eSports

Power up – number-crunching the incredible growth of esports

June 27, 2017

In 1980, Atari held the Space Invaders Championship across the United States, recognised as the earliest large-scale esports competition.

Almost 40 years later, the sector is projected by forecasters* to reach $696m in revenues this year as part of recent remarkable year-on-year growth.

As iSportconnect gears up for its inaugural esports masterclass this week, we take a look at some of those head-spinning numbers in the world of gaming from last year and the future.

$1.5bn

The projected figure of annual revenues by 2020, based on market research on current sponsorship levels and event attendances.

385.5 m

Total global audience this year, made up of 191m enthusiasts and a further 194m occasional viewers.

2022

The year that esports will officially become a medal event at the Asian Games in China.

$3.64

How much esports enthusiasts will each spend on average. This includes all revenue streams, while the average direct spending per fan on merchandise, tickets, or subscriptions is $0.33 in 2017.

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71%

The number of global audience who are male. The demographic is, not surprisingly, skewed towards the younger generation too with more than half aged 18-34.

424

2016 saw this number of esports events with a prize pool above $5000.

$32.2m

Ticket revenues from such events.

47%

Number of fans who say they buy more in-game content after a specific eSports event. Even 38% say they buy products from the sponsors themselves at these sessions.

$93.3m

Total prize money in 2016 globally.

*Information collated from Newzoo’s 2017 Global Esports Market Report

eSports