Streaming, competition, and community have created so many new opportunities. So what avenues are the team exploring to keep themselves financially strong?
In this article, we will explain exactly how Esports and the teams within the industry make money.
Hopefully, the numbers will inspire you to sign up to the ever-growing online gaming world of Esports.
How Do Esports Make Money?
Leading Esports organizations typically prioritize three main sources of revenue: Esports (e.g., tournaments), entertainment (e.g. streaming), and apparel.
Esports covers revenues gained from the organizations’ competitive teams: revenue shares from Esports leagues, tournament winnings, and team-wide brand partnerships.
Entertainment includes revenues earned by non-competitive players, including brand partnerships and sponsorships, as well as revenues from team-affiliated creators and content producers.
The Numbers Behind Esports
Esports is growing fast and could be worth billions in the future. Companies such as Fortnite and League of Legends are making millions from Esports events.
Esports also includes streaming services and companies selling skins and other items related to games.
Teams should start by looking for the most obvious answers. You’ll know you’ve found them when you see the first answer on the board.
How Does A Traditional Esports Organization Run?
Esports organizations are becoming more common. They help teams get sponsorships, create merchandise, and market the players.
Teams can make money off of these things because they own them. An example of an Esports organization would be Team Liquid.
Team Liquid started out as a Starcraft news website, but expanded to other games.
It recruited a group of Dota 2 gamers, and since then, Team Liquid has been successful in adding more players and teams.
How Do Esports Teams Make Money?
Esports teams can sometimes struggle with profitability. Due to Covid, it became very difficult.
However, some teams are thriving, and the major teams didn’t have as much worry.
For those looking to break through in Esports, here‘s how Esports teams make a profit.
Tournament Winnings
Winning tournaments is the most reliable way to earn money in Esports. However, there are many other ways to earn money in Esports besides winning tournaments.
If your goal is to become rich by being a pro player, then you might want to try joining a famous team instead.
You’ll probably have to play with lesser skilled players, but if you’re really dedicated, you could potentially get paid well.
Sponsorships And Partnerships
Sponsorships make up the majority (over 50%) of the revenue stream for Esports teams.
Companies realize the influence of Esports and are willing to invest in them. Hardware and electronics companies are some of the largest sponsors in Esports.
Supplement companies like G Fuel have also been sponsoring many different personalities in the space.
Newzoo expects the revenue streams to grow by 2021, and show sponsorship as being over 50% of the revenue.
Sponsorships during partnered streams are the end goal. Streamers serve as brand ambassadors for both the Esports team and its sponsors.
Merchandise
Esports teams are more than just fans or players. They’re also businesses. Teams need to be profitable to survive, and they do this by selling merchandise.
Fans get behind these teams because they want to feel a part of them. Merchandise makes them feel connected to the team.
Ads And Apps
Esports teams should develop software and tools to help them gather information about their fans.
They can advertise their products on websites such as Liquipedia, and earn revenue from the ad space.
Teams should also invest in marketing campaigns to reach new audiences and increase brand awareness.
Virtual Esports Engagement Platforms
Esports teams should be considered as entertainment companies. They need to provide something more than just gaming.
Fans want to see the team play games, but they also want to watch them interact with each other, and with the community.
They want to get behind the scenes, and experience what makes these teams tick. This includes interacting with the players, coaches, and management.
This is why Esports teams should consider becoming entertainment companies.
Their earnings come from sponsorships, merchandise sales, and other forms of monetization.
How Much Can Esports Players Earn?
Esports pros earn anywhere from $15k-$100k per year. This varies greatly depending on the player, but there are some commonalities among them.
Most of these players work part time during the week and full time on weekends. Some players also do streaming and other forms of media to supplement their income.
What Does The Future Hold For Esports?
Esports is growing fast, but there is still a lot of room for improvement. At present, the global Esports audience outreach is more than 500 million people.
Esports organizations continue to grow as the industry grows. Games continue to get more advanced, and the esports organizations must evolve to stay competitive.
Conclusion
So there you have it. As you can see, Esports isn’t just for fun, there are legitimate careers being made in these sporting arenas and with lucrative sponsorship deals to match.
Just like Rome wasn’t built in a day, you can’t expect to create a successful Esports franchise overnight.
However, with the right doses of motivation and tenacity, there’s no reason why you can’t make some serious money off the back of Esports and become the player you were always meant to be.
My name is Ashley Newby and I want to put integrity back into esports and get the hype surrounding them paramount once more. During my teenage years, I happened to stumble across a Street Fighter tournament online and I was hooked.
From that day, I have kept up with and watched many tournaments including Valorant, Super Smash Bros, and League of Legends. I even got to compete in my first one earlier this year!
