The last year 2022 was a turning point for eSports as it continued its rapid development and reached new heights. As a result, this branch of sport has become even more popular and recognized all over the world.
Last year, many exciting eSports tournaments and competitions were held in various disciplines. Large prize pools attracted the best players and teams, making the competition even more exciting and competitive. As a result, spectators could enjoy quality eSports and support their favorite players.
In addition, eSports organizations like cricket betting online have received more attention and support. As a result, many large companies and sponsors have invested in developing eSports, stimulating the growth of professionalism and competition.
The past year has also brought new technology and innovation to eSports. Game developers worked on improving the gameplay and introducing virtual reality, which added more immersion to the competition. In addition, artificial intelligence has been used to enhance team analytics and strategies.
Esports continues its rapid development from year to year, and video games are increasingly being integrated into popular culture. In particular, esports events in 2022 gathered around 532 million viewers, which is impressive. Read on to find out how e-sports performed in 2022.
The esports industry is only increasing its volumes from year to year
For example, in the United States in 2022, there were 29.6 million viewers of eSports events, which is 11.5% more than in 2021 (UAH 26.6 million). For 2023, analysts predict a minimum growth of 6%, with 31.4 million viewers.
Such changes have been made possible mainly by the support of celebrities such as Michael Jordan, Drake, and DJ Marshmello, more mainstream media coverage, and the massive popularity of Fortnite.
Esports as pop culture
As competitive gaming continues to be integrated into mainstream culture, big investors, brands, and media are taking notice. It is how the pop cultivation of esports takes place, contributing to the industry’s investment and income. At the same time, the social component of live broadcasts and the games themselves plays an important role here.
In particular, streaming services like Twitch and YouTube Gaming connect fans with players and teams, and large social networks allow these connections to be maintained and strengthened. In addition, groups like Faze Clan put a lot of emphasis on merchandise, which makes their brand much more popular than if they were remaining esports.
In addition, the increase in the market is primarily stimulated by the rise in the popularity of video games. The online gaming market is constantly growing due to the introduction of advanced technology, different consumer preferences, and the growing demand for mobile games. Accordingly, the industry is attracting more and more new players interested in developing their careers in esports, which offers major international events with significant prize pools, broadcast revenues, and individual sponsorship.
Rick Young, the NEA partner, confirmed it. He sees esports as the mainstream of gaming, or the pop culture vertical of gaming, compared to the “classic,” where it’s a hobby, and players turn pros to compete at the highest level.
Therefore, 2022 in many ways, introduced e-sports as a pop cultural phenomenon in which media and commerce are involved.
Investments
Here the situation is also changing every year for the better, both in terms of investment and market value. In particular, in 2018, investments in e-sports totaled $4.5 billion, which is an impressive amount since, for example, in 2017, $490 million was invested in e-sports. And thus, the difference in investments between the two years was 837%.
As for the market value, in 2021, it amounted to 1.22 billion. If we talk about estimates for 2022 and subsequent years, the researchers’ numbers differ somewhat but remain approximately the same.
In particular, Research and Markets analysts believe that the industry’s value in 2022 amounted to $1.3 billion, and in 2027 eSports will already be worth $3 billion with an annual growth rate of 17.5%.
Esports Achievements
Fortune Business Insights researchers, in their forecasts, estimated the eSports market in 2022 at $1.44 billion. They expect 2029, which will already be $5.48 billion, with a CAGR of 21%. According to analysts, since 2019, the global eSports market has been steadily demonstrating an annual growth of 15.4%.
The most popular disciplines and their indicators
According to the Esports Earnings website, in 2022, the hierarchy of the most popular esports disciplines is as follows:
- Dota 2 – $32.929 million in prize money, 1068 players, 124 tournaments.
- Arena of Valor – $31.348 million in prize money, 751 players, 111 tournaments.
- PUBG Mobile – 23.566 million in prize money, 1630 players, 77 tournaments.
- Fortnite – 17.319 million in prize money, 1295 players, 227 tournaments.
- CS: GO – 16.404 million in prize money, 2686 players, 433 tournaments.
- League of Legends: Wild Rift – 13.689 million in prize money, 776 players, 128 tournaments.
- Rocket League – 9.519 million in prize money, 1746 players, 282 tournaments.
- PUBG – 8.472 million in prize money, 280 players, 66 tournaments.
- Rainbow Six Siege – 8 million prizes, 670 players, 72 tournaments.
- League of Legends – 7.995 million in prize money, 1370 players, 89 tournaments.
These metrics are interesting because they reflect the changing trend among the top esports games. In particular, CS: GO, which occupied first place in 2020, significantly moved down, giving way to the mobile version of the battle royale PUBG, which occupied fifth place in 2020 and managed to break into the top 3 in 2021 and 2022. It once again confirms the thesis that mobile gaming is increasingly breaking into esports, and its great popularity allows even such mastodons of electronic sports as League of Legends and CS: GO to be displaced. These statistics may indicate that in the future, more and more mobile titles will appear in such tops.
