In July 2017, video game company Activision Blizzard announced that Jeff Wilpon, co-founder and partner of Sterling.VC, an investment fund backed by Sterling Equities, had purchased a team, later branded as the New York Excelsior, for the upcoming Overwatch League, a professional, city-based, franchised esports league for the video game Overwatch.

[2] In May 2019, Activision Blizzard announced that Sterling.VC had purchased the New York franchise slot, with the team later branded the New York Subliners, for Activision Blizzard's second professional, city-based, franchised esports league, the Call of Duty League.

[8] Andbox named A Million Little Pieces author James Frey as its first CEO in January 2022.

Along with the rebrand, the organization announced that it would be making a seven-figure investment into New York City's gaming community over the coming year, which includes building its headquarters, XLHQ, in Manhattan and establishing a youth training program, YXL.

[12] The event featured a NYXL x Mountain Dew NFT and Cryptocurrency collaboration on Decentraland.