RISK FACTORS SUMMARY
We are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, including risks related to our financial condition and liquidity; risks related to our business and industry; risks related to our relationship with Driven Lifestyle Group LLC (“Driven Lifestyle”), formerly known as Motorsport Network, LLC, which controls more than a majority of our issued and outstanding voting shares; risks related to our Company; risks related to the ownership of our Class A common stock; and certain general risks, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and cash flows. These risks include, but are not limited to, the following principal risks:
Risks Related to Our Financial Condition and Liquidity
We may require additional capital to meet our financial obligations, and this capital might not be available on acceptable terms or at all.
Restrictions under the Credit Agreement with Citibank may affect our ability to finance our operations.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
If we do not consistently deliver popular products our business will be negatively impacted.
Our business and products are highly concentrated in the racing game genre, and our operating results may suffer if consumer preferences shift away from this genre.
If we do not provide high-quality products in a timely manner, our business operations, financial performance, liquidity, cash flows and/or results of operations may be negatively impacted.
Declines in consumer spending and other adverse changes in economic, market and geopolitical conditions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.
We depend on a small number of franchises for a significant portion of our revenues and profits.
Our ability to acquire and maintain licenses to intellectual property affects our revenue and profitability.
Our business is partly dependent on our ability to enter into software development arrangements.
Our business depends in part on the success and availability of platforms and mass media channels developed by third parties.
Third-party platform providers may be able to influence our products and costs.
The increasing importance of free-to-play games to our business exposes us to the risks of that business model.
We are subject to risks of operating in a rapidly developing industry and a relatively new market.
If we fail to attract more advertisers and sponsors to our gaming platform, tournaments or competitions, our revenues will be adversely affected.
We are reliant on the retention of certain key personnel and the hiring of strategically valuable personnel,.
Competition in the interactive entertainment industry is intense, and our existing and potential users may be attracted to competing products or other forms of entertainment.
Our revenue may be harmed by the proliferation of “cheating” programs and scam offers that seek to exploit our games and players.
Some of our players may make sales or purchases of virtual items used in our games through unauthorized or fraudulent third-party websites, which may reduce our revenue.
The success of our business relies on our marketing and branding efforts, and these efforts may not be accepted by consumers to the extent we planned.
If we fail to receive our target ratings for certain titles, or if our retailers refuse to sell such titles due to what they perceive to be objectionable content, it could have a negative impact on our business.
Government regulations applicable to us may negatively impact our business.
We are exposed to seasonality in the sale of our retail products.
Our retail products, online gaming platform and games offered through our platform may contain defects.
We may be held liable for content displayed on, retrieved from or linked to our platform.
We may experience security breaches and cyber threats.
Our business could be adversely affected if our data privacy and security practices are inadequate.
If we were to lose server capacity or lack sufficient Internet bandwidth for any reason, our business could suffer.
A disruption in service on our website or platforms could damage our reputation and result in a loss of traffic and visitors, which could harm our business, brand, operating results and financial condition.
Our business partners may be unable to honor their obligations to us, or their actions may put us at risk.
Our efforts to expand into new products and services may subject us to additional risks.
Failure to adequately protect our intellectual property, technology and confidential information could harm our business and operating results.
The costs involved in enforcement of our intellectual property rights could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be subject to claims of infringement of third-party intellectual property rights.
Our technology, content, and brands are subject to intellectual property infringement.
We use open source software in connection with certain of our games and services, which may pose particular risks to our proprietary software, products, and services.
If technology we rely upon becomes unavailable or fails to adequately serve our needs and we cannot find alternatives, it may negatively impact our operating results.
Our international operations are subject to increased challenges and risks.
Catastrophic events may disrupt our business.
Risks Related to Our Relationship with Driven Lifestyle
Driven Lifestyle controls a significant portion of our Class A common stock and all of our Class B common stock and therefore has the ability to exert significant control over the direction of our business.
We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NASDAQ rules and, as a result, qualify for and may rely on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements of NASDAQ.
Driven Lifestyle’s competitive position in certain markets may constrain our ability to build and maintain certain partnerships or relationships in the motorsport industry.
Our inability to resolve in a manner favorable to us any potential conflicts or disputes that arise between us and Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries may adversely affect our business and prospects.
Risks Related to Our Company
Our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business and future prospects.
Impairment of our intangible assets could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
We have identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting which could result in us not being able to accurately or timely report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect our business and the trading price of our Class A common stock.
We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company, and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to us will make our common stock less attractive to investors.
We may acquire other companies, technologies, or assets, which could divert our management’s attention.
We may be subject to various legal proceedings, claims, litigation, governmental investigations or inquiries and other disputes from time to time.
Unanticipated changes in effective tax rates or adverse outcomes resulting from examination of our income or other tax returns could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Common Stock
We cannot guarantee our Class A common stock will continue to be listed from Nasdaq.
Substantial future sales of our Class A common stock, or the perception that such sales may occur, could depress the price of our Class A common stock.
Our certificate of incorporation has limitations on the liability of our directors, and we may have to indemnify our officers and directors in certain instances.
Certain provisions in our charter documents and Delaware law could limit attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our board of directors or current management.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders.
We expect that the price of our Class A common stock will fluctuate substantially.
We have only a minimal number of shares of Class A Common Stock available for equity award grants under the Motorsport Games Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan.
If securities industry analysts cease to publish research reports, or publish unfavorable reports, on us, the market price and market trading volume of our Class A common stock could be negatively affected.
The dual class structure of our common stock may adversely affect the trading market for our Class A common stock.
We do not intend to pay dividends for the foreseeable future.
General Risk Factors
Our results of operations and financial condition are subject to management’s accounting judgments and estimates, as well as changes in accounting policies.
The requirements of being a public company may require significant resources.
If we fail to maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting, our ability to produce accurate and timely financial statements could be impaired.
We are subject to risks related to corporate and social responsibility and reputation.
A future shutdown of the U.S. federal government may adversely affect our business.
For a more complete discussion of the material risk factors applicable to us, see “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of this Report.
PART I
Item 1. Business
Company Overview
Motorsport Games Inc. (“Motorsport”) is a racing game developer, publisher and esports ecosystem provider of official motorsport racing series, including games based on the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race (“Le Mans”) and the associated FIA World Endurance Championship (the “WEC”). Our portfolio also includes the KartKraft karting simulation game, as well as Studio 397 B.V. (“Studio397”) and their rFactor 2 realistic racing simulator technology and platform. rFactor 2 also powers F1® Arcade through a partnership with Kindred Concepts.
Our purpose is to make the thrill of motorsports accessible to everyone by creating the highest quality, most sophisticated and innovative experiences for racers, gamers and fans of all ages. Our products and services target a large global motorsport audience. The latest figures reported from 2024 show Le Mans, which includes the WEC, having a cumulative global audience of 255 million, while the global fanbase for Formula 1 was estimated to be 827 million in 2025.
We develop and publish racing video games for personal computers (PCs) through various digital channels, including full-game and downloadable content (“DLC”) . We have obtained the official licenses to develop multi-platform games for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and the WEC. On February 20, 2024, we released Le Mans Ultimate on PC in early access. Le Mans Ultimate is the official game of the WEC and 24 Hours of Le Mans, and is the first officially licensed and dedicated 24 Hours of Le Mans video game release in over twenty years. On July 22, 2025, we released Le Mans Ultimate Version 1.0. This milestone marks the completion of the title’s Early Access phase and ushers in a new era of continued development and expansion for the official game of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
In 2023, we organized the grand finale of the Le Mans Virtual Series 2022/23, the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event, which had a cumulative total of approximately 8.8 million video views with approximately 27 million minutes watched. The 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event had a global audience of 5 million across television (TV)/over-the-top (OTT) channels. Although we did not organize any esport events during 2025 and 2024, we intend to leverage esports competitions to bring wider awareness and engagement to our gaming products, while creating inspiring event spectacles for our viewers.
Company Background
Motorsport Games was formed in 2018 by Driven Lifestyle as a wholly-owned subsidiary in connection with the acquisition by Motorsport Games of a controlling interest in 704Games Company, which previously held the exclusive license to be the official video game developer and publisher for the NASCAR video game racing franchise, subject to certain limited exceptions. On October 3, 2023, we sold our NASCAR licensed rights under that certain Second Amended and Restated Distribution and License Agreement with NASCAR Team Properties (“NTP”) (the “NASCAR License”) to iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations, LLC (“iRacing”). Prior to the sale of our NASCAR License, we had been the official video game developer and publisher for the NASCAR video game racing franchise and had the exclusive right to create and organize esports leagues and events for NASCAR using our NASCAR racing video games, in each case, subject to certain limited exceptions. Concurrently with the sale of our NASCAR License, we entered into an agreement with NTP pursuant to which we had a limited non-exclusive right and license to, among other things, sell our NASCAR games and DLCs that were in our product portfolio through December 31, 2024 (the “NASCAR New Limited License”). We no longer sell NASCAR games and did not sell any NASCAR games during the year ended December 31, 2025.
We entered into an agreement to facilitate the Le Mans Esports Series as part of a joint venture with Automobile Club de l’Ouest (“ACO”), the organizer of the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in 2019. Through our ownership interest in this joint venture, which was increased to 51% from 45% in January 2021, we secured the rights to be the exclusive video game developer and publisher for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and the WEC, which the 24 Hours of Le Mans race is a part of, for a ten-year period. In addition, through this joint venture with ACO, we have the right to create and organize esports leagues and events for the Le Mans Esports Series.
In January 2021, we completed our initial public offering (“IPO”). Prior to our IPO, Motorsport Games was a wholly-owned subsidiary of Driven Lifestyle and, following the completion of our IPO, Driven Lifestyle continues to be our controlling stockholder.
In March 2021, we acquired all assets comprising the KartKraft computer video game from Black Delta Holdings PTY, Black Delta Trading Pty Ltd and Black Delta IP Pty Ltd.
In April 2021, we acquired the remaining equity interests in 704Games Company whereby 704Games Company merged with 704Games LLC, a newly formed Delaware limited liability company and our wholly-owned subsidiary, with 704Games LLC being the surviving entity in such merger (collectively referred to as “704Games” herein).
In April 2021, we also acquired Studio397, the company behind the industry leading rFactor 2 racing simulation platform, from Luminis International BV. Following this acquisition, Studio397 continues its work on the rFactor 2 platform while also developing the physics and handling models for our other official games. We continue to utilize our resources and expertise to enhance the rFactor 2 platform, especially in areas highlighted by the racing community.
Our Products
Game Products Portfolio
We develop and publish racing video games for PCs through various digital channels, including full-game and DLCs.
Our current video game catalog includes the following titles:
Game
Image
Overview
Platforms
Release Date
rFactor 2
rFactor 2 is a realistic racing simulation game. It features mixed class road racing with realistic dynamics, an immersive sound environment, and stunning graphics, that are perfect for top-level esports and a rich single-player experience. Content updates were released in 2022 and 2023, as well as the rFactor 2: RaceControl multiplayer update in October 2023.
Microsoft Windows via Steam
March 28, 2013
KartKraft
KartKraft is a kart racing simulator, which was released in January 2022.
Microsoft Windows via Steam
January 26, 2022
(full release)
Le Mans Ultimate
Le Mans Ultimate is the official game of the FIA World Endurance Championship and 24 Hours of Le Mans. DLC updates were released in July 2024, September 2024, December 2024, February 2025, June 2025, September 2025 and December 2025.
Microsoft Windows via Steam
February 20, 2024
We continually evaluate our planned product release schedule and modify the timing of upcoming products based on developments in our business, or if we believe it will result in a better consumer experience.
Esports Partnerships and Franchises
We recognize the growing importance and business viability of esports, especially within the racing and motorsport genres. In recognition of this importance, we manage and operate the esports platforms for numerous racing series and organizations. We also continue to leverage esports competitions to bring wider awareness and engagement to our gaming products, while creating inspiring event spectacles for our viewers. In 2023, we organized the grand finale of the Le Mans Virtual Series 2022/23, the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event, which had a cumulative total of approximately 8.8 million video views with approximately 27 million minutes watched. The 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event had a global audience of 5 million across television (TV)/over-the-top (OTT) channels. Although we did not organize the Le Mans Virtual Series for the 2023/24, 2024/25 or 2025/26 seasons, we currently plan on organizing the 2026/27 Le Mans Virtual Series to commence this year. We also intend to continue exploring opportunities to expand the recurring portion of our esports segment outside of Le Mans.
Revenues
We currently generate revenue primarily by selling our racing video game products for PCs through various digital channels, including full-game and downloadable content, as well as our RaceControl subscription service. In addition, we began providing product development services to third parties for the first time in 2022 that included the ongoing support and maintenance of developed software.
During the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, we did not generate any revenue from our esports business. Prior to 2024, our esports business generated revenues from sponsorships, advertising and media rights for events and competitions. If audience patterns continue to grow, we believe the esports business has the potential to generate incremental revenues through the further sale of media rights to our esports events and competitions, as well as, among other things, merchandising.
Marketing, Sales, and Distribution
Many of our products contain software that enables us to connect with our gamers directly, including through customized advertising and in-game messaging based on customer preferences and trends. This provides a significant marketing tool that allows us to communicate and market directly to our customers.
Other direct marketing efforts include activities on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Twitch, YouTube and other online social networks, online advertising, public relations activity, broadcast advertising, participation in cooperative advertising programs, and product sampling through demonstration software distributed through the Internet or the digital online services provided by our partners.
We also are able to sell directly to consumers through various digital platforms. Our products and content are available for consumers to purchase and download at their convenience directly to their PC through our platform partners, including Steam and Genba.
Customer Concentration
For the year ended December 31, 2025, sales through one of our main distribution channels accounted for approximately 64% of our consolidated revenues and approximately 47% of our accounts receivable as of December 31, 2025. For the year ended December 31, 2024, sales through three of our main distribution channels accounted for approximately 86% of our consolidated revenues and approximately 77% of our accounts receivable as of December 31, 2024. A reduction in sales from or loss of these distribution channels would have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations and financial condition.
Strategic Licenses and Partnerships
24 Hours of Le Mans
On March 15, 2019, we formed Le Mans Esports Series Limited as a joint venture between Motorsport Games and ACO with the primary purpose of carrying on the promotion of and running of an esports event business replicating races of the WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans race on an electronic gaming platform. Through our ownership interest in this joint venture, which was increased to 51% from 45% in January 2021, we secured the rights to be the exclusive video game developer and publisher for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and the WEC through a separate license agreement. This license expires 10 years beginning from the date of our first release of a WEC or Le Mans race video gaming product with the term automatically renewing for an additional ten-year term unless ACO provides written notice of its intent not to renew. In exchange for such license, we agreed to fund up to €8,000,000 (approximately $9,391,000 as of December 31, 2025) as needed for development of the video game products, to be contributed on an as-needed basis during the term of the license. As of December 31, 2025, we have funded approximately $8.8 million for such development. Additionally, we are obligated to pay ACO an annual payment beginning from the time of the launch of the first video game product and continuing on each anniversary thereof for the term of the license. In addition, through this joint venture, we have the right to create and organize esports leagues and events for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, the WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event through certain additional license agreements. These additional license agreements, which were granted on a royalty-free basis, each expire January 25, 2031 with the term automatically renewing for an additional ten-year term unless ACO provides written notice of its intent not to renew. This joint venture shall continue until the earlier of the date on which the parties to be entitled in the aggregate to 25% or more of the equity share capital of the joint venture, the parties otherwise to control the affairs of the joint venture or the date of the commencement of the winding-up of the joint venture. If certain events of occur, the non- party has a call option pursuant to which it can the party to sell all (but not part) of its ownership in the joint venture in accordance with the joint venture agreement.
Epic Games
On August 11, 2020, through our wholly owned subsidiary, MS Gaming Development LLC, we entered into a licensing agreement with Epic Games International (“Epic”) for worldwide licensing rights to Epic’s proprietary computer program known as the Unreal Engine 4. This Agreement was assigned from MS Gaming Development LLC to Motorsport Games Inc. on September 3, 2021.
Pursuant to the agreement, we were granted a nonexclusive, non-transferable and terminable license to develop, market and sublicense (under limited circumstances and subject to conditions of the agreement) certain products using the Unreal Engine 4 for our next generation of games. In exchange for the license, the agreement required us to pay Epic an initial license fee, royalties, support fees and supplemental license fees for additional platforms. During a two-year support period, Epic was required to use commercially reasonable efforts to provide us with updates to the Unreal Engine 4 and technical support via a licensee forum. After the expiration of the support period, Epic has no further obligation to provide or to offer to provide any support services. The agreement was effective until terminated under the provisions of the agreement; however, pursuant to the terms of the agreement, we could only actively develop new or existing authorized products during a five-year active development period, which ended on August 11, 2025.
Product Development and Support
We develop and produce our titles using a model in which a group of creative, technical, and production professionals, including among others, designers, producers, programmers, artists, and sound engineers, in coordination with our marketing, finance, analytics, sales, and other professionals, has responsibility for the entire development and production process, including the supervision and coordination of, where appropriate, external resources. We believe this model allows us to deploy the best resources for a given task, by supplementing our internal expertise with top-quality external resources on an as-needed basis.
In addition to our experienced development team, we also rely, in part, on third-party software developers for the partial development of our titles. From time to time, we also acquire the license rights to publish and/or distribute software products.
We also provide various forms of product support. Central technology and development teams review, assess, and provide support to products throughout the development process. Quality assurance personnel are also involved throughout the development and production of published content. We subject all such content to extensive testing before public release to ensure compatibility with appropriate hardware systems and configurations and to minimize the number of bugs and other defects found in the products. To support our content, we generally provide rapid game support to players through various means, primarily online through our social media channels.
Competition
The interactive entertainment industry is intensely competitive and new interactive entertainment software products and platforms are regularly introduced. We believe that the main competitive factors in the interactive entertainment industry include: product features, game quality, and playability; brand name recognition; compatibility of products with popular platforms; access to distribution channels; online capability and functionality; ease of use; price; marketing support; and quality of customer service.
We compete with other publishers of virtual racing video games for console, PC, and mobile entertainment, including Codemasters, iRacing and other major video game publishers and esports companies, such as Electronic Arts. In addition to third-party software competitors, integrated video game console hardware and software companies, such as Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo, compete directly with us in the development of game titles for their respective platforms, including titles in the motorsport racing genre, even though they generally cannot create branded Le Mans games for which we hold an exclusive license. A number of software publishers have developed and commercialized, or are currently developing, online games for use by consumers, and we must compete with them for our audience base.
Furthermore, as there are relatively low barriers to entry to developing mobile or online free-to-play or other casual games, we expect new competitors to enter the market and existing competitors to allocate more resources to developing and marketing competing games and applications. We compete, or may compete, with a vast number of small companies and individuals who are able to create and launch casual games and other content using relatively limited resources and with relatively limited start-up time or expertise. Competition for the attention of consumers on mobile devices is intense, as the number of applications on mobile devices has been increasing dramatically, which, in turn, has required increased marketing to garner consumer awareness and attention. This increased competition could negatively impact our business. In addition, a continuing industry shift to free-to-play games could result in a reprioritization of our other products by traditional retailers and distributors.
In a broad sense, we compete for the leisure time and discretionary spending of consumers with other interactive entertainment companies, as well as with providers of different forms of entertainment, such as film, television, social networking, music and other consumer products.
Seasonality in Our Business
Historically, we have seen a high degree of seasonality in our business and financial results due to the introduction of seasonal video game updates. We generally aim to synchronize these yearly video game updates with the start of the new racing season and race calendars. Overall, our sales volumes are strongest around the time we launch our new products. We expect similar patterns for new racing series we are or may be in the process of developing and publishing in the future. We have also historically experienced a higher demand for our games during our fourth calendar quarter due to seasonal holiday demand.
Human Capital
Our business relies on our ability to attract and retain the right team to enable us to be a game developer, publisher and esports ecosystem provider of official motorsport racing series. Our headcount as of December 31, 2025 was 44, made up of 26 full-time employees and 18 contractors, with 32 people in total dedicated to game development, located primarily in the United States of America and Europe. None of our employees were covered by collective bargaining agreements, and we believe that relations with our employees are generally good.
Government Regulation
We are subject to various federal, state and international laws and regulations that affect companies conducting business on the Internet and mobile platforms, including those relating to privacy, use and protection of player and employee personal information and data (including the collection of data from minors), the Internet, behavioral tracking, mobile applications, content, advertising and marketing activities (including sweepstakes, contests and giveaways), and anti-corruption. In addition, laws and regulations relating to user privacy, including children’s data privacy, electronic contracts and communications, mobile communications, data collection, retention, consumer protection, and publishing activities, including production and delivery of content, advertising, localization, and information security have been adopted or are being considered for adoption by many jurisdictions and countries throughout the world. These laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act, which may restrict our ability to gather and use data about our users, or could harm our business by limiting the products and services we can offer consumers or the manner in which we advertise or offer them. Data privacy, data protection, localization, security and consumer-protection laws are evolving, and the interpretation and application of these laws in the United States (including compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act), Europe (including compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation), and elsewhere often are uncertain, contradictory and changing. It is possible that these laws may be interpreted or applied in a manner that is to us or otherwise with our practices, which could result in , regulatory and potential legal liability or require us to change our practices in a manner to our business. As a result, our reputation and brand may be , we could incur substantial costs, and we could both gamers and revenue. Furthermore, the costs of compliance with these laws may increase in the future as a result of the adoption of new laws, amendments, and changes in interpretation. Any on our part to comply with these laws or the application of these laws in an manner may our business and result in or significant legal liability.
Many of these laws and regulations are continuously evolving and developing, and the application to, and ultimate impact on, us is uncertain. Additional laws in all of these areas are likely to be passed in the future, which could result in significant limitations on or changes to the ways in which we can collect, use, host, store or transmit the personal information and data of our customers or employees, communicate with our players, and deliver products and services, and may significantly increase our compliance costs. As our business expands to include new uses or collection of data that are subject to privacy or security regulations, our compliance requirements and costs will increase, and we may be subject to increased regulatory scrutiny. See Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Business and Industry—Government regulations applicable to us may negatively impact our business” of this Report for additional information.
Intellectual Property
Our business is based on the creation, acquisition, use and protection of intellectual property. Some of this intellectual property is in the form of software code, trademarks and copyrights, and trade secrets that we use to develop our games and to enable them to run properly on multiple platforms. Other intellectual property we integrate includes audio-visual elements, including graphics, music and interface design.
While most of the intellectual property we use has been created or acquired by us, we have licensed rights to certain significant proprietary intellectual property. We have also licensed rights from third parties to use certain significant marquee racing brands and related intellectual property (See, “Strategic Licenses and Partnerships”). These agreements typically limit our use of the third party’s respective intellectual property to specific uses and for specific time periods, in consideration for up-front and recurring royalty payments that are typically based upon our sales of the respective products.
We protect our intellectual property rights by relying on federal, state and common law rights, as well as contractual restrictions. We control access to our proprietary technology by entering into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with our employees and contractors, and nondisclosure agreements with third parties. We also engage in monitoring and enforcement activities with respect to infringing uses of our intellectual property by third parties.
In addition to these contractual arrangements, we also rely on a combination of trade secret, copyright, trademark, trade dress and domain names to protect our games and other intellectual property. We typically own the copyright to the software code to our content, as well as the brand or title name trademark under which our games are marketed. We pursue the registration of our domain names, trademarks, and service marks in the United States and in certain locations outside the United States.
Corporate History and Available Information
Motorsport Gaming US LLC was organized as a limited liability company on August 2, 2018 under the laws of the State of Florida. On January 8, 2021, Motorsport Gaming US LLC converted into a Delaware corporation pursuant to a statutory conversion and changed its name to Motorsport Games Inc. in connection with our IPO. Effective as of January 8, 2021, 100% of the membership interests held by the sole member of Motorsport Gaming US LLC, Driven Lifestyle, converted into an aggregate of (i) 700,000 shares of Class A common stock of Motorsport Games Inc., which have 1 vote per share (the “DL Initial Class A Shares”) and (ii) 700,000 shares of Class B common stock, which have 10 votes per share, of Motorsport Games Inc., which represented all of the outstanding shares of Class A and Class B common stock immediately following the corporate conversion. Driven Lifestyle is the only holder of shares of the Company’s Class B common stock and does not have any transfer, conversion, registration, or economic rights with respect to such shares of Class B common stock.
Our Internet address is motorsportgames.com . We regularly file reports with the SEC, including our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). We make available free of charge through our website copies of these reports as soon as reasonably practicable after such documents are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. The SEC also maintains a website, sec.gov that contains the reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. The information contained on our website is not included as a part of, or incorporated by reference into, this Report.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
The following discussion of risk factors contains forward-looking statements. These risk factors may be important to understanding other statements in this Report. The following information should be read in conjunction with Part II, Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8, “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” of this Report.
The business, financial condition and operating results of the Company can be affected by a number of factors, whether currently known or unknown, including but not limited to those described below, any one or more of which could, directly or indirectly, cause the Company’s actual financial condition and operating results to vary materially from past, or from anticipated future, financial condition and operating results. Any of these factors, in whole or in part, could materially and adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition, operating results and stock price. References to past events are provided by way of example only and are not intended to be a complete listing or a representation as to whether or not such factors have occurred in the past or their likelihood of occurring in the future. Because of the following factors, as well as other factors affecting the Company’s financial condition and operating results, past financial performance should not be considered to be a reliable indicator of future performance, and investors should not use historical trends to anticipate results or trends in future periods.
Risks Related to Our Financial Condition and Liquidity
We may require additional capital to meet our financial obligations, and this capital might not be available on acceptable terms or at all.
We may need to engage in equity and/or debt financing arrangements or similar transactions (collectively, “Capital Financing”) to secure additional funds to continue our existing business operations and to fund our obligations. Other than the line of credit that we entered into with Citibank, N.A. (the “Citibank Line of Credit”), there are currently no commitments in place for future financing and there can be no assurance that we will be able to obtain funds on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, there can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with the covenants that we are required to comply with in order to access the Citibank Line of Credit.
If we raise additional funds through future issuances of equity (including preferred stock) or convertible debt securities, our existing stockholders could suffer significant dilution, and any new equity securities we issue could have rights, preferences and privileges superior to those of holders of our Class A common stock, including, without limitation, in respect of the payment of dividends and the payment of liquidating distributions. Because our decision to issue debt or preferred securities in any future offering, or to borrow money from lenders, will depend in part on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing, or nature of any such future offerings or borrowings.
Holders of our Class A common stock will bear the risk of any such future offerings or borrowings. Further, any future debt financing could require compliance with restrictive covenants relating to our capital raising activities and other financial and operational matters, which may make it more difficult for us to obtain additional capital and to pursue business opportunities, including potential acquisitions. Debt financing must be repaid regardless of whether we generate revenues or cash flows from operations and may be secured by substantially all of our assets.
Even if we do secure additional Capital Financing, our liquidity position may be insufficient to satisfy our future capital requirements if our anticipated level of revenues is not achieved because of, for example, decreased sales of our products due to the disposition of key assets, further changes in our product roadmap and/or our inability to deliver new products for our various other licenses; less than anticipated consumer acceptance of our offering of products and events; less than effective marketing and promotion campaigns, decreased consumer spending in response to weak economic conditions or weakness in the overall electronic games category; adverse changes in foreign currency exchange rates; decreased sales of our products and events as a result of increased competitive activities by our competitors; changes in consumer purchasing habits, such as the impact of higher energy prices on consumer purchasing behavior; less than anticipated results from our existing or new products or from its advertising and/or marketing plans; or if our expenses, including, without limitation, for marketing, advertising and promotions, or product returns, exceed the anticipated level of expenses.
Restrictions under the Credit Agreement with Citibank may affect our ability to finance our operations.
The Credit Agreement (as defined below) with Citibank (as defined below) and related documents require us to abide by certain restrictive covenants, including covenants related to conducting our business and maintaining certain levels of cash flow and fixed charges. To the extent we require additional funding while any borrowing remains outstanding under the Citibank Promissory Note (as defined below), we will therefore be limited in the types of fundraising transactions that we are able to pursue in compliance with the Credit Agreement. In addition, the Citibank Promissory Note is secured by a lien on substantially all our assets, and if we were to default Citibank could foreclose on our assets. If funding is not available or not available at terms acceptable to us, we may be compelled to further reduce overhead costs and our cash obligations in the short term. In addition, we may look to divest or bring in equity partners for our various divisions and bring in near term capital.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
If we do not consistently deliver popular products or if consumers prefer competing products, our business may be negatively impacted.
In order to remain competitive, we must continuously develop new products or enhancements to our existing products. Consumer preferences for games are usually cyclical and difficult to predict, and even the most successful content remains popular for only a limited period of time unless refreshed or otherwise enhanced. These products or enhancements may not be well-received by consumers, even if well-reviewed and of high quality. Further, competitors may develop content that imitates or competes with our best-selling games, potentially taking sales away from us or reducing our ability to charge the same prices we have historically charged for our products. These competing products may take a larger share of consumer spending than anticipated, which could cause product sales to fall below expectations. If we do not continue to develop consistently high-quality and well-received games, if our marketing fails to resonate with our consumers, if consumers lose interest in a genre of games we produce, if the use of cross-promotion within our mobile games to retain consumers becomes less , or if our competitors develop more products or offer competitive products at lower prices, our revenues and profit margins could . Further, a by us to develop a high-quality product, or our development of a product that is otherwise not well-received, could potentially result in additional expenditures to respond to consumer demands, our reputation, and increase the likelihood that our future products will not be well- received. The increased importance of downloadable content to our business amplifies these risks, as downloadable content for -received games typically generates lower-than-expected sales. In addition, our own -selling products could compete with our other games, reducing sales for those other games.
Our business and products are highly concentrated in the racing game genre, and our operating results may suffer if consumer preferences shift away from this genre.
All of our revenue is currently generated, and is expected to continue to be substantially generated, from products in the racing game genre. Accordingly, our future success will depend on the popularity of games in the racing game genre with consumers. Consumer preferences are difficult to predict and subject to frequent changes, and if interest in the racing game genre declines, even if our share of the racing game genre is stable or expands, our operating results could suffer. Additionally, our concentration in the racing game genre could place us at a disadvantage against other gaming companies that offer a more diverse selection of games.
If we do not provide high-quality product s in a timely manner, our business operations, financial performance, financial condition, liquidity, cash flows and/or results of operations may be negatively impacted.
Consumer expectations regarding the quality, performance and integrity of our products and services are high. Consumers may be critical of our brands, games, services and/or business practices for a wide variety of reasons, and such negative reactions may not be foreseeable or within our control to manage effectively. For example, if our games or services, such as our creation and organization of esports leagues and events, do not function as consumers expect, whether because they fail to function as advertised or otherwise, our sales may suffer. If any of these issues occur, consumers may stop playing the game and may be less likely to return to the game as often in the future, which may negatively impact our business.
Additionally, delays in product releases or disruptions following the commercial release of one or more new products could negatively impact our business, our revenues and reputation and could cause our results of operations to be materially different from expectations. This is particularly the case where we seek to release certain products in conjunction with key events, such as the beginning of a racing season or a major racing event. If we fail to release our products in a timely manner, or if we are unable to continue to improve our existing games by adding features and functionality that will encourage continued engagement with these games, our business may be negatively impacted. Moreover, if we or our third-party developers experience unanticipated development delays, financial difficulties, or additional costs, for example as a result of a pandemic or labor supply constraints affecting many industries, we may not be able to release titles according to our schedule and at budgeted costs. There can be no assurance that our products will be sufficiently so that we can recoup these costs or make a profit on these products.
Additionally, the amount of lead time and cost involved in the development of high-quality products is increasing due to growing technical complexities and higher expectations from consumers. As a result, it is especially critical that we accurately predict consumer demand for such products. If our future products do not achieve expected consumer acceptance or generate sufficient revenues upon introduction, we may not be able to recover the substantial up-front development and marketing costs associated with those products.
Declines in consumer spending and other adverse changes in economic, market and geopolitical conditions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.
Our business is subject to economic, market and geopolitical conditions, which are beyond our control. In particular, o ur product purchases are predominately driven by discretionary spending by consumers. We believe that consumer spending is influenced by general economic conditions and the availability of discretionary income. This makes our products particularly sensitive to general economic conditions and economic cycles as consumers are generally more willing to make discretionary purchases, including purchases of products like ours, during periods in which favorable economic conditions prevail. Adverse economic, market and geopolitical conditions, such as a prolonged U.S. or international general economic downturn, whether or not caused by a pandemic or geopolitical issues, including the ongoing wars between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas, could result in further periods of increased inflation, unemployment levels, tax rates, interest rates, energy prices, or declining consumer confidence, which would also reduce consumer spending. Reduced consumer spending may in the future result in reduced demand for our products and may also require increased selling and promotional expenses, which has had and may continue to have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. In addition, during periods of relative economic , our consolidated credit risk, reflecting our counterparty dealings with distributors, customers, capital providers and others may increase, perhaps materially so. Furthermore, uncertainty and changes in the economy could also increase the risk of material on our investments, costs associated with developing and publishing our products, the cost and availability of sources of financing, and our exposure to material from debts, any of which could have a material effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. If economic conditions , our business, financial condition and operating results could be affected.
We are particularly susceptible to market conditions and risks specific to the entertainment industry, which include the popularity, price, and timing of our products; changes in consumer demographics; the availability and popularity of other forms of entertainment and leisure; and critical reviews and public tastes and preferences, which may change rapidly and cannot necessarily be predicted.
We depend on a relatively small number of franchises for a significant portion of our revenues and profits.
We follow a franchise model and a significant portion of our revenues has historically been derived from products based on a relatively small number of popular franchises, including our Le Mans Ultimate franchise, which now accounts for the majority of our revenue. For the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, revenues associated with our Le Mans Ultimate franchise accounted for approximately 78% and 34% of our total revenue, respectively. For the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, sales through our two main distribution channels accounted for approximately 86% and 46% of our consolidated revenues, respectively. Two other distribution channels accounted for 40% of our revenues for the year ended December 31, 2024. For the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, sales through our two main distribution channels accounted for approximately 76% and 45% of our accounts receivable, respectively. One other distribution channel accounted for 12% of our accounts receivable as of December 31, 2025 and two other distribution channels accounted for 32% of our accounts receivable for the year ended December 31, 2024. A reduction in sales from or loss of these distribution channels would have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations and financial condition.
Due to this dependence on a limited number of franchises, the failure to achieve anticipated results by one or more products based on these franchises, or the loss of any franchise, especially our two main distributors, could negatively impact our business. Additionally, if the popularity of a franchise declines, we may have to write off the unrecovered portion of the underlying intellectual property assets, which could negatively impact our business. In the future, we expect this trend to continue with a relatively limited number of franchises producing a disproportionately high percentage of our revenues and profits.
Our ability to acquire and maintain licenses to intellectual property, especially for racing series, affects our revenue and profitability. Competition for these licenses may make them more expensive and increase our costs.
Most of our products and services are based on or incorporate intellectual property owned by others. For example, we have obtained exclusive licenses to develop multi-platform games, as well as to create and organize esports leagues and events, for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and the WEC. Competition for these licenses and rights is intense and could result in increased minimum guarantees and royalty rates payable to licensors and developers, which would significantly increase our costs and reduce our profitability. Furthermore, if we are unable to maintain these licenses and rights or obtain additional licenses or rights with significant commercial value, our ability to develop successful and engaging games and services may be adversely affected and our revenue, profitability and cash flows may decline significantly. For example, as discussed elsewhere in this Report, our BTCC license agreement and INDYCAR license agreements were terminated by the respective licensors, effective November 2023.
Our business is partly dependent on our ability to enter into successful software development arrangements with third parties.
We currently rely on third-party software developers for the partial development of all of our titles, and in the future, we expect to continue to rely on third-party software developers for the partial development of some of our titles. Accordingly, our success depends in part on our ability to enter into successful software development arrangements with such third-party developers. Generally, quality third-party developers are continually in high demand. Software developers who have helped develop titles for us in the past may not be available to develop software for us in the future for various reasons, including their engagement on other projects. Due to the limited number of quality third-party software developers and the limited control that we exercise over them, these developers may not be able to complete titles for us on a timely basis, within acceptable quality standards, or at all. Additionally, we have entered into agreements with certain third parties to use licensed intellectual property in our titles. These agreements typically require us to make development payments, pay license fees and satisfy other conditions. Our development payments may not be sufficient to permit developers to develop new software successfully, which could result in material delays and significantly increase our costs in bringing particular products to market. Future sales of our titles may not be sufficient to recover development payments and to software developers and licensors, and we may not have adequate financial and other resources to our contractual commitments to such developers. If we to our obligations under agreements with third-party developers and licensors, the agreements may be or modified in ways that are to us, and have a material effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.
Our business depends in part on the success and availability of platforms and mass media channels developed by third parties and our ability to develop commercially successful content, products, and services for those platforms.
The success of our business is driven in part by the commercial success and adequate supply of third-party platforms for which we develop our products and services or through which our products and services are distributed or marketed, including our league tournaments and competitions, such as through Twitch. Our success also depends on our ability to accurately predict which channels, platforms and distribution methods will be successful in the marketplace, our ability to develop commercially successful content, products and services for these platforms, our ability to simultaneously manage products and services on multiple platforms, our ability to effectively transition our products and services to new platforms, and our ability to effectively manage the transition of our gamers from one generation or demographic to the next. We must make product development decisions and commit significant resources well in advance of the commercial availability of new platforms and channels, and we may incur significant expense to adjust our product portfolio and development efforts in response to changing consumer preferences. Additionally, we may enter into certain exclusive licensing arrangements that affect our ability to deliver or market products or services on certain channels and platforms. A platform for which we are developing products and services may not as expected or new platforms may take market share and interactive entertainment consumers away from platforms for which we have devoted significant resources. If consumer demand for the channels or platforms for which we are developing products and services is lower than our expectations, we may be to fully recover the investments we have made in developing our products and services, and our financial performance will be . Alternatively, a channel or platform for which we have not devoted significant resources could be more than we initially anticipated, causing us to not be to take of meaningful revenue .
Third-party platform providers may be able to influence our products and costs.
We plan to derive significant revenues from the distribution of certain of our future products on third-party mobile and web platforms, such as the Apple App Store, Steam, and the Google Play Store. These platforms may also serve as significant online distribution platforms for, and/or provide other services critical for the operation of, a number of our games. If these platforms modify their current or future discovery mechanisms, communication channels available to developers, operating systems, terms of service or other policies (including fees), or they develop their own competitive offerings, our business could be negatively impacted. Additionally, if these platform providers are required to change how they label free-to-play games or take payment for in-app purchases or change how the personal information of consumers is made available to developers, our business could be negatively impacted.
Moreover, when we develop interactive entertainment software products for hardware platforms offered by companies such as Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo, the physical products are replicated exclusively by that hardware manufacturer or their approved replicator. The agreements with these manufacturers typically include certain provisions, such as approval rights over all software products and related promotional materials and the ability to change the fee they charge for the manufacturing of products, which allow the hardware manufacturers substantial influence over the cost and the release schedule of such interactive entertainment software products. In addition, because each of the manufacturers is also a publisher of games for its own hardware platforms and may manufacture products for other licensees, a manufacturer may give priority to its own products or those of our competitors. Accordingly, console manufacturers like Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo could cause unanticipated delays in the release of our products, as well as increases to projected development, manufacturing, marketing or distribution costs, any of which could negatively impact our business.
The platform providers also control the networks over which consumers purchase digital products and services for their platforms and through which we provide online game capabilities for our products. The control that the platform providers have over the fee structures and/or retail pricing for products and services for their platforms and online networks could impact the volume of purchases of our products made over their networks and our profitability. With respect to certain downloadable content and microtransactions, the networks provided by these platform providers are the exclusive means of selling and distributing this content. Further, increased competition for limited premium “digital shelf space” has placed the platform providers in an increasingly better position to negotiate favorable terms of sale. If the platform provider establishes terms that restrict our offerings on its platform, significantly changes the financial terms on which these products or services are offered, or does not approve the inclusion of online capabilities in our console products, our business could be negatively impacted.
The increasing importance of free-to-play games to our business exposes us to the risks of that business model, including the dependence on a relatively small number of consumers for a significant portion of revenues and profits from any given game.
The success of our business is partially dependent on our ability to develop, enhance and monetize additional free-to-play games. As such, we are increasingly exposed to the risks of the free-to-play business model. For example, we may invest in the development of new free-to- play interactive entertainment products that do not achieve significant commercial success, in which case our revenues from those products likely will be lower than anticipated and we may not recover our development costs. Further, if: (1) we are unable to continue to offer free-to-play games that encourage consumers to purchase our virtual currency and subsequently use it to buy our virtual items; (2) we fail to offer monetization features that appeal to these consumers; (3) these consumers do not continue to play our free-to-play games or purchase virtual items at the same rate; (4) our platform providers make it more difficult or expensive for players to purchase our virtual currency; or (5) we cannot encourage significant additional consumers to purchase virtual items in our free-to-play games, our business will be impacted.
Furthermore, as there are relatively low barriers to entry to developing mobile or online free-to-play or other casual games, we expect new competitors to enter the market and existing competitors to allocate more resources to developing and marketing competing games and applications. We compete, or may compete, with a vast number of small companies and individuals who are able to create and launch casual games and other content using relatively limited resources and with relatively limited start-up time or expertise. Competition for the attention of consumers on mobile devices is intense, as the number of applications on mobile devices has been increasing dramatically, which, in turn, has required increased marketing to garner consumer awareness and attention. This increased competition could negatively impact our business. In addition, a continuing industry shift to free-to-play games could result in a reprioritization of our other products by traditional retailers and distributors.
We are subject to risks associated with operating in a rapidly developing industry and a relatively new market.
Many elements of our business are unique, evolving and relatively unproven. In particular, our esports business and prospects will depend on the continuing development of live streaming of competitive esports gaming. During 2025 and 2024, we did not generate any revenue from esports and there can be no assurance that we will be able to generate revenue from esports in the future. The market for esports and amateur online gaming competitions is relatively new and rapidly developing and is subject to significant challenges. Our esport business will rely upon our ability to cultivate and grow an active gamer community, and our ability to successfully monetize such community, including, for example, through tournament fees, subscriptions for our esports gaming services, and advertising and sponsorship opportunities. In addition, our continued growth of our esports business 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. We cannot you that we will in any of these aspects or that the esports gaming industry will generate revenue in the future or grow.
We plan to generate a portion of our revenues from advertising and sponsorship during our esports events. If we fail to attract advertisers and sponsors to our gaming platform, tournaments or competitions, our revenues may be adversely affected.
We plan to continue to generate a portion of our revenues from advertising and sponsorship during our esports events as online viewership of our esports gaming offerings expand. Our revenues from advertising and sponsorship will partly depend on the continual development of the online advertising industry and advertisers’ willingness to allocate budgets to online advertising in the esports gaming industry. In addition, companies that decide to advertise or promote online may utilize more established methods or channels, such as more established internet portals or search engines, over advertising on our gaming platform. If the online advertising and sponsorship market does not grow, or if we are unable to capture and retain a sufficient share of that market, our ability to increase our current level of advertising and sponsorship revenue and our profitability and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.
We are reliant on the retention of certain key personnel and the hiring of strategically valuable personnel, and we may lose or be unable to hire one or more of such personnel.
Our success depends in part on the continued service of our senior management team, key technical employees and other highly skilled personnel and on our ability to identify, hire, develop, motivate, retain and integrate highly qualified personnel for all areas of our organization. Certain employees, such as game designers, product managers and engineers, are in high demand, and we devote significant resources to identifying, hiring, training, and successfully integrating and retaining these employees. We have historically hired a number of key personnel through acquisitions, and as competition with several other game companies increases, we may incur significant expenses in continuing this practice. If we are unable to attract and retain the necessary personnel, particularly in critical areas of our business, we may not achieve our strategic goals.
Competition in the interactive entertainment industry is intense, and our existing and potential users may be attracted to competing products or other forms of entertainment.
We compete with other publishers of interactive entertainment software, both within and outside the United States. Generally, some of our competitors include very large corporations with significantly greater financial, marketing and product development resources than we have. Our larger competitors may be able to leverage their greater financial, technical, personnel and other resources to provide larger budgets for development and marketing and make higher offers to licensors and developers for commercially desirable properties, as well as adopt more aggressive pricing policies to develop more commercially successful video game products than we do. In addition, competitors with large portfolios and popular games typically have greater influence with platform providers, retailers, distributors and other customers who may, in turn, provide more favorable support to those competitors’ games.
Further, the esports gaming industry generally is highly competitive. For our esports business, our competitors range from established leagues and championships owned directly, as well as leagues franchised by, well-known and capitalized game publishers and developers, interactive entertainment companies and diversified media companies to emerging start-ups, and we expect new competitors to continue to emerge throughout the amateur esports gaming ecosystem. If our competitors develop and launch competing amateur city leagues, tournaments or competitions, or develop a more successful amateur online gaming platform for games similar to ours, then our revenue, margins, and profitability will decline.
Additionally, we compete with other forms of entertainment and leisure activities. As our business continues to expand in complexity and scope, we have increased exposure to additional competitors, including those with access to large existing user bases and control over distribution channels. Further, it is difficult to predict and prepare for rapid changes in consumer demand that could materially alter public preferences for different forms of entertainment and leisure activities. Failure to adequately identify and adapt to these competitive pressures could negatively impact our business.
Our revenue may be harmed by the proliferation of “cheating” programs and scam offers that seek to exploit our games and players, which may negatively affect players’ game-playing experiences and our ability to reliably validate our audience metric reporting and may lead players to stop playing our games.
Unrelated third parties have developed, and may continue to develop, “cheating” programs that enable players to exploit vulnerabilities in our games, play them in an automated way, collude to alter the intended game play or obtain unfair advantages over other players who do play fairly. These programs harm the experience of players who play fairly and may reduce the demand for virtual items, disrupting our in-game economy. If we are unable to discover and disable these programs quickly, our operations may be disrupted, our reputation may be damaged, players may stop playing our games and our ability to reliably validate our audience metrics may be negatively affected. These “cheating” programs and scam offers may result in lost revenue from paying players, our in-game economies, our personnel’s time, increase costs of developing technological measures to combat these programs and activities, increase our customer service costs needed to respond to players, and lead to legal .
Some of our players may make sales or purchases of virtual items used in our games through unauthorized or fraudulent third-party websites, which may reduce our revenue.
Virtual items in our games have no monetary value outside of our games. Nonetheless, some of our players may make sales and/or purchases of our virtual items through unauthorized third-party sellers in exchange for real currency. These unauthorized or fraudulent transactions are usually arranged on third-party websites. The virtual items offered may have been obtained through unauthorized means such as exploiting vulnerabilities in our games, scamming our players with fake offers for virtual items or other game benefits, or credit card fraud. We do not generate any revenue from these transactions. These unauthorized purchases and sales from third-party sellers could impede our revenue and profit growth by, among other things:
decreasing revenue from authorized transactions;
creating downward pressure on the prices we charge players for our virtual currency and virtual items;
increasing chargebacks from unauthorized credit card transactions;
causing us to lose revenue from dissatisfied players who stop playing a particular game;
increasing costs we incur to develop technological measures to curtail unauthorized transactions;
resulting in negative publicity or harming our reputation with players and partners; and
increasing customer support costs to respond to dissatisfied players.
There can be no assurance that our efforts to prevent or minimize these unauthorized or fraudulent transactions will be successful.
The success of our business relies on our marketing and branding efforts, and these efforts may not be accepted by consumers to the extent we planned.
Because we are a consumer brand, we rely on marketing and advertising to increase brand visibility with potential customers. We currently advertise through a blend of direct and indirect advertising channels, including through activities on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Twitch, YouTube and other online social networks, online advertising, public relations activity, print and broadcast advertising, coordinated in-store and industry promotions (including merchandising and point of purchase displays), participation in cooperative advertising programs, direct response vehicles, and product sampling through demonstration software distributed through the Internet or the digital online services provided by our partners. If we are unable to recover our marketing costs, or if our broad marketing campaigns are not successful or are terminated, it could have a material adverse effect on our growth, results of operations and financial condition.
Our games are subject to scrutiny regarding the appropriateness of their content. If we fail to receive our target ratings for certain titles, or if our retailers refuse to sell such titles due to what they perceive to be objectionable content, it could have a negative impact on our business.
Certain of our gaming products are subject to ratings by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (the “ESRB”), a self-regulatory body based in the United States 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 we are unable to obtain the ratings we have targeted for our products, it could have a negative impact on our business. In some instances, we may be required to modify our products to meet 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. Further, if one of our games is “re-rated” for any reason, a ratings organization could require corrective actions, which could include a recall, retailers could to sell it and demand that we accept the return of any or returned copies or consumers could demand a refund for copies previously purchased.
Additionally, although lawsuits seeking damages for injuries allegedly suffered by third parties as a result of video games have generally been unsuccessful in the courts, claims of this kind may be asserted and be successful in the future.
Government regulations applicable to us may negatively impact our business.
We are subject to a number of foreign and domestic laws and regulations that affect companies conducting business on the Internet. In addition, laws and regulations relating to user privacy, electronic contracts and communications, mobile communications, data collection, retention, consumer protection, and publishing activities, including production and delivery of content, advertising, localization, and information security have been adopted or are being considered for adoption by many jurisdictions and countries throughout the world. These laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act, may restrict our ability to gather and use data about our users, and could harm our business by limiting the products and services we can offer consumers or the manner in which we advertise and offer them. Data privacy, data protection, localization, security and consumer-protection laws are evolving, and the interpretation and application of these laws in the United States (including compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act), Europe (including compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation), and elsewhere often are uncertain, contradictory and changing. It is possible that these laws may be interpreted or applied in a manner that is adverse to us or otherwise inconsistent with our practices, which could result in litigation, regulatory and potential legal liability or require us to change our practices in a manner to our business. As a result, our reputation and brand may be , we could incur substantial costs, and we could both gamers and revenue. Furthermore, the costs of compliance with these laws may increase in the future as a result of changes in interpretation. As our business expands to include new uses or collection of data that are subject to privacy or security regulations, our compliance requirements and costs will increase, and we may be subject to increased regulatory . The online gaming industry in particular has attracted regulatory attention regarding issues such as in-game purchases, age verification, and the protection of younger players, and additional regulation in these areas could impact our business practices or product offerings. Any on our part to comply with these laws or the application of these laws in an manner may our business and result in or significant legal liability.
Certain of our business models could be subject to new laws or regulations or evolving interpretations of existing laws and regulations. For example, the growth and development of electronic commerce, virtual items and virtual currency has prompted calls for laws and regulations that could limit or restrict the sale of our products and services or otherwise impact our products and services. In addition, we include modes in our games that allow players to compete against each other and manage player competitions that are based on our products and services. New laws related to these business models, or changes in the interpretation of current laws that impact these business models, could subject us to additional regulation and oversight, lessen the engagement with, and growth of, profitable business models, and expose us to increased compliance costs, significant liability, penalties and harm to our reputation and brand.
We are subject to laws in certain foreign countries, and adhere to industry standards in the United States, that mandate rating requirements or set other restrictions on the advertisement or distribution of interactive entertainment software based on content. In addition, certain foreign countries allow government censorship of interactive entertainment software products. Adoption of ratings systems, censorship or restrictions on distribution of interactive entertainment software based on content could harm our business by limiting the products we are able to offer to our customers. In addition, compliance with new and possibly inconsistent regulations for different territories could be costly, delay or prevent the release of our products in those territories.
We are exposed to seasonality in the sale of our retail products.
Historically, we have seen a high degree of seasonality in our business and financial results due to the introduction of seasonal video game updates. For example, we have typically experienced higher levels of consumer demand occurring during and around the launch of the seasonal annual update of a racing series product, the overall start of the racing season, and the calendar year-end holiday buying season. Receivables and credit risk are likewise higher during these periods, as retailers increase their purchases of our products in anticipation of increased demand. Delays in development, approvals or manufacturing could affect the timing of the release of products, causing us to miss key selling periods, which could negatively impact our business.
Our retail products, online gaming platform and games offered through our gaming platform may contain defects.
Our retail products, online gaming platform and the games offered through our gaming platform are extremely complex and are difficult to develop and distribute. We have quality controls in place to detect defects in our retail products and gaming platform before they are released. Nonetheless, these quality controls are subject to human error, overriding, and resource or technical constraints. Further, we have not undertaken independent third-party testing, verification or analysis of our gaming platform and associated systems and controls. Therefore, our products, gaming platform and quality controls and the preventative measures we have implemented have not, and in the future may not, be effective in detecting all defects in our products and gaming platform. In the event a significant defect in our retail products, gaming platform and associated systems and controls is realized, we could be required to offer refunds, suspend the availability of our esports events and other gameplay, or expend significant resources to cure the defect, each of which could significantly harm our business and operating results.
We may be held liable for information or content displayed on, retrieved from or linked to our gaming platform, or distributed to our users.
Our interactive live streaming platform enables gamers to exchange information and engage in various other online activities. Although we require our gamers to register under their real names, we do not require user identifications used and displayed during gameplay to contain any real-name information, and hence we are unable to verify the sources of all the information posted by our gamers. In addition, because a majority of the communications on our online and in- person gaming platform is conducted in real time, we are unable to examine the content generated by gamers before it is posted or streamed. Therefore, it is possible that gamers may engage in illegal, obscene or incendiary conversations or activities, including publishing of inappropriate or illegal content. If any content on our platform is deemed illegal, obscene or incendiary, or if appropriate licenses and third-party consents have not been obtained, claims may be brought against us for , libel, , copyright, patent or trademark , other activities or other theories and based on the nature and content of the information delivered on or otherwise accessed through our platform. Moreover, the costs of compliance may continue to increase when more content is made available on our platform as a result of our growing base of gamers, which may affect our results of operations.
Additionally, we currently generate, and intend to generate in the future, revenue through offering advertising within certain of our franchises. The content of in-game advertisements is generally created and delivered by third-party advertisers without our pre-approval, and, as such, objectionable content may be published in our games by these advertisers. This objectionable third party-created content may expose us to regulatory action or claims related to content, or otherwise negatively impact our business.
We may experience security breaches and cyber threats.
We continually face cyber risks and threats that seek to damage, disrupt or gain access to our networks and our gaming platform, supporting infrastructure, intellectual property and other assets. In addition, we rely on technological infrastructure, including third-party cloud hosting and broadband, provided by third-party business partners to support the in-person and online functionality of our gaming platform. These business partners are also subject to cyber risks and threats. Such cyber risks and threats may be difficult to detect, and the techniques that may be used to obtain unauthorized access or disable, degrade, exploit or sabotage our networks and gaming platform change frequently and often are not detected. Our systems and processes to guard against cyber risks and to help protect our data and systems, and the systems and processes of our third-party business partners, may not be adequate. Any to prevent or mitigate security or cyber risks, or respond to a security or cyber risk, could result in to our gaming platform, the gamer experience, cause gamers to confidence in our gaming platform and utilizing it, as well as significant legal and financial exposure. This could our business and reputation, our relationships with partners and our competitive position.
Our business could be adversely affected if our data privacy and security practices are inadequate, or are perceived as being inadequate, to prevent data breaches, or under the applicable data privacy and security laws generally.
In the course of our business, we may collect, process, store and use gamer and other information, including personally identifiable information, passwords and credit card information. Our security controls, policies and practices may not be able to prevent the improper or unauthorized access, acquisition or disclosure of such information. The unauthorized access, acquisition or disclosure of this information, or a perception that we do not adequately secure this information, could result in legal liability, costly remedial measures, governmental and regulatory investigations, harm our profitability and reputation and cause our financial results to be materially affected. In addition, third-party vendors and business partners receive access to information that we collect. These vendors and business partners may not prevent data security breaches with respect to the information we provide them or fully enforce our policies, contractual obligations and disclosures regarding the collection, use, storage, transfer and retention of personal data. A data security of one of our vendors or business partners could cause reputational to them and/or impact our credibility to our gamer community as well as subject us to significant legal and financial exposure.
We depend on servers and Internet bandwidth to operate our games and digital services with online features. If we were to lose server capacity or lack sufficient Internet bandwidth for any reason, our business could suffer.
We rely on data servers, including those owned or controlled by third parties, to enable our customers to download our games and other downloadable content, to access our online gaming platform, and to operate other products with online functionality. Events such as limited hardware failure, any broad-based catastrophic server malfunction, a significant intrusion by hackers that circumvents security measures, or a failure of disaster recovery services would likely interrupt the functionality of our games with online services and could result in a loss of sales for games and related services. An extended interruption of service could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. See the risk factor titled “A significant disruption in service on our website or platforms could our reputation and result in a of traffic and visitors, which could our business, brand, operating results and financial condition” for additional information.
If we underestimate the amount of server capacity our business requires or if our business were to grow more quickly than expected, our consumers may experience service problems, such as slow or interrupted gaming access. Insufficient server capacity may result in decreased sales, a loss of our consumer base and adverse consequences to our reputation. Conversely, if we overestimate the amount of server capacity required by our business, we may incur additional operating costs.
Because of the importance of our online business to our revenues and results of operations, our ability to access adequate Internet bandwidth and online computational resources to support our business is critical. If the price of either such resource increases, we may not be able to increase our prices or subscriber levels to compensate for such costs, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results.
A significant disruption in service on our website or platforms could damage our reputation and result in a loss of traffic and visitors, which could harm our business, brand, operating results and financial condition.
Our brands, reputation, and ability to attract gamers or visitors depend on the reliable performance of our games, website and the supporting systems, technology and infrastructure. We may experience significant interruptions with our systems in the future. Interruptions in these systems, whether due to system failures, programming or configuration errors, computer viruses, or physical or electronic break-ins, could affect the availability of our inventory on our website and prevent or inhibit the ability of customers to access our website. Problems with the reliability or security of our systems could harm our reputation, result in a loss of customers and result in additional costs.
Substantially all of the communications, network and computer hardware used to operate our websites are located at co-location facilities. Although we have multiple locations, our systems are not fully redundant. In addition, we do not own or control the operation of these facilities. Our systems and operations are vulnerable to damage or interruption from fire, flood, power loss, telecommunications failure, terrorist attacks, acts of war, electronic and physical break-ins, computer viruses, earthquakes, and similar events. The occurrence of any of these events could damage our systems and hardware or could cause them to fail.
Problems faced by our third-party web hosting providers could adversely affect the experience of our customers. For example, our third-party web hosting providers could close their facilities without adequate notice. Any financial difficulties, up to and including bankruptcy, faced by our third-party web hosting providers or any of the service providers with whom they contract may have negative effects on our business, the nature and extent of which are difficult to predict. If our third-party web hosting providers are unable to keep up with our growing capacity needs, our business could be harmed.
Our business partners may be unable to honor their obligations to us, or their actions may put us at risk.
We rely on various business partners, including third-party service providers, vendors, licensing partners, development partners, and licensees in many areas of our business. Their actions may put our business and our reputation and brand at risk. For example, we may have disputes with our business partners that may impact our business and/or financial results. In many cases, our business partners may be given access to sensitive and proprietary information in order to provide services and support to our teams, and they may misappropriate our information and engage in unauthorized use of it. In addition, the failure of these third parties to provide adequate services and technologies, or the failure of the third parties to adequately maintain or update their services and technologies, could result in a disruption to our business operations. Further, disruptions in the financial markets, economic downturns, poor business decisions, insolvency, or reputational may affect our business partners, and they may not be to continue their obligations to us or we may our arrangements with them. Alternative arrangements and services may not be available to us on commercially reasonable terms, or we may experience business upon a transition to an alternative partner or vendor. If we one or more significant business partners, including due to their or business , our business could be and our financial results could be materially affected.
Our efforts to expand into new products and services may subject us to additional risks.
We are exploring ways to capitalize on new trends to diversify our product mix, reduce our operating risks, and increase our revenue. There are risks and uncertainties associated with these efforts, particularly in instances where the markets are not fully developed. There is no assurance that we will be able to attract a sufficiently large number of customers or recover costs incurred in developing and marketing any of these new products or services. For example, we may offer games that do not attract sufficient purchases of subscriptions or DLCs, which may cause our investments to fail to realize the expected benefits. External factors, such as competitive alternatives and shifting market preferences, may also have an impact on the successful implementation of any new products or services. Failure to successfully manage these risks in the development and implementation of new products or services could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.
Failure to adequately protect our intellectual property, technology and confidential information could harm our business and operating results.
Our business depends on our intellectual property, technology and confidential information, the protection of which is crucial to the success of our business. We rely on a combination of trademark, trade secret and copyright law and contractual restrictions to protect our intellectual property, technology and confidential information. In addition, we attempt to protect our intellectual property, technology and confidential information by requiring certain of our employees and consultants to enter into confidentiality and assignment of inventions agreements and certain third parties to enter into nondisclosure agreements. These agreements may not effectively grant all necessary rights to any inventions that may have been developed by the employees and consultants. In addition, these agreements may not effectively prevent unauthorized use or disclosure of our confidential information, intellectual property or technology and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized use or disclosure of our confidential information, intellectual property, or technology. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy aspects of our website features, software and functionality or obtain and use information that we consider to be proprietary. Changes in the law or court rulings may also affect our ability to prevent others from using our technology.
We currently lease or hold rights to certain domain names associated with our business. The regulation of domain names in the United States is subject to change. Regulatory bodies could establish additional top-level domains, appoint additional domain name registrars, or modify the requirements for holding domain names. As a result, we may not be able to acquire or maintain all domain names that are otherwise important for our business.
The costs involved in enforcement of our intellectual property rights could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We pursue the registration of our copyrights, trademarks, service marks, and domain names in the U.S. and in certain locations outside the U.S. This process can be expensive and time-consuming, may not always be successful depending on local laws or other circumstances, and we also may choose not to pursue registrations in every location depending on the nature of the project to which the intellectual property rights pertain. We may, over time, increase our investments in protecting our creative works. Enforcement of our intellectual property rights to certain trademarks and service marks, such as Le Mans, will require reliance on enforcement efforts of third parties.
Litigation may be necessary to enforce our intellectual property rights, protect our trade secrets or determine the validity and scope of proprietary rights claimed by others. Any litigation of this nature, regardless of outcome or merit, could result in substantial costs, adverse publicity, and diversion of management and technical resources, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If we fail to maintain, protect and enhance our intellectual property rights, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be harmed.
We may be subject to claims of infringement of third-party intellectual property rights.
From time to time, third parties may claim that we have infringed their intellectual property rights. For example, patent holding companies may assert patent claims against us in which they seek to monetize patents they have purchased or otherwise obtained. Although we take steps to avoid knowingly violating the intellectual property rights of others, it is possible that third parties still may claim infringement.
Existing or future infringement claims against us, whether valid or not, may be expensive to defend and divert the attention of our employees from business operations. Such claims or litigation could require us to pay damages, royalties, legal fees and other costs. We also could be required to stop offering, distributing or supporting our products, our gaming platform or other features or services, including esports events, which incorporate the affected intellectual property rights, redesign products, features or services to avoid infringement, or obtain a license, all of which could be costly and harm our business.
In addition, many patents have been issued that may apply to potential new modes of delivering, playing or monetizing interactive entertainment software products and services, such as those offered on our gaming platform or that we would like to offer in the future. We may discover that future opportunities to provide new and innovative modes of game play and game delivery to gamers may be precluded by existing patents that we are unable to license on reasonable terms, or at all.
Our technology, content, and brands are subject to the threat of piracy, unauthorized copying and other forms of intellectual property infringement.
We regard our technology, content, and brands as proprietary. Piracy and other forms of unauthorized copying and use of our technology, content, and brands are persistent, and policing is difficult. Further, the laws of some countries in which our products are or may be distributed either do not protect our intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States or are poorly enforced. Legal protection of our rights may be ineffective in such countries. In addition, although we take steps to enforce and police our rights, factors such as the proliferation of technology designed to circumvent the protection measures used by our business partners or by us, the availability of broadband access to the Internet, the refusal of Internet service providers or platform holders to remove infringing content in certain instances, and the proliferation of online channels through which infringing product is distributed all may contribute to an expansion in unauthorized copying of our technology, content, and brands.
We use open source software in connection with certain of our games and services, which may pose particular risks to our proprietary software, products, and services in a manner that could have a negative impact on our business.
We use open source software in our platform and expect to use open source software in the future. The term of various open source licenses has not been interpreted by United States courts, and there is a risk that such licenses could be construed in a manner that imposes unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to market our software and services. By the terms of certain open source licenses, we could be required to release the source code of our proprietary software, and to make our proprietary software available under open source licenses, if we combine our proprietary software with open source software in a certain manner. In the event that portions of our proprietary software are determined to be subject to an open source license, we could be required to publicly release the affected portions of our source code, or to re-engineer all or a portion of our technologies or otherwise be limited in the licensing of our technologies, each of which could reduce or eliminate the value of our technologies and services. In addition to risks related to license requirements, usage of open source software can lead to greater risks than use of third-party commercial software, as open source licensors generally do not provide warranties or controls on the origin of the software. Many of the risks associated with usage of open source software cannot be eliminated and could negatively affect our business and operating results.
We rely on third-party technology to complete critical business functions. If that technology becomes unavailable or fails to adequately serve our needs and we cannot find alternatives, it may negatively impact our operating results.
We rely on third-party technology for certain of our critical business functions, including game engines such as Unreal, among others, as well as our back-office tools and technologies, such as enterprise resource planning, finance, development and analytics tracking systems. If these technologies fail, or otherwise become unavailable, or we cannot maintain our relationships with the technology providers and we cannot find suitable alternatives, our financial condition and operating results may be adversely affected.
Our international operations are subject to increased challenges and risks.
Attracting players in international markets is a critical element of our business strategy. An important part of targeting international markets is developing offerings that are localized and customized for the players in those markets. Additionally, we currently have operations in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Our ability to expand our business and to attract talented employees and players in an increasing number of international markets requires considerable management attention and resources and is subject to the particular challenges of supporting a rapidly growing business in an environment of multiple languages, cultures, customs, legal systems, alternative dispute systems, regulatory systems and commercial infrastructures. The success and profitability, as well as the expansion, of our international operations are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside of our control, such as:
the inability to offer certain games in certain foreign countries;
recruiting and retaining talented and capable management and employees in foreign countries;
challenges caused by distance, language and cultural differences;
developing and customizing games and other offerings that appeal to the tastes and preferences of players in international markets;
competition from local game makers with intellectual property rights and significant market share in those markets and with a better understanding of local player preferences;
utilizing, protecting, defending and enforcing our intellectual property rights;
negotiating agreements with local distribution platforms that are sufficiently economically beneficial to us and protective of our rights;
the inability to extend proprietary rights in our brand, content or technology into new jurisdictions;
implementing alternative payment methods for virtual items in a manner that complies with local laws and practices and protects us from fraud;
compliance with applicable foreign laws and regulations, including privacy laws and laws relating to content and consumer protection, including, but not limited to, the United States Federal Trade Commission Act, various state consumer protection and video game control laws, and the United Kingdom’s Office of Fair Trading’s 2014 principles relating to in-app purchases in free-to-play games that are directed toward children 16 and under;
compliance with anti-bribery laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in the United States and the Bribery Act 2010 in the United Kingdom;
credit risk and higher levels of payment fraud;
currency exchange rate fluctuations;
protectionist laws and business practices that favor local businesses in some countries;
potentially adverse tax consequences due to changes in the tax laws of the U.S. or the foreign jurisdictions in which we operate;
political, economic and social instability, including acts of war, such as the ongoing wars between Russia and Ukraine (as discussed further below) and between Israel and Hamas;
public health crises, such as a pandemic, which can result in varying impacts to our employees, players, vendors and commercial partners internationally;
work stoppages or other changes in labor conditions;
higher costs associated with doing business internationally; and
trade and tariff restrictions.
We have currency exposure arising from both sales and purchases denominated in foreign currencies, including intercompany transactions outside the United States. In addition, some currencies may be subject to limitations on conversion into other currencies, which can limit the ability to otherwise react to rapid foreign currency devaluations. We cannot predict with precision the effect of future exchange-rate fluctuations, and significant rate fluctuations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
If we are unable to manage the complexity of our global operations successfully, our business, financial condition and operating results could be adversely affected. Additionally, our ability to successfully gain market acceptance in any particular market is uncertain, and the distraction of our senior management team could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Catastrophic events may disrupt our business.
Natural disasters, cyber-incidents, weather events, wildfires, power disruptions, telecommunications failures, public health outbreaks, such as a pandemic, failed upgrades of existing systems or migrations to new systems, acts of terrorism, acts of war, including the ongoing wars between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas, geopolitical and social turmoil or other events could cause outages, disruptions and/or degradations of our infrastructure, including our or our partners’ information technology and network systems, a failure in our ability to conduct normal business operations, or the closure of public spaces in which players engage with our games and services. The health and safety of our employees, suppliers, business partners and others could also be affected, which may prevent us from executing our business strategies or cause a decrease in consumer demand for our products and services. For example, several of our key locations experienced temporary as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, throughout the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, several retailers experienced reduced operating hours and/or other restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted the sales of our products from such retailers primarily in 2020 and 2021. Further, system redundancy may be and our recovery and business continuity planning may not be sufficient for all eventualities. Such , , , or an to conduct normal business operations could also prevent access to our products, services or online platforms selling our products and services, cause or in our product or live services offerings, allow of data security or result in the of data. An event that results in the or of any of our business functions or information technology systems and our ability to conduct normal business operations or causes a decrease in consumer demand for our products and services could materially impact our reputation and brand, financial condition and operating results.
Risks Related to Our Relationship with Driven Lifestyle
Driven Lifestyle controls a significant portion of our Class A common stock and all of our Class B common stock and therefore has the ability to exert significant control over the direction of our business, which could prevent other stockholders from influencing significant decisions regarding our business plans and other matters.
Driven Lifestyle currently owns all of the shares of our Class B common stock and 1,214,699 shares of our Class A common stock, which together represents approximately 66.0% of the combined voting power of both classes of our common stock as of March 6, 2026. Our Class B common stock has ten times the voting power per share of our Class A common stock. As long as Driven Lifestyle continues to control a majority of the voting power of our outstanding common stock, it will generally be able to determine the outcome of all corporate actions requiring stockholder approval, including the election and removal of directors. Even if Driven Lifestyle were to control less than a majority of the voting power of our outstanding common stock, it may be able to influence the outcome of such corporate actions so long as it owns a significant portion of our common stock. In the event Driven Lifestyle or its affiliates relinquish beneficial ownership of any of the DL Initial Class A Shares at any time, one share of Class B common stock held by Driven Lifestyle will be cancelled for each such DL Initial Class A Share no longer beneficially owned by Driven Lifestyle or its affiliates. If, however, Driven Lifestyle does not of its DL Initial Class A Shares, it could remain our controlling stockholder for an extended period of time or indefinitely. If Driven Lifestyle were to sell all of its shares of Class A common stock, and all shares of Class B common stock are , then any stockholder that acquires all of the shares of Class A common stock sold by Driven Lifestyle would have significant influence over our Company, including the election of directors and the approval of mergers, consolidations and the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, and if Driven Lifestyle’s Class A common stock were sold to anyone already holding a large number of shares of Class A common stock, the sale could result in a change of control.
Driven Lifestyle’s interests may not be the same as, or may conflict with, the interests of our other stockholders. Moreover, Mike Zoi, who is the manager of Driven Lifestyle and has sole voting and dispositive power with respect to the shares of our common stock held by Driven Lifestyle, may also have interests that are not the same as, or may conflict with, the interests of our other stockholders. Holders of our Class A common stock will not be able to affect the outcome of any stockholder vote while Driven Lifestyle controls the majority of the voting power of our outstanding common stock. As a result, Driven Lifestyle will be able to control, directly or indirectly and subject to applicable law, all matters affecting us, including:
any determination with respect to our business direction and policies, including the appointment and removal of officers and directors;
any determinations with respect to mergers, business combinations or the disposition of assets;
compensation and benefit programs and other human resources policy decisions;
the payment of dividends on our common stock;
increases in the number of awards available for issuance under our equity incentive plans; and
determinations with respect to tax matters.
Because Driven Lifestyle’s interests may differ from ours or from those of our other stockholders, actions that Driven Lifestyle takes with respect to us, as our controlling stockholder, may not be favorable to us or our other stockholders, including holders of our Class A common stock.
We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NASDAQ rules and, as a result, qualify for and may rely on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements of NASDAQ. Our stockholders will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of other companies that are subject to such requirements.
Driven Lifestyle currently controls a majority of the voting power of our outstanding common stock. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NASDAQ Listing Rules. Under these rules, a listed company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including, but not limited to:
the requirement that a majority of our board of directors consist of independent directors;
the requirement that director nominees be selected, or recommended for our board of directors’ selection, either by a majority of the independent directors or a nominating and corporate governance committee composed solely of independent directors; and
the requirement that our compensation committee be composed of at least two members, each of whom must be independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities.
While Driven Lifestyle controls a majority of the voting power of our outstanding common stock, we may decide in the future to avail ourselves of these controlled company exemptions in accordance with the Nasdaq Listing Rules. Accordingly, our stockholders will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq. Additionally, our status as a controlled company and our reliance on Nasdaq’s controlled company exemptions could make our Class A common stock less attractive to some investors or otherwise harm our stock price.
Driven Lifestyle’s competitive position in certain markets may constrain our ability to build and maintain certain partnerships or relationships in the motorsport industry.
We do and may in the future partner with companies that compete with Driven Lifestyle in certain markets relating to the motorsport industry. Driven Lifestyle’s control over us may affect our ability to effectively build and maintain our relationships with these companies. For example, these companies may favor our competitors over us due to our relationship with Driven Lifestyle and to avoid indirectly supporting Driven Lifestyle.
Our inability to resolve in a manner favorable to us any potential conflicts or disputes that arise between us and Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries with respect to our past and ongoing relationships may adversely affect our business and prospects.
Potential conflicts or disputes may arise between Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries and us in a number of areas relating to our past or ongoing relationships, including:
tax, employee benefit, indemnification and other matters arising from our relationship with Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries;
business combinations involving us;
business opportunities that may be attractive to us and Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries;
intellectual property or other proprietary rights; and
joint sales and marketing activities with Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries.
The resolution of any potential conflicts or disputes between us and Driven Lifestyle or its subsidiaries over these or other matters may be less favorable to us than the resolution we might achieve if we were dealing with an unaffiliated party.
Risks Related to Our Company
Our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business and future prospects, and we may not be able to effectively grow our business or implement our business strategies.
Motorsports Games was formed and started operating in August 2018 in connection with the acquisition by Motorsport Games of a controlling interest in 704Games. As such, Motorsports Games does not have a long history operating as a commercial company. Due to this and other factors, our operating results are not predictable, and our historical results may not be indicative of our future results. We believe that our ability to grow our business will depend on many risks and uncertainties, including our ability to:
increase the number of players of our games;
continue developing innovative technologies, tournaments and competitions in response to shifting demand in esports and online gaming;
develop new sources of revenues;
expand our brand awareness; or
further improve the quality of our product offerings, features and complementary products and services, and introduce high-quality new products, services and features.
There can be no assurance that we will meet these objectives. Addressing these risks and uncertainties will require significant capital expenditures and allocation of valuable management and employee resources. We will need to improve our operational, financial and management controls as well as our reporting systems and procedures. Additionally, we will require significant capital expenditures and the allocation of valuable management resources to grow and change in these areas without undermining our corporate culture. If we cannot manage our growth effectively, our business could be harmed, and our results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Impairment of our intangible assets has had, and in the future could have, a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
As of December 31, 2025, we had intangible assets, net of $3.8 million. We are required under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) to review our intangible assets when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable. Some factors that may be considered events or changes in circumstances that would require our intangible assets to be reviewed for impairment include, among other, general economic conditions, industry and market considerations, cost factors, overall financial performance, entity-specific factors such as changes to our product road map and restructuring changes, and changes in our share price. We may be required to record non-cash impairment charges during any period in which we determine that our intangible assets are impaired, which has had, and in the future could have, a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
We have identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. If we are unable to remediate these material weaknesses, or if we identify additional material weaknesses in the future, we may not be able to accurately or timely report our financial condition or results of operations, which may adversely affect our business and the trading price of our Class A common stock.
A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of 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 and corrected on a timely basis. In connection with the audit of our consolidated financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, we identified certain material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting that continue to exist. The material weaknesses identified relate to (i) our failure to design and maintain effective monitoring procedures and controls to evaluate the effectiveness of our individual control activities; (ii) a lack of sufficient number of personnel with an appropriate level of accounting knowledge, training and experience to appropriately analyze, record and disclose accounting matters timely; and (iii) documentation of certain complex accounting analyses and significant accounting positions that were not contemporaneously reviewed independently of the preparer.
If we are unable to successfully remediate our existing or any future material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, or identify any additional material weaknesses, the accuracy and timing of our financial reporting may be adversely affected, we may be unable to maintain compliance with securities law requirements regarding timely filing of periodic reports and applicable listing requirements, investors may lose confidence in our financial reporting, and the share price of our Class A common stock may decline as a result. In addition, we could become subject to investigations by Nasdaq, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources. See Part II, Item 9A – “Controls and Procedures – Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting” of this Report for further information on material weaknesses and our remediation plans.
We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company, and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to us will make our Class A common stock less attractive to investors.
We are an “emerging growth company”, as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the “JOBS Act”), and we have availed ourselves of certain exemptions and relief from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. In particular, while we are an emerging growth company, we are not required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”); we are exempt from any rules that could be adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board requiring mandatory audit firm rotations or a supplement to the auditor’s report on financial statements; we are subject to reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements; and we are not be required to hold nonbinding advisory votes on executive compensation or stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
In addition, while we are an emerging growth company, we can take advantage of an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. This allows an emerging growth company to delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We have elected to take advantage of this extended transition period and, as a result, our operating results and financial statements may not be comparable to the operating results and financial statements of companies that have adopted the new or revised accounting standards.
We may remain an emerging growth company until the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our IPO (December 31, 2026), though we may cease to be an emerging growth company earlier under certain circumstances, including if (i) we have $1.235 billion or more in annual revenue in any fiscal year, (ii) we become a “large accelerated filer,” as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act; or (iii) we issue more than $1.0 billion of non- convertible debt over a three-year period.
We are also a “smaller reporting company” as defined in the Exchange Act. We may continue to be a smaller reporting company even after we are no longer an emerging growth company. We may take advantage of certain of the scaled disclosures available to smaller reporting companies and will be able to take advantage of these scaled disclosures for so long as our voting and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates is less than $250 million measured on the last business day of our second fiscal quarter, or our annual revenue is less than $100 million during the most recently completed fiscal year and our voting and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates is less than $700 million measured on the last business day of our second fiscal quarter. Similar to emerging growth companies, smaller reporting companies that are non-accelerated filers are exempt from the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
We cannot predict if investors will find our Class A common stock less attractive if we choose to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our Class A common stock less attractive as a result of any choices to reduce future disclosure, there may be a less active trading market for our Class A common stock and our stock price may be more volatile.
We may acquire other companies, technologies, or assets, which could divert our management’s attention, result in additional dilution to our stockholders and otherwise disrupt our operations and harm our operating results.
Our success will depend, in part, on our ability to grow our business in response to the demands of consumers and other constituents within the gaming industry and competitive pressures. In some circumstances, we may decide to grow through the acquisition of complementary businesses, technologies, and assets rather than through internal development. The identification of suitable acquisition candidates can be difficult, time-consuming, and costly, and we may not be able to successfully complete identified acquisitions. The risks we face in connection with acquisitions include:
diversion of management time and focus from operating our business;
coordination of technology, research and development and sales and marketing functions;
transition of the acquired company’s users to our website and mobile applications;
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, policies and procedures at a business that prior to the acquisition may have lacked effective controls, policies and procedures;
potential write-offs of intangibles or other assets acquired in such transactions that may have an adverse effect on our operating results;
known and unknown liability for activities of the acquired company before the acquisition, including patent and trademark infringement claims, violations of laws, commercial disputes, and tax liabilities; and
litigation or other claims resulting from the acquisition of the company, including claims from terminated employees, consumers, former stockholders, or other third parties.
Our failure to address these risks or other problems encountered in connection with our past or future acquisitions and investments could cause us to fail to realize the anticipated benefits of these acquisitions or investments and to incur unanticipated liabilities and otherwise harm our business. Future acquisitions could also result in dilutive issuances of our equity securities, the incurrence of debt, contingent liabilities, amortization expenses, or the write-off of goodwill, any of which could harm our financial condition. Also, the anticipated benefits of any acquisitions may not materialize. Any of these risks, if realized, could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.
We may be subject to various legal proceedings, claims, litigation, governmental investigations or inquiries and other disputes from time to time. If the outcomes of any of these actions are adverse to us, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We may be subject to various legal proceedings, claims, litigation, governmental investigations or inquiries and other disputes from time to time, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Claims or disputes arising out of actual or alleged violations of law could be asserted against us by individuals, either individually or through class actions, by governmental entities in civil or criminal investigations and proceedings or by other parties, including holders of non-controlling interests in certain of our subsidiaries. Any claims made against us could be asserted under a variety of laws, including but not limited to, contract or corporate law, consumer finance laws, consumer protection laws, intellectual property laws, privacy laws, labor and employment laws, securities laws and employee laws. These actions or , whether or not, could us to publicity through various media channels and to substantial monetary or other nonmonetary components and legal defense costs, injunctive relief or other equitable remedies and and civil and , including but not limited to or of licenses to conduct business. For additional information, see “Legal Proceedings” in Part I, Item 3 of this Report.
Unanticipated changes in effective tax rates or adverse outcomes resulting from examination of our income or other tax returns could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.
We are currently subject to taxes in the United States and the United Kingdom. Our future effective tax rates could be subject to volatility or adversely affected by a number of factors, including:
changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities;
expected timing and amount of the release of any tax valuation allowances;
expiration of, or detrimental changes in, research and development tax credit laws;
changes in tax laws, regulations or interpretations thereof; or
expansion into or future activities in additional jurisdictions.
In addition, we may be subject to audits of our income, sales and other transaction taxes in various jurisdictions. Outcomes from these audits could have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Common Stock
Our Class A common stock may be delisted from Nasdaq, which could affect the market price and liquidity of our Class A common stock.
We are required to continually meet Nasdaq’s listing requirements, including, among other things, a minimum stockholders’ equity requirement of at least $2,500,000 for continued inclusion on The Nasdaq Capital Market pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(b)(1) (the “Stockholders’ Equity Requirement”). As described in a Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on November 22, 2024, we received a deficiency letter from Nasdaq’s Listing Qualifications Department (the “NASDAQ Staff”) on November 20, 2024 notifying us that we were not in compliance with the Stockholders’ Equity Requirement. In our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, we reported stockholders’ equity of $2,170,911, which was below the Stockholders’ Equity Requirement. Additionally, we did not meet either of the alternative Nasdaq continued listing standards under the Nasdaq Listing Rules, which include (i) a market value of listed securities of at least $35 million or (ii) net income of $500,000 from continuing operations in the most recently completed fiscal year or in two of the three most recently completed fiscal years. As of December 31, 2024, our stockholders’ equity was $1,226,002.
On April 15, 2025, we received a letter from the Nasdaq Staff stating that based on our Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 14, 2025, Nasdaq had determined that we complied with the Stockholders’ Equity Requirement. Nasdaq will continue to monitor our ongoing compliance with the continued listing requirements for The Nasdaq Capital Market and, if at the time of our next periodic report we do not evidence compliance we may be subject to delisting. As of December 31, 2025, our stockholders’ equity was $7,581,231.
Nasdaq has proposed that the SEC adopt a rule change which would require Nasdaq listed companies to maintain a minimum market capitalization of $5 million, with immediate suspension and delisting upon thirty (30) consecutive business days of non-compliance. Market capitalization is a function of trading price multiplied by outstanding shares and is therefore inherently volatile. Although we have direct control over the number of securities issued, we do not have control over our stock price. Our market capitalization could fall below $5 million due to a decrease in our stock price.
Any delisting of our Class A common stock from Nasdaq, including as a result of our inability to maintain compliance with the Stockholders’ Equity Requirement, could adversely affect our ability to attract new investors, reduce the liquidity of our outstanding shares of Class A common stock, reduce our ability to raise additional capital, reduce the price at which our Class A common stock trades, result in negative publicity and increase the transaction costs inherent in trading such shares with overall negative effects for our stockholders. We cannot assure you that our Class A common stock, if delisted from Nasdaq, will be listed on another national securities exchange or quoted on an over-the-counter quotation system. In addition, delisting of our Class A common stock could deter broker-dealers from making a market in or otherwise seeking or generating interest in our Class A common stock and might deter certain institutions and persons from investing in our securities at all. For these reasons and others, could affect our business, financial condition and liquidity.
Substantial future sales of our Class A common stock, or the perception that such sales may occur, could depress the price of our Class A common stock.
A substantial number of shares of our Class A common stock are freely tradable without restriction under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), except for any shares of our Class A common stock that may be held or acquired by our directors, executive officers and other affiliates (as that term is defined in the Securities Act), including Driven Lifestyle, which generally may not be sold in the public market unless the sale is registered under the Securities Act or an exemption from registration is available.
On March 6, 2026, Driven Lifestyle and Mike Zoi announced in a Schedule 13D that it had entered a Rule 10b5-1 plan that specifies that 1,480,385 shares of our Class A common stock would be sold at market by the broker listed in the Rule 10b5-1 Plan starting after 31 days from the adoption date of the Rule 10b5-1 Plan. Between February 20, 2026, and March 6, 2026, Driven Lifestyle sold 265,686 shares of our Class A common stock.
Further, Driven Lifestyle has registration rights, subject to certain conditions, to require us to file registration statements to register the resale of certain shares of our Class A common stock it holds or to include such shares for resale in registration statements that we may file for ourselves or other stockholders. Accordingly, sales of substantial amounts of our Class A common stock in the public market, or the perception that these sales could occur, including sales by Driven Lifestyle, could adversely affect the price of our Class A common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional shares.
We have also filed a registration statement registering under the Securities Act the shares of our Class A common stock reserved for issuance under the Motorsport Games Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan for the grants of equity-based awards to employees, directors and consultants. If these award recipients cause a large number of shares to be sold in the public market, such sales could also reduce the trading price of our Class A common stock and impede our ability to raise future capital.
Our certificate of incorporation has limitations on the liability of our directors, and we may have to indemnify our officers and directors in certain instances.
Our certificate of incorporation limits the liability of directors to the maximum extent permitted by Delaware law. Delaware law provides that directors of a corporation will not be personally liable for monetary damages for breach of their fiduciary duties as directors, except for liability for any:
breach of their duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders;
act or omission not in good faith or that involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;
unlawful payments of dividends or unlawful stock repurchases or redemptions as provided in Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law; or
transactions for which the directors derived an improper personal benefit.
These limitations of liability will not apply to liabilities arising under the federal or state securities laws and will not affect the availability of equitable remedies such as injunctive relief or rescission. Our certificate of incorporation also provides that we are obligated to advance expenses incurred by a director or officer in advance of the final disposition of any action or proceeding. We believe that these provisions are necessary to attract and retain qualified persons as directors and officers. The limitation of liability in our certificate of incorporation may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against directors for a breach of their fiduciary duties. They may also reduce the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, even though an action, if successful, might provide a benefit to us and our stockholders. Our results of operations and financial condition may be harmed to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and awards directors and officers pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
Certain provisions in our charter documents and Delaware law could limit attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our board of directors or current management and limit the market price of our Class A common stock.
Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may have the effect of delaying or preventing changes in our board of directors or management including, but not limited to :
establishing an advance notice procedure for stockholder proposals to be brought before an annual meeting, including proposed nominations of persons for election to our board of directors;
creating a classified board of directors;
prohibiting cumulative voting in the election of directors;
permitting our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval ; and
reflecting two classes of common stock, as discussed above.
These provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our board of directors, which is responsible for appointing the members of our management. In addition, because we are incorporated in Delaware, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which generally prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any of a broad range of business combinations with any “interested” stockholder for a period of three years following the date on which the stockholder became an “interested” stockholder.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware is the exclusive forum for any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf; any action asserting a breach of fiduciary duty; any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to the Delaware General Corporation Law, our certificate of incorporation or our bylaws; or any action asserting a claim against us that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine; provided that, if and only if the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware dismisses any such action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, such action may be brought in another state or federal court sitting in the State of Delaware. Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws also provide that the federal district courts of the United States of America will be the exclusive forum for the resolution of any complaint asserting a cause of action against us or any of our directors, officers, employees or agents arising under the Securities Act. We believe these provisions may us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law and federal securities laws by chancellors and judges, as applicable, particularly experienced in resolving corporate , administration of cases on a more expedited schedule relative to other forums and protection the of multi-forum . The choice of forum provision requiring that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware be the forum for certain actions would not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act. The choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds for with us or our directors, officers or other employees, which may such lawsuits us and our directors, officers and other employees.
There is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such provisions, and the enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ charter documents has been challenged in legal proceedings. While the Delaware courts have determined that such choice of forum provisions are facially valid, a stockholder may nevertheless seek to bring a claim in a venue other than those designated in the exclusive forum provisions, and there can be no assurance that such provisions will be enforced by a court in those other jurisdictions. If a court were to find these types of provisions to be inapplicable or unenforceable, and if a court were to find the exclusive forum provision in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving the dispute in other jurisdictions, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We expect that the price of our Class A common stock will fluctuate substantially.
The trading price of our Class A common stock is likely to be volatile due several factors, including those described in this “Risk Factors” section, many of which are beyond our control and may not be related to our operating performance. Factors that could cause fluctuations in the trading price of our Class A common stock include:
changes to our industry, including demand and regulations;
our ability to compete successfully against current and future competitors;
our ability to develop and launch consumer-preferred electronic racing games and esports events;
competitive pricing pressures;
our ability to obtain liquidity to fund our operations and other working capital financing as required;
additions or departures of key personnel;
sales of our Class A common stock;
our ability to execute our business plan;
operating results that fall below expectations;
our loss of any strategic relationship, sponsor or licensor;
any major change in our management;
changes in accounting standards, procedures, guidelines, interpretations or principles; and
economic, geopolitical and other external factors.
In addition, the stock market in general, and the market for technology companies in particular, have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of those companies. Broad market and industry factors, as well as general economic, political and market conditions, such as recessions, or interest rate changes and financial market instability or disruptions to the banking system due to bank failures may seriously affect the market price of our Class A common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance.
Historically, securities class action litigation has often been brought against a company following a decline in the market price of its securities. If we were to be sued, it could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s attention and resources, which could harm our business.
We have only a minimal number of shares of Class A Common Stock available for equity award grants under the Motorsport Games Inc. 2021 Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”).
As of the date of this Report, we have a minimal number of shares of Class A common stock available for the granting of equity awards under the Plan. Nasdaq requires that, subject to certain limited exceptions, equity awards be granted to employees and directors pursuant to a Plan approved by the stockholders. We have sought stockholder approval of an increase in the number of shares available for grant pursuant to awards under the Plan and have been unsuccessful in obtaining approval of such an increase. Unless we obtain approval of such an increase, we will be unable to compensate employees and directors with equity, which puts us at a competitive disadvantage and forces us to use more cash for compensation than we otherwise would.
If securities industry analysts cease to publish research reports on us, or publish unfavorable reports on us, then the market price and market trading volume of our Class A common stock could be negatively affected.
The trading market for our Class A common stock will be influenced in part by any research reports that securities industry analysts publish about us. We anticipate having limited analyst coverage and we may continue to have inadequate analyst coverage in the future. If one or more of such analysts downgrade our securities, or otherwise report on us unfavorably, or discontinue coverage of us, the market price and market trading volume of our Class A common stock could be negatively affected.
The dual class structure of our common stock may adversely affect the trading market for our Class A common stock.
In July 2017, S&P Dow Jones and FTSE Russell announced changes to their eligibility criteria for the inclusion of shares of public companies on certain indices, including the Russell 2000, the S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400 and the S&P SmallCap 600, to exclude companies with multiple classes of shares of common stock from being added to these indices. As a result, our dual class capital structure would make us ineligible for inclusion in any of these indices, and mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investment vehicles that attempt to passively track these indices will not be investing in our common stock. Furthermore, we cannot assure you that other stock indices will not take a similar approach to S&P Dow Jones or FTSE Russell in the future. Exclusion from indices could make our Class A common stock less attractive to investors and, as a result, the market price of our Class A common stock could be adversely affected.
We do not intend to pay dividends for the foreseeable future.
We have never declared nor paid cash dividends on our capital stock. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the operation and expansion of our business, and we do not expect to declare or pay any dividends in the foreseeable future. In addition, the Citibank Credit Agreement imposes certain limits on our ability to pay dividends. Accordingly, investors must rely on sales of their Class A common stock after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to realize any future gains on their investments.
General Risk Factors
Our results of operations and financial condition are subject to management’s accounting judgments and estimates, as well as changes in accounting policies.
Financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP typically require the use of good faith estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts. The preparation of our financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions affecting the reported amounts of our assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. If these estimates or assumptions are incorrect, it could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. We have identified several accounting policies as being “critical” to the fair presentation of our financial condition and results of operations because they involve major aspects of our business and require us to make judgments about matters that are inherently uncertain. These policies are described in Part II, Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8, “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” of this Report. The implementation of new accounting requirements or other changes to U.S. GAAP could have a material adverse effect on our reported results of operations and financial condition.
The requirements of being a public company may require significant resources and divert management’s attention.
As an Exchange Act reporting company, we are subject to certain ongoing reporting requirements. Compliance with these requirements will increase our compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly and increase demands on our resources. The requirements may also make it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain coverage. These factors could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors and qualified officers. Moreover, as a result of the disclosure of information in the public filings we make, our business operations, operating results and financial condition will become more visible, including to competitors and other third parties.
In addition, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs and making some activities more time consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices.
If we fail to maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting, our ability to produce accurate and timely financial statements could be impaired.
We are subject to a requirement, pursuant to Section 404(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, to conduct an annual review and evaluation of our internal control over financial reporting and furnish a report by management on, among other things, our assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting each fiscal year. However, for as long as we are an emerging growth company or a smaller reporting company, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404(b). Ensuring that we have adequate internal control over financial reporting in place so that we can produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis is a costly and time-consuming effort that must be evaluated frequently. Establishing and maintaining these internal controls will be costly and may divert management’s attention.
In addition to the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting that we have identified, we may discover additional weaknesses in our disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting in the future. If we fail to achieve and maintain the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting, as such standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, we may not be able to ensure that we can conclude, on an ongoing basis, that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We cannot be certain as to the timing of completion of our evaluation, testing and any remediation actions or the impact of the same on our operations. If we do not adequately implement or comply with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, we may be subject to sanctions or investigation by regulatory authorities, such as the SEC, or suffer other adverse regulatory consequences, including for of NASDAQ rules. As a result, there could be a reaction in the financial markets due to a of confidence in the reliability of our financial statements. In addition, we may be required to incur costs to our internal control system, including the costs of the hiring of additional personnel. Any such action could affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows and could also lead to a in the price of our Class A common stock.
We are subject to risks related to corporate and social responsibility and reputation.
Many factors influence our reputation, including the perception held by our customers, business partners and other key stakeholders. Our business faces increasing scrutiny related to environmental, social and governance activities. We risk damage to our reputation if we fail to act responsibly in a number of areas, such as diversity and inclusion, environmental stewardship, supply chain management, climate change, workplace conduct, human rights and philanthropy. Any harm to our reputation could impact employee engagement and retention and the willingness of customers and our partners to do business with us, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and cash flows.
The shutdown of the U.S. federal government may adversely affect our business.
A prolonged or recurring shutdown of the U.S. federal government may adversely affect our business operations and regulatory compliance. During such shutdowns, while the SEC’s EDGAR system remains operational, the unavailability of SEC staff to review filings, issue comments, or declare registration statements effective may delay our ability to complete public offerings, respond to comment letters, or obtain timely regulatory approvals. These delays could impact our access to capital markets, hinder strategic transactions, and create uncertainty around our disclosure obligations. Additionally, the lack of interpretive guidance or exemptive relief during a shutdown may increase legal and compliance risks. We continue to monitor developments and adjust our regulatory strategies accordingly, but there can be no assurance that future shutdowns will not materially affect our operations or financial condition.
