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Over the last decade, the gaming industry has experienced a huge surge in popularity. It has evolved from a hobby and recreation to a full-fledged sport. If you like playing video games, are extremely skilled and are willing to practise often, you might be able to make money with e-sports.
What is e-sports?
E-sports is what defines the fast-growing world of video game competitions. Competitions and tournaments are organised where teams of players play each other at professional level, regularly winning large sums of money as prizes. The players in these competitions are among the best in the world.
Organised competitions have been part of video game culture for decades, but only in recent years have players become professional gamers and the number of spectators at these events is growing. Now, millions of fans around the world watch and follow the games. Some matches are held in stadiums where people can watch live streams, but most people prefer to watch online. As online streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch become more accessible, e-sports are gaining popularity and visibility.
How much is e-sports worth?
The e-sports sector has grown significantly over the last decade and does not look set to decline any time soon. According to Statista, at the beginning of this year, the global e-sports industry was worth just under USD 1 billion, with estimates that by 2023. For 2010, it will reach USD 1.6 billion. In just 3 years, Statista predicts that there will be 300 million more eSports viewers worldwide. It shows how much growth the eSports industry can expect in the coming years, opening up new job markets with more job opportunities.
E-sports are not only profitable for the whole industry, but also provide many opportunities for individuals to earn huge sums of money. Many of the top players have earned more than USD 5 million, and these figures are expected to rise further in the coming years. With a total global audience already this year of 495 million, the year-on-year increase is 11.7%.
Most of the revenue from e-sports comes from sponsorship and advertising. In fact, this year, USD 822.4 million – almost three quarters of the total – will come from media rights and sponsorship.
How to make money with e-sports?
E-sports is a fast-growing industry and if you have both, becoming an e-sports player is a great way to earn! Some global competitions, such as Data 2 International, have prize pools of more than USD 25 million. E-sports tournaments usually have a prize pool, so the better a team does in a tournament, the more money they take home. It is not something to be thrown away and it is worth fighting to get a piece of it.
However, for both streamers and professional teams, most of the revenue comes from sponsorship, which involves the promotion and sale of in-game merchandise. They can be anything from e-sports drinks and t-shirts to more expensive gaming keyboards and chairs.
But the big leagues are not the only way to make money in e-sports. If you believe that your skills are better suited to entertaining people online by gaming rather than playing competitively, you may have a better chance of making money by streaming.
Types of eSports profits
Sponsorship – e-sports teams generally generate most of their revenue from sponsorship, advertising and promotions.
Prize money – prize amounts are growing at an incredible rate. Prize money in most major competitions now reaches several million dollars.
Selling merchandise – similar to traditional sports, e-sports also sells merchandise related to the games. This can be a variety of clothing and accessories targeted at their specific audience.
Content production – eSports players can also earn significant amounts of money by creating content for streaming platforms YouTube and Twitch. YouTube provides potential advertising revenue per view, while Twitch offers affiliate marketing programmes for streamers. The industry also has great added value in reaching new audiences and expanding its fan base, which is key to attracting sponsorship.
Make money with Twitch
In recent years, we have seen a significant increase in live streaming. Twitch is the largest and most popular gaming streaming platform. Realistically, not everyone can become a full-time e-sports player and compete in global competitions. In fact, most game influencers will derive their income from a combination of Twitch streaming and YouTube videos. Only in a few cases will people also be involved in a professional environment.
To start making money on Twitch, you need to become a Twitch Partner. To do this, you need:
- At least 8 hours streamed in the last 30 days.
- Streamed at least 7 days out of the last 30 days.
- Get an average of at least 3 viewers per stream.
- Increase your audience to 50 followers.
With Twitch’s affiliate marketing programmes, you can start earning by encouraging your followers to subscribe to your channel for $4.99, $9.99 or $24.99 per month. The money collected is split 50/50 between Twitch and the streamer, providing a reliable, regular source of income.
Twitch partners can also earn money by selling games. When a streamer is playing a game that is available for sale or purchase, a purchase offer is displayed below the streaming window. When viewers make a purchase, the business partner will receive a 5% revenue share of all purchases made through their channel.
