Esports hasn’t always gotten the respect that it probably deserves, but those days are long gone now. Today, no one doubts the legitimacy of esports. The numbers behind esports are simply too impressive to ignore. Some 15 million people tuned in to watch the final of the League of Legends global competition in 2020, while the industry was worth some $1.5 billion in 2021, a figure that continues to grow as popularity increases. While the legitimacy of esports as a competitive and engaging activity is not in doubt, there are still some questions. Chiefly, what’s behind the massive growth? In this blog, we’ll take a look at a few reasons.
What’s In a Sport?
Some purists say that esports is not a sport. You will never win over those people. The good news, from the esports perspective, at least, is that you don’t need to. The overwhelming majority of people who watch esports online are aged 35 and under. To the people who grew up with games and who have seen the development of esports, the question of whether it’s a real sport or not isn’t really relevant. What matters is that they’re treating it as if it’s a sport. Gaming is rising in popularity because gamers take the activity seriously; it makes sense that they would take competitive gaming seriously, too!
Overall Lifestyle
As with traditional sports, esports offers its fans the chance to do more than just follow the action. It can fit into their broader lifestyle. Indeed, esports fans can do just about everything that regular sports fans can do.
They can buy team-branded merchandise like shirts, mouse pads, and gaming chairs, and they can go to comparison platforms like OddsChecker to pick one of the offers available and back a team to win. They can even listen to esports podcasts and talk with other fans on social media. Put all those things together, and you have a hobby that stretches far beyond simply game time. It can be a significant part of a fan’s life.
Investment from Ahead
Money is power. If the big tech firms are entering the esports market, then you know that it’s on the right track. One, because it’ll have the funding needed to grow and develop. Two, because it’ll be more accessible. And three, because the big tech companies wouldn’t be dropping some serious dollars on esports if they hadn’t done their research and concluded that it might just be the real deal. Amazon bought Twitch for $1 billion (more or less); today, it has a viewership greater than CNN and other cable TV networks. And what are people watching? Esports.
Investment from the top also comes in the shape of traditional sports teams. Major international football clubs such as Manchester City, Liverpool, Ajax, Roma, and Bayern Munich all have an esports team. Among other things, that’ll help generate interest among traditional fans.
Final Thoughts
Will esports gaming take over the world? Probably not. Will it continue to rise and become a greater part of public life? Undoubtedly. With continued investments from big tech companies and professional sports teams, it’s hard to see how it won’t.