How Much Does Esports Make A Year?

How much does the average esports player make? We break down the earnings of different types of esports athletes by game, tournament, and more.

The Money in Esports

According to Forbes, the global esports market will reach $1.1 billion in 2019. This is a huge increase from the $696 million in 2016. The majority of this revenue comes from sponsorships and advertising. However, prize money is also a big factor. So how much does esports make a year?

Prize Money

While the top esports athletes in the world can earn a comfortable living, the vast majority of professional gamers are only earning a fraction of what traditional athletes make. In fact, the median earnings for an esports athlete is just $24,000 a year.

Still, there are a handful of gamers who are pulling in six-figure salaries. The top earner in 2018 was Johan Sundstein, a Danish DotA 2 player who took home more than $4 million in prize money. The second highest earner was Jesse Vainikka, a Finnish Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player who earned more than $3 million.

Of course, these earnings are not guaranteed. Prize money can fluctuate year to year, and some tournaments offer less money than others. For example, The International 2018 — one of the most prestigious DotA 2 tournaments in the world — had a prize pool of more than $25 million. But smaller tournaments might only offer a few thousand dollars in prize money.

Sponsorships

Like traditional sports, esports is increasingly becoming a commercialized industry with various sources of revenue. The most significant source of revenue for esports comes from sponsorships and advertising. According to a report fromDeloitte, sponsorship deals in the esports industry are expected to generate nearly $700 million in 2019, up from $655 million in 2018. This is largely due to the growing popularity of esports and the increasing amount of investment from companies looking to tap into the lucrative esports market.

In addition to sponsorships, another significant source of revenue for esports comes from prize money. According to research firm Newzoo, global esports prize money was $865 million in 2018 and is expected to grow to $1.1 billion by 2019. The majority of this prize money comes from tournaments and events that are organized by game publishers or third-party organizers. These tournaments typically have large sums of prize money up for grabs, which attract professional players as well as amateurs looking to make a quick buck.

Advertising

Advertising is one of the key ways that esports earns money. Brands are able to place ads on platforms like Twitch and YouTube, as well as during live events. The Esports Ad Bureau was created in order to help brands navigate the esports landscape and place ads effectively.

In 2019, it was estimated that esports would generate $3.5 billion in revenues, with $1.1 billion coming from advertising and sponsorship deals. This is a significant increase from the $694 million generated in 2016.

As the popularity of esports continues to grow, it’s likely that advertising revenues will grow as well. This will be a key revenue stream for both individual esports organizations and the ecosystem as a whole.

Media Rights

The media rights category is responsible for the largest share of the pie at 38%, making it the most valuable aspect of the entire eSports industry. This includes things like broadcasting deals, as well as partnerships with platforms like Twitch and YouTube, who show eSports content on their site.

One of the most notable recent deals in this category was between Riot Games and BAMTech, which is a subsidiary of Disney. The deal was worth a staggering $300 million, and it secured the streaming rights for Riot’s extremely popular game League of Legends. This just goes to show how big the media rights category has become, and how there is a lot of money to be made in this area.

Other important deals in this category have been:
– Twitch’s $90 million partnership with Blizzard to exclusively stream Overwatch eSport events.
– Turner Broadcasting’s $20 million investment in ELEAGUE, its gaming tournament initiative.

The Top Earning Esports Players

Faker

Faker is a South Korean professional League of Legends player. He is the mid laner for SK Telecom T1. Faker was previously a substitute for SKT T1 K. He is widely considered to be the best League of Legends player of all time.
In 2013, he joined SK Telecom T1 as the mid laner and quickly gained recognition as one of the best players in the world. He helped lead SKT T1 to victory at the 2013 World Championship, earning himself the MVP award.
In 2014, Faker helped SKT T1 to win both the IEM World Championship and the summoner’s cup at the 2014 World Championship, cementing his reputation as one of the greatest League of Legends players of all time.

Faker’s reported earnings are $1,250,000 USD from tournament winnings and salaries/winnings from sponsorships.

N0tail

Johan Sundstein, aka N0tail, is a 25-year-old Danish player who is currently the highest earning esports player of all time. N0tail has amassed a staggering $6.9 million in prize money from 131 tournaments. He is a member of the world-famous OG esports organization and plays the popular MOBA game, Dota 2.

Anathan

Anathan “Ana” Pham is a professional Dota 2 player from Australia. He is currently the offlaner for OG Esports. Ana is one of the most successful esports athletes of all time, having won The International 2018 and 2019 as well as five other premier tournaments. His total earnings from competitive play are over $6 million.

Topias

Hoping to make it big in the world of esports? You’re not alone. Competitive gaming is a rapidly growing industry with immense potential. But like any other profession, making a career out of esports takes years of hard work, dedication, and—most importantly—talent.

If you’re lucky enough to be one of the best in the world at your game, you could find yourself reaping the rewards. The top esports players make a comfortable living playing the games they love. In some cases, they’ve even become multimillionaires.

So how much does esports make a year? Let’s take a look at some of the highest-earning competitive gamers in the world and see how they stack up.

Topias “Topson” Taavitsainen – $6.4 million
Johan “N0tail” Sundstein – $6 million
Sebastian “Ceb” Debs – $5.4 million
Anathan “Ana” Pham – $5 million
Jesse “JerAx” Vainikka – $4.2 million

The Future of Esports

The esports industry is booming and shows no signs of slowing down. This relatively new industry is on track to make $1.1 billion this year and $1.65 billion by 2021. These numbers are impressive, but they pale in comparison to the $1.8 trillion global sports industry. So, what is driving this growth?

The Growth of Esports

The esports industry is booming. In 2018, the global esports economy was valued at $906 million, and it is expected to grow to $1.65 billion by 2021. This rapid growth is being driven by a combination of factors, including increasing investment from traditional sports teams and organizations, the boom in live streaming platforms such as Twitch, and the rising popularity of mobile gaming.

With this growth comes increased interest from sponsors and advertisers, who are looking to capitalize on the huge audiences that esports events can draw. In 2018, Coca-Cola signed a deal with Overwatch League team Atlanta Reign, making it the first non-endemic sponsor of an Overwatch team. And earlier this year, Adidas announced a partnership with Chinese organization Gen.G Gaming to produce co-branded esports apparel.

As the esports industry continues to grow, we can expect to see even more investment from traditional sports teams and brands looking to get involved in this rapidly growing market.

The Rise of Mobile Gaming

The rise of mobile gaming has been a huge driver of the growth of esports. According to a report from NewZoo, mobile gaming will make up 42% of the global games market in 2020, with 2.6 billion mobile gamers worldwide. This is a huge opportunity for esports, as mobile games are much more accessible and can be played by anyone with a smartphone.

There are already a number of mobile esports leagues and tournaments, such as the Mobile Legends Bang Bang World Championship, which had a prize pool of $5 million in 2019. With the growing popularity of mobile gaming, we can expect to see even more tournaments and leagues for mobile esports in the future.

With such a large and growing market for mobile gaming, it’s no surprise that companies are investing heavily in this area. Tencent, the owner of Riot Games (the company behind League of Legends) and Supercell (the company behind Clash of Clans), has invested billions of dollars in mobile gaming companies. And it’s not just big companies that are getting involved — a number of startups are also trying to get a piece of the pie.

One such startup is Skillz, which operates a platform that allows people to play mobile games against each other for real money. The company has raised over $100 million from investors including KKR, Comcast Ventures, and NBA star Kevin Durant. And it’s not just Skillz — there are a number of other startups that are trying to make money from mobile gaming, including Vulcun (now defunct), Draftkings, and FanDuel.

It’s clear that there is a lot of money to be made from mobile gaming, and it is only going to continue to grow in popularity. With so many people playing these games on their phones, there is a huge potential audience for mobile esports.