay-for-performance graph or Chief Executive Officer pay ratio disclosure; and may present only two years of audited financial statements and related MD&A disclosure.
Under the JOBS Act, we may take advantage of the above-described reduced reporting requirements and exemptions for up to five years after our initial sale of common equity pursuant to a registration statement declared effective under the Securities Act, or such earlier time that we no longer meet the definition of an emerging growth company. In this regard, the JOBS Act provides that we would cease to be an “emerging growth company” if we have more than $1,070,000,000 in annual revenues, have more than $700 million in market value of our Common Stock held by non-affiliates, or issue more than $1.0 billion in principal amount of non-convertible debt over a three-year period. Further, under current SEC rules we will continue to qualify as a “smaller reporting company” for so long as we have a public float (i.e., the market value of common equity held by non-affiliates) of less than $75 million as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter.
We cannot predict if investors will find our securities less attractive due to our reliance on these exemptions.
Failure to establish and maintain effective internal controls in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could have a material adverse effect on our business and stock price.
We are required to comply with the SEC’s rules implementing Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which require management to certify financial and other information in our quarterly and annual reports and provide an annual management report on the effectiveness of controls over financial reporting. However, as an emerging growth company, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 until the end of the fiscal year for which our second annual report is due or the date we are no longer an emerging growth company. At such time, our independent registered public accounting firm may issue a report that is adverse in the event it is not satisfied with the level at which our controls are documented, designed or operating.
To comply with the requirements of being a public company, we have undertaken various actions, and may need to take additional actions, such as implementing new internal controls and procedures and hiring additional accounting or internal audit staff. Testing and maintaining internal control can divert our management’s attention from other matters that are important to the operation of our business. Additionally, when evaluating our internal control over financial reporting, we may identify material weaknesses that we may not be able to remediate in time to meet the applicable deadline imposed upon us for compliance with the requirements of Section 404. If we identify any material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting or are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner or assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting once we are no longer an emerging growth company, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our Common Stock could be negatively affected, and we could become subject to investigations by the Financial Industry Regulatory Agency, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
Anti-takeover provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, as well as provisions of Delaware law, could impair a takeover attempt.
The Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that could have the effect of delaying or preventing changes in control or changes in our management without the consent of our board of directors. These provisions include:
● no cumulative voting in the election of directors, which limits the ability of minority stockholders to elect director candidates;
● the exclusive right of our board of directors to elect a director to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of the board of directors or the resignation, death, or removal of a director, which prevents stockholders from being able to fill vacancies on our board of directors;
● the ability of our board of directors to determine whether to issue shares of our preferred stock and to determine the price and other terms of those shares, including preferences and voting rights, without stockholder approval, which could be used to significantly dilute the ownership of a hostile acquirer;
● limiting the liability of, and providing indemnification to, our directors and officers;
● controlling the procedures for the conduct and scheduling of stockholder meetings;
● providing that directors may be removed prior to the expiration of their terms by stockholders only for cause; and
● advance notice procedures that stockholders must comply with in order to nominate candidates to our board of directors or to propose matters to be acted upon at a stockholders’ meeting, which may discourage or deter a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of the Company.
These provisions, alone or together, could delay hostile takeovers and changes in control of the Company or changes in our board of directors and management.
Any provision of our certificate of incorporation or bylaws or Delaware law that has the effect of delaying or deterring a change in control could limit the opportunity for our security holders to receive a premium for their securities and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our securities.
In the event that our common stock price does not exceed the exercise price of the Private Placement Warrants during the period when the Private Placement Warrants are exercisable, the Private Placement Warrants may not have any value.
The warrants will be immediately exercisable and expire on the fifth anniversary of the date of issuance. The Private Placement Warrants will have an initial exercise price per share equal to $11.50. In the event that our common stock price does not exceed the exercise price of the Private Placement Warrants during the period when the Private Placement Warrants are exercisable, the Private Placement Warrants may not have any value.
There is no established trading market for the Private Placement Warrants and the market for the Private Placement Warrants may be highly volatile or may decline regardless of our operating performance. We do not intend to list the Private Placement Warrants, nor do we expect the Private Placement Warrants to be quoted, on any securities exchange.
There must be a current registration statement in order for you to exercise the Private Placement Warrants.
Holders of Private Placement Warrants will be able to exercise the Private Placement Warrants only if a current registration statement relating to the common stock underlying the Private Placement Warrants is then in effect. Although we will attempt to maintain the effectiveness of a current registration statement covering the common stock underlying the Private Placement Warrants, there can be no assurance that we will be able to do so. If the registration statement covering the shares issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants is no longer effective, the Private Placement Warrants may only be exercised on a “cashless” basis and will be issued with restrictive legends unless such shares are eligible for sale under Rule 144 of the Securities Act.
Holders of our Private Placement Warrants will have no rights as a common stockholder until they acquire our common stock.
Until you acquire shares of our common stock upon exercise of your Private Placement Warrants, you will have no rights with respect to our common stock. Upon exercise of your Private Placement Warrants, you will be entitled to exercise the rights of a common stockholder only as to matters for which the record date occurs after the exercise date.

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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
Not applicable.

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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Item 2. Properties
Our corporate headquarters are located at 7000 W. Palmetto Park Road, Suite 505, Boca Raton, Florida 33433, where we lease approximately 250 rentable square feet of office space from an unaffiliated third party. This lease expires on June 1, 2022. Terms of the office lease provide for a base rent payment of $800 per month. In total we lease approximately 40,000 rentable square feet of retail and office space from unaffiliated third parties in eleven locations in Florida, Oregon, Texas, California, Missouri, Montana, and Washington State for our corporate offices and gaming centers. These leases expire at various times, with the first expiration being May of 2022 and the last being July of 2030. Terms of the office and retail leases currently provide for aggregate base rent payments of approximately $39,000 per month with annual price escalations. We believe that these facilities are adequate for our current and near-term future needs.

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ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
On August 5, 2020, a lawsuit styled Duncan Wood v. PLAYlive Nation, Inc. and Simplicity eSports and Gaming Company (Case No. 20-1043) was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. The complaint alleges unlawful failure to make timely and reasonable payment of wages, breach of contract, breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing and unjust enrichment. The plaintiff seeks monetary damages for compensation alleged to be owed, treble damages, interest on all wage compensation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and other relief as the Court deems just and proper. On October 30, 2020, Mr. Wood and Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company executed a mutual General Release and the lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
PART II

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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Price Range of Securities
Our Common Stock and Public Warrants are quoted on the OTCQB under the symbols “WINR” and “WINRW”, respectively.
The following table includes the high and low bids for our Common Stock and Public Warrants for the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020.
Common Stock (1) Public Warrants (2)
High Low High Low
Fiscal Year 2021
March 1 to May 31, 2021 $ 22.00 10.60 0.85 0.29
December 1, 2020 to February 28, 2021 $ 21.08 11.00 0.87 0.29
September 1 to November 30, 2020 $ 16.30 6.68 0.41 0.17
June 1 to August 31, 2020 $ 18.64 6.46 0.39 0.17
Fiscal Year 2020
March 1 to May 31, 2020 $ 13.76 5.36 0.36 0.03
December 1, 2019 to February 28, 2020 $ 13.52 6.40 0.45 0.11
September 1 to November 30, 2019 $ 21.52 12.00 0.66 0.16
June 1 to August 31, 2019 $ 19.68 10.56 0.58 0.25
On August 27, 2021, the closing price of our Common Stock and Public Warrants were $10.15 and $0.15, respectively. As of August 27, 2021, we had 1,463,470 shares of Common Stock and 0,000,000 Public and Private Warrants issued and outstanding.
Holders
As of August 27, 2021, there were approximately 136 holders of record of our Common Stock and 61 holders of record of our Public Warrants.
Dividends
The Company has not paid any dividends on its Common Stock to date. It is the present intention of the Company to retain any earnings for use in its business operations and, accordingly, the Company does not anticipate the board of directors declaring any dividends in the foreseeable future on our Common Stock. Consequently, you will only realize an economic gain on your investment in our Common Stock if the price appreciates. You should not purchase our Common Stock expecting to receive cash dividends. Since we do not anticipate paying dividends, and if we are not successful in establishing an orderly public trading market for our shares, then you may not have any manner to liquidate or receive any payment on your investment. Therefore, our failure to pay dividends may cause you to not see any return on your investment even if we are successful in our business operations. In addition, because we may not pay dividends in the foreseeable future, we may have trouble raising additional funds which could affect our ability to expand our business operations.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
On July 30, 2019, in connection with the PLAYlive Merger, the Company issued 93,750 shares of the Company’s common stock as Merger Consideration. Such shares were issued pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act available to the Company by Section 4(a)(2) promulgated thereunder.
On September 16, 2019, pursuant to a Restricted Award, we authorized the grant to Jed Kaplan, our Chief Financial Executive Officer and Interim Chief Financial Officer and a member of our board of directors, of 8,750 shares of our restricted Common Stock. As of May 31, 2020, these shares have been issued.
On September 16, 2019, pursuant to a Restricted Award, we authorized the grant to Roman Franklin, our President and a member of our board of directors, of 2,625 shares of our restricted Common Stock. As of May 31, 2020, these shares have been issued.
On September 16, 2019, pursuant to a Restricted Award, we authorized the grant to Steven Grossman, our Corporate Secretary, of 1,750 shares of our restricted Common Stock. As of May 31, 2020, these shares have been issued.
On March 11, 2020, in connection with the execution of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement with Triton Funds, LP, we issued 625 shares of our restricted Common Stock at $9.44 per share to Triton Funds, LP as a donation.
On April 9, 2020, the Company delivered a Purchase Notice to Triton pursuant to the terms of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement requiring Triton to acquire 15,625 shares of common stock, which resulted in $87,700 in proceeds to the Company. Pursuant to the terms of the Common Stock Purchase Agreement, on April 9, 2020, the Company instructed the transfer agent to issue 15,625 shares of common stock to a custodial account of Triton.
On May 4, 2020, pursuant to the terms of that certain 10% Fixed Convertible Promissory Note dated April 29, 2020 in the principal amount of $152,500 issued by the Company in favor of Harbor Gates Capital, LLC, the Company agreed to issue 1,250 shares of the Company’s common stock to Harbor Gates Capital, LLC as additional consideration for the purchase of such note. These shares were issued in June, 2020.
On May 7, 2020, we agreed to issue 2,977 shares of our restricted Common Stock, at a price of $8.40 per share, to William H. Herrmann, Jr., a member of our board of directors, for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. These shares were issued in June,
On June 4, 2020, we issued 10,738 shares of common stock in connection with the conversion of $100,000 in principal of a convertible note issued in favor of Maxim.
On June 15, 2020, we issued 3,125 shares of common stock in satisfaction of an outstanding balance owed to a vendor.
On June 18, 2020, pursuant to the terms of that certain Securities Purchase Agreement between the Company and an accredited investor, pursuant to which the Company issued a 12% self-amortization promissory note in the principal amount of $550,000, the Company issued 6,875 shares of the Company’s common stock to such accredited investor as additional consideration for the purchase of such note.
On June 29, 2020, the Company acquired the assets, including $25,000 of goodwill of one its franchisee owned esports gaming centers located on the Fort Bliss U.S. Military base in El Paso, TX. In connection with the acquisition the Company issued 18,750 restricted shares.
On June 30, 2020, the Company issued 12,334 shares of common stock at $7.76 per share to various non-employees of the Company as compensation for services. In connection with the issuance of these shares, the Company recorded contractor expense of $95,700.
On July 29, 2020, the Board issued 41,875 shares of common stock to Jed Kaplan, our then-Chief Executive Officer and Interim Chief Financial Officer and a member of our board of directors. Mr. Kaplan now serves as our Chairman of the Board. Of these shares, (i) 31,250 shares of common stock related to services provided by Mr. Kaplan to the Company during the 2020 fiscal year, (ii) 8,750 shares of common stock related to grants that should have been, but were not, made pursuant to the Kaplan 2018 Agreement (as hereinafter defined), and (iii) 1,875 shares of common stock related to grants made pursuant to the Kaplan 2020 Agreement (as hereinafter defined). The Kaplan 2018 Agreement provided for the grant to Mr. Kaplan of 1,250 shares of common stock per month. For the months of January 2020 through July 2020, however, such shares had not been granted. Accordingly, the July 29, 2020 grant included an aggregate of 8,750 shares of common stock that should have been granted for the months of January 2020 through July 2020. The Kaplan 2020 Agreement provides for the grant to Mr. Kaplan of 1,875 shares of common stock per month. Such shares were fully vested and earned as of the issuance thereof.
On July 29, 2020, the Board also issued 34,813 shares of common stock to Roman Franklin, our then-President and a member of our board of directors. Mr. Franklin now serves as our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors. Of these shares, (i) 31,250 shares of common stock related to services provided by Mr. Franklin to the Company during the 2020 fiscal year, (ii) 2,625 shares of common stock related to grants that should have been, but were not, made pursuant to the Franklin 2018 Agreement (as hereinafter defined), and (iii) 938 shares of common stock related to grants made pursuant to the Franklin 2020 Agreement (as hereinafter defined). The Franklin 2018 Agreement provided for the grant to Mr. Franklin of 375 shares of common stock per month. For the months of January 2020 through July 2020, however, such shares had not been granted. Accordingly, the July 29, 2020 grant included an aggregate of 2,625 shares of common stock that should have been granted for the months of January 2020 through July 2020. The Franklin 2020 Agreement provides for the grant to Mr. Franklin of 782 shares of common stock per month. Such shares were fully vested and earned as of the issuance thereof.
On July 29, 2020, we issued an aggregate of 24,000 shares of common stock to an employee, the members of the Board of Directors of the Company and contractors.
On July 31, 2020, we entered into a marketing agreement whereby we issued 3,473 shares of common stock.
On August 7, 2020, pursuant to the terms of that certain Securities Purchase Agreement between the Company and an accredited investor pursuant to which we issued a 12% self-amortization promissory note in the principal amount of $333,333, the Company issued 4,167 shares of common stock.
On September 16, 2020, we issued 2,812 (22,496 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock to employees and consultants.
On September 22, 2020, in connection with an Asset Purchase agreement with Ignatious O’Riley, an existing franchisee to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 2,989 shares of the Company’s common stock with fair value of $29,416 or $9.84 per share.
On September 23, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Union Gap, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with Five Point Legacy Corp., an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 4,506 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $43,974 or $9.76 per share.
On October 1, 2020, the Company entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with Parryproject LLC, Owen Parry and Jennie Parry, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 3,688 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $38,650 or $10.48 per share.
On October 1, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Humble, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with Team Centore Entertainment Corp., and Charles Centore, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 8,402 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $88,052 or $10.48 per share.
On October 12, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Frisco, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with JAR Mathis Holdings, Jared Mathis and Amy Mathis, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 6,202 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $74,423 or $12.00 per share.
On October 30, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Santa Rosa, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with B&R Franchise Investments, LLC, Brian Chu and Richard Loo, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 4,202 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $46,068 or $11.44 per share.
On October 30, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Brea, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement (“APA”) with Nextgen Gaming, LLC, Ajay Chunilal Shah and Shweta Shah, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 3,255 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $37,237 or $11.44 per share.
On October 30, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Billings, entered into an Asset Purchase agreement with Button Mashers, Inc, Jon Bessmer and Brandy Bessmer, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 4,697 shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair value of $52,725 or $11.44 per share.
During the three months ended November 30, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 9,844 restricted common shares of the Company to executive officers of the Company for services rendered. Of these shares, the Company issued 5,625 shares to Jed Kaplan and issued 2,344 shares to Roman Franklin. These shares were valued at $119,632, or per share prices ranging from $9.04 per share to $11.44 per common share, based on the quoted trading price on the date of grant.
On December 1, 2020, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity St. Louis, LLC, entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Metta Gaming, LLC, Brian Paul Van Wyk, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 3,523 shares of the Company’s common stock with fair value of $52,845, or $15.00 per share.
On December 3, 2020, the Company issued 5,000 shares of its common stock in satisfaction of $50,000 in legal fees. These shares were valued at $80,000, or $16.00 per share, based on the quoted trading price on the date of grant. In connection with the issuance of these shares, the Company reduced accounts payable by $50,000 and recorded legal fees of $30,000.
During the three months ended February 28, 2021, the Company issued an aggregate of 108,641 restricted common shares of the Company to executive officers of the Company for services rendered. These shares were valued at $1,545,467, or per share prices ranging from $13.25 per share to $19.75 per common share, based on the quoted trading price on the date of grant. In connection with the issuance of these shares, during the three months ended February 28, 2021, the Company recorded stock-based compensation of $1,545,467.
On March 11, 2021, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Fullerton, LLC, entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Say K 2 Play, LLC a California limited liability company, Paresh Mital an individual and Smeeta Mital, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 1,600 shares of the Company’s common stock with fair value of $20,800 or $13.00 per share. In addition to the assets acquired, the Company recorded a bargain purchase gain of $22,000.
On March 26, 2021, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Simplicity Vancouver, LLC, entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Bhavin Shah, an individual and Parshwa, Inc., a Washington corporation, an existing franchisee, to acquire such franchisee’s assets in exchange for 2,900 shares of the Company’s common stock with fair value of $47,850 or $16.50 per share.
On March 31, 2021, pursuant to the terms of that certain Stock Purchase Agreement, the Company issued and sold 41,667 shares of Common Stock to Tiger Trout Capital Puerto Rico, LLC at a purchase price of $12.00 per share.
Effective April 1, 2021, in connection with compensation for services to be rendered, the Company issued 12,500 (100,000 pre-reverse split) shares of common stock to FMW Media Works
On April 6, 2021, the Company issued an aggregate of 2,657 restricted common shares of the Company to executive officers and employees of the Company for services rendered. More specifically, the Company issued 1,875 (15,000 pre-reverse split) of these shares to Jed Kaplan and issued 782 of these shares to Roman Franklin. These shares were valued at $34,488, or $12.98 per share, based on the quoted trading price on the date of grant.
On May 26, we issued 3,116 common shares to an accredited investor upon the exercise of previously issued warrants. These shares were issued on a cashless basis.
On June 11, 2021, pursuant to the terms of that certain Securities Purchase Agreement between the Company and FirstFire Global Opportunities Fund, LLC, the Company issued a 12% convertible promissory note in the principal amount of $1,266,666. In addition, the Company issued 11,875 shares of its common stock to the investor as a commitment fee pursuant to the Securities Purchase Agreement.
On June 16, 2021, pursuant to the terms of that certain Securities Purchase Agreement between the Company and GS Capital Partners, LLC, the Company issued a convertible promissory note in the principal amount of $333,333. In addition, the Company issued 3,125 shares of its common stock to the investor as a commitment fee pursuant to the Securities Purchase Agreement.
On August 19, 2021, pursuant to the terms of the fourth amendment to the Maxim notes, the company issued 20,000 shares to the
On August 20, 2021, the Company issued 20,000 shares of common stock to Maxim in conjunction with the renegotiation and extinguishment of debt on the Maxim Series A-2 Notes. In addition to thecommon share issuance, the agreement called for the Company to pay $500,000 in cash and to issue 365,000 warrants at $13.00 per share to Maxim.
On August 23, 2021, the Company entered into that certain securities purchase agreement (the “Jefferson SPA”), dated as of August 23, 2021, by and between the Company and Jefferson Street Capital LLC (“Jefferson”). Pursuant to the terms of the Jefferson SPA, (i) the Company agreed to issue and sell to Jefferson the Jefferson Note (as hereinafter defined); (ii) the Company agreed to issue to Jefferson the Warrant (as hereinafter defined); and (iii) the Company agreed to issue to Jefferson 3,125 commitment shares; and (iv) Jefferson agreed to pay to the Company $300,000.00 (the “Purchase Price”).
The above issuances/sales were made pursuant to an exemption from registration as set forth in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and/or Rule 506 of Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act.
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Item 6. Selected Financial Data
Not applicable.

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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
References herein to “we,” “us” or the “Company” refer to Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company, formerly known as Smaaash Entertainment Inc. and prior to that as I-AM Capital Acquisition Company. The following discussion and analysis of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and the notes thereto contained elsewhere herein.
Overview
We are a global esports organization, that is capitalizing on the growth in esports through three business units, Simplicity One Brasil Ltda (“Simplicity One”), Simplicity Esports, LLC (“Simplicity Esports LLC”) and PLAYlive Nation, Inc. (“PLAYlive”).
Online Tournaments
As mentioned elsewhere herein, we acquired a database of over 400,000 paying esports gaming center customers in the acquisition of PLAYlive. In response to demand from customers for online esports tournaments and due to increased demand from COVID-19 related social distancing, we introduced a new initiative of online esports tournaments. We will directly promote our online Simplicity Esports tournaments to this database of over 400,000 existing customers via text messages. If we can convert merely 1% of these existing customers from the PLAYlive database to play in paid entry online Simplicity Esports tournaments, this may be a profitable business unit resulting in approximately $1,000,000 in annual revenues. At a 5% conversion rate, this business unit may generate approximately $5,000,000 in annual revenue. Management also intends to sell sponsorship and marketing activations for these online tournaments that would create additional revenue.
Esports Teams
We own and manage m professional esports teams domestically and internationally. Revenue is generated from prize winnings, corporate sponsorships, advertising, league subsidy payments and potential league revenue sharing payments from the publishers of video games.
Domestic Esports Teams - Simplicity Esports LLC
Through our wholly owned subsidiary Simplicity Esports LLC, we own and manage multiple professional esports teams competing in games such as Overwatch, Apex Legends, PUBG and more. We are committed to growing and enhancing the esports industry, fostering the development of amateurs to compete professionally and signing established professional gamers to support their paths to greater success.
International Esports Team - Simplicity One
Since January 2020, through our 90% owned subsidiary Simplicity One, we manage Flamengo eSports, one of the leading Brazilian League of Legends® teams. Flamengo eSports was established in 2017 as the Esports division of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, a successful Brazilian sports organization, with over 30 million followers across social media accounts, known for its world-famous soccer team. Flamengo eSports’ League of Legends® team won the CBLoL Championship in September 2019, which qualified the team to compete at the 2019 League of Legends® World Championship in Europe as one of 24 teams from 13 different regions around the world. Flamengo Esports @flaesports was ranked as the 9th most tweeted about esports organization in the world in 2020.
Gaming Centers
We own and operate corporate and franchise esports gaming centers, through our wholly owned subsidiaries Simplicity Esports LLC and PLAYlive, throughout the U.S. giving casual gamers the opportunity to play in a social setting with other members of the gaming community. In addition, aspiring and established professional gamers have an opportunity to compete in local and national esports tournaments held in our gaming centers for prizes, notoriety, and potential contracts to play for one of our professional esports teams. In this business unit, revenue is generated from franchise royalties, the sale of game time, memberships, tournament entry fees, birthday party events, corporate party events, concessions and gaming-related merchandise.
Our business plan encompasses a brick and click physical and digital approach to further recognize revenue from all verticals, which we believe to be unique in the industry. The physical centers, together with our esports teams, lifestyle brand and marketing campaigns offer opportunities for additional revenue via strategic partnerships with both endemic and non-endemic brands. Our ultimate goal is to further engage a diverse fan base with a 360-degree approach driving traffic to both our digital platform, tournaments, and physical real estate to maximize the monetization opportunities with these relationships. In addition, we have proprietary intellectual capital, fan engagement strategies and brand development blueprints which complement our publicly available information.
Optimally, the esports gaming centers of Simplicity Esports LLC (“Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers”) will measure between 2,000 and 4000 square feet, with dozens of gaming stations. The Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers will feature cutting edge technology, futuristic aesthetic décor and dynamic high-speed gaming equipment. We believe our brick-and-click strategy will present attractive opportunities for sponsors and advertisers to connect with our audience, creating an intriguing monetization opportunity for sponsors and advertisers.
Creating content that engages fans, sponsors and developers, while promoting our brand is one of our primary goals. Our talented team will continue to produce unique in-depth content which showcases aspects of esports for fans. We seek to reach a broad demographic encompassing the casual, amateur and professional gaming community. Our philosophy is to enhance our footprint for both endemic and non-endemic partnerships. We believe we possess a deep perception of our markets and understand the new age of branding while maintaining authenticity to the gaming community that comprises our fanbase.
Corporate Gaming Centers
Through our subsidiary entities, we currently operate 15 corporate-owned retail Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers, one of which was acquired during the third fiscal quarter ended February 28, 2021 and two of which were acquired in the fourth fiscal quarter ended May 31, 2021. Furthermore, we have engaged a national tenant representation real estate broker to assist in the strategic planning and negotiations for our future Simplicity Esports Gaming Center locations. We contemplate that new Simplicity Esports Gaming Centers will be funded by us as well as a combination of tenant improvement allowances from landlords and sponsorships. As announced in June 2020, we are in discussions with commercial property owners regarding their desire to have us open 7,000 to 12,000 square foot Arenas at their properties. There are multiple locations available to us with a percentage of gross sales rent lease structure (as opposed to fixed rent payments), and construction funds offered by the landlord to assist with the build out and equipping of our planned Arenas. These Arenas are planned as hubs in our hub and spoke model that will see smaller corporate and franchisee owned gaming centers as spokes connected to Arenas as hubs for larger events and tournaments.
Franchised Gaming Centers
Due to interest from potential franchisees, we have launched a franchising program to accelerate the expansion of our planned nationwide footprint. We sell specific franchise territories, through our wholly owned subsidiary PLAYlive, and assist with the establishment and buildout of esports gaming centers to potential business owners that desire to use our branding, infrastructure and process to open and operate gaming centers. We currently operate 12 fully constructed franchise esports gaming centers. Franchise revenue is generated from the sale of franchise territories, supplying furniture, equipment and merchandise to the franchisees for buildout of their centers, a gross sales royalty fee and a national marketing fee. We license the use of our branding, assist in identifying and negotiating commercial locations, assist in overseeing the buildout and development, provide access to proprietary software for point of sale, inventory management, employee training and other HR functions. Franchisees also have an opportunity to participate in our national esports tournament events, and benefit from the growing profile of our professional esports teams. Once an esports gaming center is opened, we provide operational guidance, support and use of branding elements in exchange for a monthly royalty fee calculated as 6% of gross sales. On January 1, 2020, we implemented a national marketing fee of 1% of gross sales. To date, we have sold five of these franchise territories. COVID-19 travel restrictions caused us to suspend the sale of new franchise territories from April 1, 2020 until October 1, 2020. During this time, a pipeline of interested applicants has accumulated, and we anticipate new franchise territory sales over the next 12 months as a result.
The combination of the esports gaming centers, owned or franchised by our wholly owned subsidiaries Simplicity Esports LLC or PLAYlive, provides us with what we believe is the largest footprint of esports gaming centers in North America. Over the next 12 months, existing PLAYlive esports gaming centers will be rebranded to Simplicity Esports gaming centers. All newly opened franchise esports gaming centers will be branded as Simplicity Esports gaming centers and have numerous gaming PC’s. All gaming centers in our footprint will be participating venues in our national esports tournaments.
Franchise Roll Up Strategy
We began implementing a franchise roll-up strategy in July 2020 as a result of the disruption caused by COVID-19 related stay at home orders, and the disruption it caused to the commercial real estate market. The reduction in revenues for some franchisees because of stay-at-home orders, and government mandates to remain closed created significant accrued rent payments due to landlords. We have been able to come to terms with many franchisees to acquire the assets of their gaming centers and make them corporate owned. We have simultaneously negotiated new leases with some of the largest national mall chains, including Simon Property Group and Brookfield Asset Management, and are in the process of negotiating additional locations with other landlords. The new leases involve significant reductions in or elimination of fixed rent and the addition of percentage of revenues rent terms. To date, we have signed 13 letters of intent and executed definitive agreements for 11 of those locations during fiscal year 2021. We expect each of these locations to be profitable as a result of the significant reduced rent expense via the percentage rent structure.
Our Stream Team
The Simplicity Esports and Flamengo Esports stream team encompasses over 30 commentators (commonly known as “casters”), influencers and personalities who connect to a dedicated fan base. This group of live personalities represent our organization to the fullest with their own unique style. We are proud to support and present a diverse group of gamers as we engage fans across a multiple of esports genres. Our Twitch affiliation has enabled our stream team influences to reach a broad fan base. Additionally, we have created several niches within the streaming community which has enabled us to engage fans within certain titles on a 24/7 basis. Our notoriety in the industry is evidenced by our audience that views millions of minutes of Simplicity Esports’ and Flamengo Esports’ content monthly, via various social media outlets including YouTube, Twitter and Twitch. Through Simplicity Esports LLC, we have begun to implement a unique approach to ensure the ultimate fan friendly esports experience. Our intention is to have gamers involved at the grassroots level and feel a sense of unity as we compete with top class talent. Our management and players are known within the esports community and we plan to use their skills to create a seamless content creation plan helping gamers feel closer to our brand than any other in the industry.
For the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020, we generated revenues of $1,552,000 and $861,000 and reported net losses of $6,096,000 and $2,620,000, respectively, and negative cash flow from operating activities of $1,416,452 and $1,522,486, respectively. We had an accumulated deficit of $12,292,000 at May 31, 2021. We anticipate that we will continue to report losses and negative cash flow. There is substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue as a going concern as a result of our historical recurring losses and negative cash flows from operations as well as our dependence on private equity and financings. See “Risk Factors- We have a history of operating losses and our auditors have indicated that there is a substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.”
Results of Operations
The following table summarizes our operating results for the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020.
Fiscal Year Fiscal Year
Ended Ended
May 31, 2021 May 31, 2020
Franchise royalties and license fees $ 151,634 $ 478,023
Franchise deposit revenue 154,291 44,984
Company-owned stores sales 1,053,226 174,042
Esports revenue 192,772 164,361
Total revenue 1,551,923 861,410
Less: Cost of goods sold (1,014,310 ) (591,541,068 )
Gross margin 537,613 269,869
Operating expenses (5,335,112 ) (3,001,9902 )
Other income (expense) (1,397,329 ) 66,342
Net loss attributable to non-controlling interest 97,973 45,541
Net Loss $ 6,096,855 $ (2,620,238 )
Summary of Statement of Operations for the Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2021 and 2020:
Revenue
We generated $1,551,923 of revenue for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 as compared to $861,410 for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2020. The increase in revenue is principally due to the increase in the number of company owned stores we operate offset by a reduction in franchise royalties as franchises were converted to company owned stores.
Franchise royalties, franchise deposit and termination revenue and company-owned stores sales, totaling $1,359,000 and $697,000, in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 and 2020. In addition, Esports revenue was $193,000 during the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021, up from $164,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2020. This increase was due to inclusion of the full year of operations of Simplicity One Brazil which was acquired in January 2020.
Cost of Goods Sold
Cost of goods sold during the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020 totaled $1,014,000 and $592,000, respectively. Cost of goods sold is related to player and team expenses related to esports revenues and cost of gaming system and store merchandise sold at company owned store including the depreciation on the gaming equipment needed to generate these revenues. The increase is cost of goods sold is directly related to the increase in company owned store revenues.
Other Operating Expenses
Other operating expenses for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 totaled $5,335,000, a $3,002,000 increase from the $2,333,000 of other operating expense in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2020. Included in this increase were compensation and related benefits increase of $1,227,000 primarily due to $862,000 increase in stock based compensation coupled with a $253,000 increase in salaries, wages and the related insurance and taxes predominantly driven by the increase in employees related to the new company owned stores; professional fees increase of $272,000 of which $175,000 was for new design services and the $97,000 was for increased legal, accounting and consulting services; an increase in general and administrative expenses of $475,000 primarily due to an increase in amortization of $85,000, an increase in rent of $198,000, an increase in contracted services of $141,000 and an increase in utilities of $51,000. In addition, there was an increase of $359,000 in impairment expense on terminated franchises.
Other income (expense)
Other income/(expense) was an expense of $1,397,000 and income of $66,000 during the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The increase in other expense of $1,463,000 is due to an increase of $1,368,000 of interest expense on the notes payable mentioned herein, $20,000 increase in foreign exchange losses, a $94,000 reduction in debt forgiveness income and a $69,000 reduction in other income offset by a $19,000 increase in other income.
Net loss attributable to non-controlling interest
As part of the conversion of franchises into company-owned stores, two of the original franchisees retained a 21% interest in the stores, one retained a 49% interest and 24% of our interest in Simplicity One Brasil, some of which is owned by our Chairman, as noted in the related party footnote. As such, a portion of the net loss incurred during the year is allocated to those parties. For the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021 the net loss attributable to non-controlling interests was $98,000 which is an increase of $52,000 from the year ended May 31, 2020.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
In 2018, the completion of the Initial Public Offering and simultaneous Private Placement, inclusive of the underwriters’ exercise of their over-allotment option, generated gross proceeds to the Company of $54,615,000. Related transaction costs amounted to approximately $3,838,000, consisting of $3,360,000 of underwriting fees, including $1,820,000 of deferred underwriting commissions payable (which was held in the Trust Account) and $478,000 of Initial Public Offering costs.
Following the Initial Public Offering and the underwriter’s partial exercise of the over-allotment option, a total of $52,780,000 was placed in the Trust Account and we had $552,190 of cash held outside of the Trust Account, after payment of all costs related to the Initial Public Offering.
On November 20, 2018, in connection with the closing of our initial Business Combination, the funds in the Trust Account were used for, among other things, the following:
● $45,455,596 to redeem 4,448,260 shares
● $7,255,306 to fund the escrow agreement for Polar and K2
● $150,000 to fund our investment in Smaaash
As of May 31, 2020, we had no cash and marketable securities held in the Trust Account.
As of May 31, 2021 and 2020, we had cash of $414,000 and $160,000, which is available for use by us to cover the costs associated with general corporate purposes. In addition, as of May 31, 2021 and 2020, we had accounts payable and accrued expenses of $1,605,000 and $1,549,000, respectively.
For the fiscal years ended May 31, 2021 and 2020, cash used in operating activities amounted to $1,409,000 and $1,523,000, respectively. The decline in net cash used of $115,000 is due to an increase in shares for services of $2,822,000, and increase in non-cash interest expense of $1,118,000, an impairment loss of $359,000 an increase in depreciation and amortization charges of $258,000 and a decline in debt forgiveness income of $94,000 offset by an increased net loss of $3,529,000. In addition changes in our operating liabilities and assets used $174,000 of cash, a decline of $981,000 from May 31, 2020. The decline in cash provided is due to reduced accounts payable and accrued expenses of $778.000, a reduction in deferred revenues of $281,000, an increase in inventory of $47,000, an increase in prepaid expenses and security deposits of $34,000 and an increase in due from franchisee of $25,000, offset by reduced accounts receivable of $96,000 and increased deferred brokerage fees of $88,000. Cash used in investing activities amounted to $152,000, a reduction of $15,000 from the prior year. The reduction is attributable to reduced purchase of property and equipment of $161,000, offset by higher use of cash for acquisitions of $176,000. Cash provided from financing activities amounted to $1,815,000, an increase of $1,534,000 over the prior year. The increase is mainly attributable to a net cash increase of $1,087,000 for the net effect of the issuance in notes payable, coupled with an increase in funds received from private placement units of $379,000, an increase non-controlling interest in subsidiaries of $179,000, offset by an increase in deferred financing costs of $111,000.
We will need to raise additional funds in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business.
Off-balance sheet arrangements
We have no obligations, assets or liabilities which would be considered off-balance sheet arrangements. We do not participate in transactions that create relationships with unconsolidated entities or financial partnerships, often referred to as variable interest entities, which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating off-balance sheet arrangements. We have not entered into any off-balance sheet financing arrangements, established any special purpose entities, guaranteed any debt or commitments of other entities, or purchased any non-financial assets.
Going Concern
The Company’s consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that it will continue as a going concern, which contemplates continuity of operations, realization of assets, and liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business.
As reflected in the consolidated financial statements, the Company has an accumulated deficit as of May 31, 2021, a net loss and net cash used in operating activities for the reporting period then ended. These factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year from the of the date that the financial statements are issued.
The Company’s cash position may not be sufficient to support the Company’s daily operations. Management plans to raise additional funds by way of a private or public offering. While the Company believes in the viability of its strategy and its ability to generate sufficient revenue and to raise additional funds, there can be no assurances to that effect. Should the Company fail to raise additional capital, it may be compelled to reduce the scope of its planned future business activities.
The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent upon the Company’s ability to further implement its business plan, to generate sufficient revenue and to raise additional funds by way of public and/or private offerings.
The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments related to the recoverability and classification of recorded asset amounts or the amounts and classification of liabilities that might be necessary should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.
In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. While initially the outbreak was largely concentrated in China and caused significant disruptions to its economy, it has now spread to several other countries and infections have been reported globally.
Because COVID-19 infections have been reported throughout the United States, certain federal, state and local governmental authorities have issued stay-at-home orders, proclamations and/or directives aimed at minimizing the spread of COVID-19. Additional, more restrictive proclamations and/or directives may be issued in the future. As a result, all of our corporate and franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers had been closed effective April 1, 2020. Although our franchise agreements with franchisees of Simplicity Gaming Centers require a minimum monthly royalty payment to us from the franchisees regardless of whether the franchised Simplicity Gaming Centers are operating, there is a potential risk that franchisees of Simplicity Gaming Centers will default in their obligations to pay their minimum monthly royalty payment to us. As of May 31, 2020, some of our franchised gaming centers have begun to re-open.
The ultimate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s operations is unknown and will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the duration of the COVID-19 outbreak, new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and any additional preventative and protective actions that governments, or the Company, may direct, which may result in an extended period of continued business disruption, reduced customer traffic and reduced operations. Any resulting financial impact cannot be reasonably estimated at this time but is anticipated to have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The measures taken to date impacted the Company’s business for the fiscal fourth quarter and potentially beyond. Management expects that all of its business segments, across all of its geographies, will be impacted to some degree, but the significance of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Company’s business and the duration for which it may have an impact cannot be determined at this time.
Contractual obligations
We do not have any long-term capital lease obligations, operating lease obligations or long-term liabilities, except as follows:
On November 20, 2018, the Company entered into a settlement and release agreement with Maxim Group, LLC, the underwriter for the IPO. Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, the Company made a cash payment of $20,000 to Maxim and issued a demand secured promissory note in favor of Maxim in the amount of $1.8 million to settle the payment obligations of the Company under the underwriting agreement dated August 16, 2017, by and between the Company and Maxim. The Company also agreed to remove the restrictive legends on an aggregate of 52,000 shares of its common stock held by Maxim and its affiliate.
The Company has entered into various lease agreements in support of our corporate offices and our gaming centers. The majority of the gaming center leases have all been recorded with the appropriate Right of Use (“ROU”) asset and related liability.
Critical Accounting Policies
The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and income and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates.
Revenue Recognition
As of January 1, 2018, the Company adopted Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606) (“ASC 606”). The new guidance sets forth a new five-step revenue recognition model which replaces the prior revenue recognition guidance in its entirety and is intended to eliminate numerous industry-specific pieces of revenue recognition guidance that have historically existed in GAAP. The underlying principle of the new standard is that a business or other organization will recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects what it expects to receive in exchange for the goods or services. The standard also requires more detailed disclosures and provides additional guidance for transactions that were not addressed completely in the prior accounting guidance. The Company adopted the standard using the modified retrospective method and the adoption did not have a material impact on its financial statements.
The Company recognizes revenue when performance obligations under the terms of a contract with the customer are satisfied. Product sales occur once control is transferred upon delivery to the customer. Revenue is measured as the amount of consideration the Company expects to receive in exchange for transferring goods and services. Our revenue is derived from two sources, the first is from the sale of the rights to our players to third parties and second from participation and prize money awarded at gaming tournaments.
Intangible Assets and impairment
Intangible assets that are subject to amortization are reviewed for potential impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate that carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Assets not subject to amortization are tested for impairment at least annually. The Company had intangible assets subject to amortization related to its acquisition of Simplicity Esports, LLC. These costs were included in intangible assets on our balance sheet and amortized on a straight-line basis when placed into service over the estimated useful lives of the costs, which is 3 to 5 years.
The Company periodically reviews its intangible assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be fully recoverable. The Company recognizes an impairment loss when the sum of expected undiscounted future cash flows is less that the carrying amount of the asset. The amount of impairment is measured as the difference between the asset’s estimated fair value and its book value. For the year ended May 31, 2021, the company used a third-party valuation expert to review our intangible assets and based upon this independent valuation, the company did not need to take an impairment charge.
Goodwill
Goodwill is the excess of our purchase cost over the fair value of the net assets of acquired businesses. We do not amortize goodwill, but we assess our goodwill for impairment at least annually. Our assessment date was May 31, 2021, and the company used a third-party valuation expert to review our goodwill and this independent valuation, indicated no impairment.
Operating Lease Right-of-Use Assets and Operating Lease Liabilities
The Company adopted ASC Topic 842, Leases (Topic 842) and has elected the ‘package of practical expedients’, which permits it not to reassess under the new standard its prior conclusions about lease identification, lease classification and initial direct costs. In addition, the Company elected not to apply Topic 842 to arrangements with lease terms of 12 months or less. The Company has entered into various lease agreements mainly to support the operations of its gaming centers.
The significant assumption used to determine the present value of the lease liability was a discount rate ranging from 10% to 12% which was based upon the Company’s estimated incremental borrowing rate at the start of the lease term.

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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
Not applicable.

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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
Reference is made to Pages through comprising a portion of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure.
None.

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ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures.
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls and procedures are controls and other procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in company reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
As required by Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer carried out an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as of May 31, 2021. Based upon their evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) were not effective.
We do not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all errors and all instances of fraud. Disclosure controls and procedures, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the disclosure controls and procedures are met. Further, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all disclosure controls and procedures, no evaluation of disclosure controls and procedures can provide absolute assurance that we have detected all our control deficiencies and instances of fraud, if any. The design of disclosure controls and procedures also is based partly on certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions.
Management’s Annual Report on Internal Controls over Financial Reporting
Our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act). Our management, with the participation of our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of May 31, 2021. Our management’s evaluation of our internal control over financial reporting was based on the 2013 framework in Internal Control-Integrated Framework, issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on this evaluation, our management concluded that as of May 31, 2021, our internal control over financial reporting was not effective.
The ineffectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting was due to the following material weakness which we identified in our internal control over financial reporting:
● Lack of Segregation of Duties - Our finance and accounting department is understaffed and accordingly we cannot maintain sufficient segregation of duties within the financial reporting process.
● Lack of Adequate Staff - The Company does not have enough staff to timely review and approve all the transactions that occur. Our finance and accounting department is understaffed and the Company relies heavily on its Chief Executive Officer to supply documentation.
● Lack of Proper Records Retention - There is no centralized file repository for the retention of documentation underlying the financial statements of the Company. Additionally, there is a lack of proper systems to adequately capture and report on the transactions that occur.
A material weakness is a deficiency or a combination of control deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis.
Management believes that the material weakness set forth above did not have an effect on our Company’s financial results.
This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not include an attestation report of our registered public accounting firm in accordance with applicable rules of the SEC.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
During the three months ended May 31, 2021, there has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

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ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 9B. Other Information
None.

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ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
Information concerning directors, appearing in the sections titled “Proposal 1-Election of Directors,” “__Class I Directors-Terms Expiring in 2021 and Standing for Re-election at the Annual Meeting,” “-Class II Directors-Terms Expiring in 2022,” “-Corporate Governance-Director Independence,” “-Corporate Governance-Our Board of Directors and its Committees,” “-Director Nominations,” “-Separation of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer Positions,” “-Code of Ethics,” “-The Board’s Role in Risk Oversight,” and “-Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports” in our Proxy Statement (the “Proxy Statement”) to be filed with the SEC in connection with our Annual Meeting of Stockholders scheduled to be held on October 21, 2021, is incorporated by reference in response to this Item 10.

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ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Item 11. Executive Compensation.
The information contained in the sections titled “Executive Compensation” and “Proposal 1-Election of Directors-Director Compensation” in the Proxy Statement is incorporated herein by reference in response to this Item 11.

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ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
The information contained in the section titled “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” in the Proxy Statement is incorporated herein by reference in response to this Item 12.
Equity Compensation Plan Information
The table below sets forth information as of May 31, 2021.
Plan Category
Number of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rights
Weighted-average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights
Number of securities remaining available for future issuance under equity compensation plans (excluding securities reflected in column (a))
(a)
(b)
(c)
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders
-
$ N/A
1,500,000 (1)
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders
-
-
-
Total
-
$ -
1,500,000
(1) This represents (i) 500,000 shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the 2018 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2018 Plan”), and (ii) 1,000,000 shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the Simplicity Esports and Gaming Company 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”).
The Company’s stockholders approved the 2018 Plan on October 4, 2018. Under the 2018 Plan, 500,000 shares of common stock are authorized for issuance to employees, officers, directors, consultants. The 2018 Plan authorizes the grant of nonqualified stock options and incentive stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights, other stock bonus awards, and performance compensation awards. There were 500,000 shares available for award as of May 31, 2020 under the 2018 Plan. The Company does not intend to make any grants under the 2018 Plan.
The Board of Directors and stockholders of the Company approved the 2020 Plan on April 22, 2020 and June 23, 2020, respectively. Under the 2020 Plan, 1,000,000 shares of common stock are authorized for issuance to employees, directors and independent contractors (except those performing services in connection with the offer or sale of the Company’s securities in a capital raising transaction, or promoting or maintaining a market for the Company’s securities) of the Company or its subsidiaries. The 2020 Plan authorizes equity-based and cash-based incentives for participants. There were 1,000,000 shares available for award as of May 31, 2020 under the 2020 Plan.

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ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
The information contained in the section titled “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions” in the Proxy Statement is incorporated herein by reference in response to this Item 13.

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ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.
The information contained in the sections titled “Proposal 2-Ratification of the Appointment of the Company’s Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm” in the Proxy Statement is incorporated herein by reference in response to Item 14.
PART IV

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ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statements Schedules
(a) The following documents are filed as part of this report:
(1) Financial Statements
The consolidated financial statements of the registrant and subsidiaries, together with the report thereon of the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, are included beginning on page of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
(2) Financial Statements Schedules
All financial statements schedules are omitted because they are not applicable or the amounts are immaterial and not required, or the required information is presented in the financial statements and notes thereto beginning on page of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
(3) Exhibits
Exhibit
No.
Document
2.1
Share Subscription Agreement, dated May 3, 2018, by and among the Company, Smaaash Private, and the Smaaash Founders (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Company’s Definitive Proxy Statement filed with the SEC on September 19, 2018).
2.2
Amendment Cum Addendum to the Share Subscription Agreement dated May 03, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Company’s Definitive Proxy Statement filed with the SEC on September 19, 2018).
2.3
Second Amendment Cum Addendum to the Share Subscription Agreement dated May 03, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Company’s Definitive Proxy Statement filed with the SEC on September 19, 2018).
2.4
Third Amendment Cum Addendum to the Share Subscription Agreement dated May 03, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Company’s Proxy Statement Supplement, which was filed with the SEC on November 5, 2018).
2.5
Fourth Amendment Cum Addendum to the Share Subscription Agreement dated May 03, 2018, dated as of November 15, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.5 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018.
2.6
Agreement and Plan of Merger dated as of July 25, 2019 by and between the registrant, Esports Merger Sub, Inc., PLAYlive Nation, Inc., Duncan Wood, Robert J. Steinberger, Eric J. Charneski, Jordan C. Jenson, and Alec T. Carpenter, and Duncan Wood in his capacity as representative of the stockholders (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 1, 2019).
3.1
Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
3.2
Certificate of Amendment to the Company’s Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on January 2, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 7, 2019).
3.3
Certificate of Amendment, filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on August 17, 2020.(incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.3 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on August 31, 2020).
3.4
Bylaws (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.4 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 12, 2017).
4.1
Specimen Common Stock Certificate (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 31, 2017).
4.2
Specimen Warrant Certificate (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 31, 2017).
4.3
Warrant Agreement, dated August 16, 2017, by and between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company and the Company (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 22, 2017).
4.4
Description of Securities (incorporated by reference from description of securities contained in the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333- 237634) filed with the SEC on April 10, 2020, as amended).
10.1
Master Franchise Agreement, dated November 20, 2018, by and between the Company and Smaaash Private (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.2
Master License and Distribution Agreement, dated November 20, 2018, by and between the Company and Smaaash Private (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.3
Settlement and Release Agreement, dated November 20, 2018, by and between the Company and Maxim Group LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.4
Demand Secured Promissory Note, dated November 20, 2018, issued to Maxim Group LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.5
Escrow Agreement, dated November 20, 2018, by and among the Company, Ellenoff Grossman and Schole LLP and Shripal Morakhia (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.6
Smaaash Entertainment Inc. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Annex F to the Company’s Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed with the SEC on September 19, 2018). †
10.7
Side Letter, dated November 16, 2018, by and between the Company and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.8
Letter of Undertaking, dated November 16, 2018, by Smaaash Private and Smaaash Founders (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.9
Addendum to Master Franchise Agreement, dated November 29, 2018, by and between the Company and Smaaash Private (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.8 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 30, 2018).
10.10
Promissory Note, dated May 31, 2017, issued to I-AM Capital Partners LLC, our sponsor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 12, 2017).
10.11
Letter Agreement, dated August 16, 2017, by and between the Company, the Sponsor and the officers and directors of the Company (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 22, 2017).
10.12
Registration Rights Agreement, dated August 16, 2017, by and among the Company and our sponsor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 22, 2017).
10.13
Securities Subscription Agreement, dated May 31, 2017, among the Registrant and our sponsor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 31, 2017).
10.14
Amended and Restated Unit Purchase Agreement, dated August 11, 2017, between the Registrant and our sponsor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to Amendment No. 2 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on August 14, 2017).
10.15
Form of Indemnity Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 31, 2017).
10.16
Administrative Services Agreement, dated August 16, 2017, by and between the Company and our sponsor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 22, 2017).
10.17
Shareholders’ Agreement, dated May 3, 2018, by and among the Company, FW Metis Limited, Mitesh R. Gowani, the Smaaash Founders, and Smaaash Private (incorporated by reference to Annex D to the Company’s Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A, filed with the SEC on September 19, 2018).
10.18
Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of November 2, 2018, by and between the Company and Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 7, 2018).
10.19
Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of November 5, 2018, by and between the Company and K2 Principal Fund L.P. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 7, 2018.
10.20
Amendment, dated December 20, 2018, by and among the Company, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc., and The K2 Principal Fund L.P. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 26, 2018.
10.21
Share Exchange Agreement, dated December 21, 2018, by and among Smaaash Entertainment Inc., Simplicity Esports, LLC, Jed Kaplan and each of the equity holders of Simplicity Esports, LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.22
Amendment No. 1 to Share Exchange Agreement, dated December 28, 2018, by and among Smaaash Entertainment Inc., Simplicity Esports, LLC, Jed Kaplan and each of the equity holders of Simplicity Esports, LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.23
Securities Exchange Agreement, dated December 20, 2018, by and between Smaaash Entertainment Inc. and Maxim Group LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.24
Series A-1 Exchange Convertible Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.25
Series A-2 Exchange Convertible Note (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.26
Registration Rights Agreement, dated December 20, 2018, by and between Smaaash Entertainment Inc. and Maxim Group LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.27
Lock-Up Agreement, dated December 20, 2018, by and between Smaaash Entertainment Inc. and Maxim Group LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 28, 2018).
10.28
Amendment No. 2 to Share Exchange Agreement, dated December 30, 2018, by and among the Company, Simplicity Esports, LLC, and Jed Kaplan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 7, 2019.
10.29
Voting Agreement, Dated December 31, 2018, between the Company and the stockholders of the Company party thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 7, 2019).
10.30
Employment Agreement dated December 31, 2018, between the Company and Jed Kaplan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 7, 2017). †
10.32
Employment Agreement dated December 31, 2018, between the Company and Roman Franklin (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 7, 2017). †
10.34
Restricted Stock Award Agreement dated March 27, 2019 between the registrant and Jed Kaplan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 2, 2019). †
10.35
Restricted Stock Award Agreement dated March 27, 2019 between the registrant and Roman Franklin (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 2, 2019). †
10.37
Exclusive Trademark and Symbol Use License Agreement, and Other Covenants, dated November 4, 2019, among Simplicity One Brasil LTDA and Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (incorporated by reference to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on January 22, 2020).
10.38
Common Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of March 11, 2020, between the Company and Triton Funds LP (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 18, 2020).
10.39
Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of March 11, 2020, between the Company and Triton Funds LP (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 18, 2020).
10.40
10% Fixed Convertible Promissory Note dated April 29, 2020 issued by the Company in favor of Harbor Gates Capital, LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on May 5, 2020).
10.41
Promissory Note dated May 12, 2020 issued by the Company in favor of Jed Kaplan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on May 18, 2020).
10.42
Form of Self-Amortization Promissory Note dated June 18, 2020 issued by the Company to an accredited investor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 24, 2020).
10.43
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement dated June 18, 2020 by and between the Company and an accredited investor (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 24, 2020).
10.44
First Amendment to the Series A-2 Exchange Convertible Note issued on December 20, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 24, 2020).
10.45
Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Appendix I to the registrant’s definitive proxy statement on Schedule 14A filed with the Commission on June 9, 2020). †
10.46
Employment Agreement dated July 29, 2020 by and between the Company and Jed Kaplan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 13, 2020). †
10.47
Employment Agreement dated July 29, 2020 by and between the Company and Roman Franklin (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 13, 2020). †
14.1
Code of Ethics (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 14 to Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-219251) filed with the SEC on July 31, 2017.
21.1*
List of Subsidiaries
23.1*
Consent of Independent Public Accounting Firm
31.1*
Certification of Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.1**
Certification of Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101.INS*
XBRL Instance Document
101.SCH*
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema
101.CAL*
XBRL Taxonomy Calculation Linkbase
101.LAB*
XBRL Taxonomy Label Linkbase
101.PRE*
XBRL Definition Linkbase Document
101.DEF*
XBRL Definition Linkbase Document
* Filed herewith
** Furnished herewith
† Includes management contracts and compensation plans and arrangements