With the evolution of technology and in particular PC gaming, this has brought forth a new multi-billion industry known as e-Sports. E-Sports is simply short for electronic sports which revolves around competitive gaming whether this is on consoles such as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One or PC. E-Sports have gone global with tournaments being hosted worldwide in national stadiums. Many aspiring gamers also aim to get themselves into professional clans which are usually housed together. These gamers will earn an income from tournament winnings, or if they are live streaming, they earn income from ad revenue or donations by viewers.
Biggest games in e-Sports
When we talk about e-Sports, there are a few games that dominate the industry and can lead to some pretty great earnings. One that we probably all recognised from its emergence into the mainstream within the last few years is Fortnite. This free-to-play Battle Royale game that has taken the industry by storm and has led to an international craze. Other favourite e-Sports Battle Royale games include Apex Legends, Player Unknown Battlegrounds and H1Z1.
Another popular category of games that dominate the e-Sports scene is called MOBA’s (Multiplayer online battle arena) which are a form of real-time strategy games. The biggest of which when it comes to e-Sports is Dota 2 that has a staggering total prize pool of over $40 million across all tournaments in 2018. The second biggest MOBA on the e-Sports scene is League of Legends which recently held its world tournament in the national stadium of South Korea on a vast stage and still grosses a staggering amount of money across all competitions.
The last section of e-Sports games we’re going to look at are called First Person Shooters and have a range of game modes including free-for-all, team deathmatch, capture the flag and many more. The biggest FPS by far is Counter Strike Global Offensive which grossed an astounding $22 million across 370 tournaments that were recorded during the year of 2018.
The popularity of eSports has even evolved so much that certain professional teams, such as Schalke and Paris Saint Germain both have organisations within that sector now. It comes as little surprise that it has become a global phenomenon due to the profitability of the industry. It is massively popular in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia; but it is Scandinavian players that are the most involved. Countries such as Sweden and Denmark have the most success in major competitions and these competitions are televised in the same way that ice hockey and football is. This means that viewers pay subscriptions to watch players compete.
Esports Betting
Traditionally online casinos tended to cater for games such as slots, roulette, blackjack and sports betting. However with the rise in popularity of gaming, this means that you can now also bet on your favourite e-Sports teams on online casinos across a range of games. Just like with any other sports betting, the odds provided are calculated and based upon form and the probability of winning. This has grown so popular some people follow these big e-Sports teams and turn their passion into a profitable hobby. Meanwhile, Casino Mobsters is the best place to compare all the bookmakers in terms of eSports betting.
A final few words
Over the next few years, we will see the e-Sports industry growing stronger with more games coming onto the scene and the top 10 games rising even higher with Epic Games. It is also predicted that Fortnite creators will pledge even more money to tournaments worldwide potentially challenging Dota 2 for the number one spot overall.
