Reports indicate that very soon that the Esports industry will cross $1.8 billion by 2022.
Yes you read that right! a whole $1.8 billion dollars. Industry experts and even fans will tell you that it was a long time coming. For the general public though many still have apprehensions about gaming and gaming culture. On the contrary though the steady rise will continue. Lets take a look at what has fueled this dramatic rise and further trends down the years.
Viewership, Celebrities and Twitch in Esports –
Esports tournaments are getting millions of views. To get an idea lets take a look at the League of Legends World Cup. According to Riot, a 23.0 million average minute audience (AMA) was reached across all platforms. Worlds 2019 reached 21.8 million AMA.
Combined viewership topped out at 49.95 million concurrent viewers. These numbers are just massive keeping in mind there was a pandemic. Another big factor is Twitch. Despite shadowed by issues like bans and other controversies Twitch is like a Gateway for many creators. Many big name like Drake, Snoop Dogg, Neymar and countless others are taking the plunge to join Twitch.
The impact of Fortnite –
Talking about the rise of esports and not mentioning fortnite seems impossible. It was back in 2017 when the gaming industry went through a cultural shift. Battle Royale was the new rage and still is to an extent. Fortnite and PUBG were the two games everyone was talking about. After so many years Fortnite is still alive and kicking.
Events like collaboration with Marvel and stars like Travis Scott attract millions of players. There is a famous YouTube video made by Force Gaming which shows how TV Anchors were laughing at Bugha who had just won the top prize of $3 Million dollars. Hopefully this perception will soon change with Esports soon coming into the mainstream.
Social media and Esports Organisations –
Many Esports orgs like FaZe Clan, 100Thieves, TSM, Cloud9 etc are incredibly valueable. They have millions of followers on every social media platform. They are also moving aggressively into areas like merchandise. This further is fueling the rise and rise of Esports.
