Social Media & eSports; for Better or Worse

by Louis "Guichex" Lemeillet

In the last few weeks, I've come across multiple articles talking about the influence of social media in eSports, each one adopting a different point of view. A great deal has been written about the departure of Amazing, Dexter and Thorin from their respective structures and, in the end, it all came down to the pressure caused by social media. With the explosive growth of eSports, social media is truly a third power, and it can influence the career of professionals in the field. But as eSports are a worldwide phenomenon and couldn't exist without the internet, social media is a part of this model and can't be rejected. I wanted to discuss the pros & cons of this model and how it could possibly evolve.

           

We've never been so close to our public figures.

Many share the opinion that eSports have created a new way to interact with public figures, professionals, players, game editors and even tournaments promoters; and that it allows everyone to have a role in this big adventure. It's the truth. We have never been so close together with the expansive use of Twitter, Facebook & Reddit. Our questions can be answered by other passionate fans, promoters and professional players themselves. We can ask questions, and expect quick answers. We can offer opinions and they'll be read almost every time if they present some kind of value. We, as social media users, have a “power” we don't have in other traditional sports where most famous public figures are relying on PR agencies to handle their communication and to tell them how to react to given situations. We have none of this in eSports. Each player or professional is handling his own social medias accounts and they give direct answers. Moreover, the streaming possibilities are endless and pro-players appear to us “au natural,” speaking without any control and even giving information on topics they maybe shouldn't talk about.

           

Is it a good model? I can't decide on my own. But it has its perks. I believe that because players are so thankful and approachable, fans give them respect in return. Almost every official match we're seeing crowds cheering for great plays and players, even if they have a favorite in their hearts. We cheer them all, and they thank us by being as close and friendly as possible. There are few lies. It's a short distance between them and us and it gives me a unshakable feel of joy and hope towards human kind. I've never experienced something like this before and I believe that traditional sports should seek inspiration in eSports, and learn that fans enjoy much more hearing honest opinions than premade or shady ones.

Great power means great responsibilities.

In the other hand, every system has its flaws and many great players or contributors of the field have been facing extreme amounts of social pressure, together with work pressure, which can deeply affect their personal lives. Because eSports are still very young, and because it gained an immense amount of popularity in just a few years, people are still figuring out the limits of a system almost entirely relying on social media. In traditional sports, newspapers were here before and they adapted their system to the internet because it became so huge it couldn't be ignored. But eSports were born because of social media. Of course, it is not the first business that emerged due to the internet, but it is the first sport to do so. And as we all know, sports unleash our passions more than other things. Therefore, social media become a double-edged sword: whenever players are performing well, we congratulate them; whenever they are underperforming, we are telling them to get back on tracks (often in a poor way). In the end, we are just expressing opinions as always, but we are not expected to be heard that much and some people don't realize how it impact the one who reads it. And viewers are not the only ones to blame.

           

I don't want to point fingers on people, but it is because of this use of social media that Thorin got fired from Ongamers. But he's not the only one to mix personal feelings and work. Is that something they should work on? Yes and no. Yes, because you have to consider that you're talking through social media to extremely young players. Most of them were shut-in guys with no idea of what fame or popularity could mean, and I believe it is extremely difficult for them to face crude remarks head-on and not feel a thing. In traditional sports, they have decades of experience facing paparazzi, hateful journalists, experts, etc. and they learned how to deal with it. I don't think that's the case for eSports players yet. But you can't shut down social media's hateful comments or journalists picking on you; and as a player you can't be kept in a cocoon where you hear nothing. You'll have to face this problem sometime. If Thorin was fired, it's not because a structure or a pro-player complained, it's because at some point CBS & Ongamers felt he would deteriorate the image of the company, period.

           

Yet, here we are in this Season 4 of League of Legends where two European players went back home because they didn't feel welcome in North America. They bowed to the media pressure, both social and journalistic, and went back to a more comfortable environment. Who can blame them? They are already facing extreme mental pressure on a daily basis because of their work, with few ways to escape even more pressure as Reddit was one Alt+Tab away. It'd be insane to deliberately add more mental pressure on oneself, when they can escape it quite easily as their gaming level will allow them to get back on their feet elsewhere. Nevertheless, it's still a loss for the team they left behind. On the human side, I think it can cause or compound several anxiety issues. It also means a third party destroyed the adventure of a young European player hoping to live big in North America. How would you feel if you went studying in a foreign country and a lot of people picked on you ? I'm not sure any of us would really enjoy that trip.

I still want to be a part of this adventure.

Despite having strong flaws, I believe the eSports model still has more benefits. Being able to feel close to public figures is something we should hold dearly as it reinforces honesty, generosity, solidarity and the warm camaraderie of a shared passion. That stomach churning feeling - when someone is criticizing eSports - is something I hadn't felt before, even as a lover of traditional sports. It's like, the people who come together through eSports are somehow closer and more protective of themselves as a group.

Nevertheless, having a professional flee their team because of social media pressure is quite problematic. What do you do as a team owner when you're seeing one of your biggest players go away just because fans and/or journalists were a bit hateful? Do you try to limit the use of social media so they can avoid the harsh reality? I don't believe it's a solution, as at some point they'll still read what is said and it will still hurt them. Do you try to control it? Then you'll lose all the popularity and monetary perks that come with an interactive sport.

For a team owner, the answer could be to allow PR firms to handle the work and make players focus only on the game. Let them tell you when to go see fans, when to sign stuff, when to wave, etc, but I find this truly horrible. In the other hand, you can't be that idealistic Gale-like friend, coming right out of Hunger Games and saying, “What if no one would bully them? If we stop bullying them, they will feel welcomed.” Yeah, great stuff, except it's impossible. For me, the solution would be to recruit both psychologists and communication professionals inside the gaming structures at the sole service of the pros. We are seeing the beginning of it with  SK recruiting a sports psychologist, but it's not enough yet.

What does a communications professional do better than a PR agency? First, he would be part of the team and would consider only his company's interests. He won't take care of the communication of other teams, or even other companies, and therefore feel better integration and stronger loyalty. Second, he would be almost all the time with teams, players and coaches, and can understand with the help of a psychologist what are their personality and how to take advantages out of it. They can help by highlighting some aspects of the players personalities, developing them into true individual beings and not the same as others; therefore making them realize their uniqueness to boost their confidence against mass hatred.

The players who understood this at some point are very few: Krepo, Tabzzz, Aphromoo, Kiwi, maybe Dyrus and some others. They all use their unique traits to communicate. Krepo is the analyst/adult guy, Tabzz is really down-to-earth and honest without being mean, Aphromoo is just plain honest and respectable, Kiwi is crazy, and Dyrus is often “salty.” But the best part of that combination of comm/psych would be just to be there and act as a constant support whenever players are feeling down or unsure due to social pressure. They could be the part of the staff which helps new players feel at home, and could act as a relay between the head executives and them.

           

Of course, it'd cost some money which structures might want to spend elsewhere, but I'd say those guys are one of the most important parts of the infrastructure a team could want. Moreover, even if communication and psychology are their primary mission, they could easily help on other fields like lifestyle coach, analyst, etc.

As eSports are a new model of sports, it brings its perks and disadvantages, mostly because of the use we are making of social media and because of the pressure it can create towards guys who were mostly shy shut-ins three years ago. But a new model brings also its new kind of solution. We must take the best out of traditional sports, and out of eSports, and always be reluctant to just copy a given model. We are already making something better, we don't want to blew it or stop along the road.

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by Louis "Guichex" Lemeillet

Pro-gaming, pro-communication?

by Louis "Guichex" Lemeillet

There is a lot to say about how communication is handled by professional gaming structures, and it is so because those companies are still in their early stages of development, and so are eSports as a whole. Everybody is trying things to improve their overall image and ultimately try to get on the “mainstream” stage where sponsors and popularity will help them become very profitable companies.

I see two sides inside this industry's communication: the gaming or sportive one, and the brand one. They are of course inseparable and must be run hand in hand, but I separate the two of them because one is actually run flawlessly while the other one depends on which structure you're looking at.

The eSports Titans are One Step Ahead.

Whether you're looking at Fnatic, SK, Na'vi, or some other great multi-gaming structures, you can see that communication regarding gaming performances and merchandising are almost flawless : they update every time it's necessary to inform when each team will be performing, where they are in their respective standings, or to present post-game interviews with the players. All the same, they jump on any occasion to highlight their online store, new branded products (when they have some), their own YouTube videos or even interviews made by other organizations. The timing of such communications is very often related to news regarding one of its team, and help nurture their image. Or they also communicate for the online store when they have a “hole” in their communication schedule, to never let their fans/followers without news more than a few hours.

Those structures do a better job running their gaming & merchandising communication because they have existed a long time and learned from their past experiences. Also, they'll have an easier time publishing various news about their pro-gaming teams because they have so many players! Supa Hot Crew, for example, will face more trouble finding interesting things to tweet about than Evil Geniuses, because they only have an LCS team while the other has multiple gaming factions. It's important to communicate news throughout each day because it'll help your gaming structure nurture and develop its image as a whole. It keeps people interested. It's kind of like advertising : the more you publish, the more people you can touch, then you can sell more products/have more fans/etc. No company has a better communication than the other, but if you don't have it at all, you won't be seen as good as the others.

You have many solutions to fill the gap between a young pro-gaming structures and an older one, but it implies you'll have to talk about less interesting things, but you have to do it if you want to keep people interested in your brand. For eSports, everything is going through social media. You have to keep being seen by your followers and potentially others. The more you communicate, the more you have a chance of a post being shared/re-tweeted and you'll maybe gain one more follower. “Less interesting things” can include: open questions, photos of pro-players performing daily tasks (playing, coaching reunion, eating, whatever), or sharing images sent to your team (fan art, merchandising pictures, etc.) or articles about your team/gaming news. Nevertheless, this job is quite time-consuming and requires a bit of communication knowledge (to know what you can share, communicate, take for yourself, etc.) and I have the feeling that younger gaming structures don't have a specific person related to that task. It's just someone who has another main function (like manager, coach, business analyst), who is running it on the side. It's not THAT important but still has some meaning if you don't want to create an immense gap between bigger structures and yours.

Still, Everyone is Making Mistakes.

All gaming structures made mistakes in their choices, in their communication, and still, younger structures seems to not understand everything from that. Pro-gaming is no different than other industries on that regard: communication is really important if you want to secure a real fanbase and a real merchandising income. Advertising can be considered as important as communication, but it is working with sponsors and will rely on a good campaign.

And here, you have so much room to make the difference. North American structures like TSM, Cloud 9 and Dignitas, are making great moves possible by creating extremely fun and creative sponsor films/web shows. And they decided to do it not only because it was fun, but because consumers want that. On the other side, you have Fnatic making a razor ad that appears to have been shot and edited by your average 13 year-old; or that ugly ad from Razer showing a 14 year-old Snoopeh with a...special facial expression.

The "Hyperglide with Fnatic" campaign may be a bit old, but that Razer ad is extremely recent and was aired on the Twitch channel of Riot Games during the LCS, so more than 200k people could have seen it. After asking Snoopeh directly on Twitter (that's the beauty of eSports), he answered me that he didn't know about this and didn't approve of anything. I think it's safe to assume that Evil Geniuses, as a company, also didn't approve of it. Whether it was an intern at Razer who created this and everyone validated it, it is quite frightening to see this as it may ruin the player's image, but also the gaming structure he belongs too. Moreover, it's a bit of a shame to publish this when you already heard rumors of this gamer being replaced as a starter in his team.

But basically, it means that nobody on Evil Geniuses actively control what is done with their players image. Even if you have a contract saying Razer can use Snoopeh's image for advertising their products since they are the official sponsor of Evil Geniuses, you can't do whatever you want and Evil Geniuses could ask for repairs for this crappy ad (if Razer never sent them anything of course). Conclusion: Something is really wrong somewhere, and it's more probable that it comes from Evil Geniuses not having a proper communication team (which would be really frightening if you consider the size of this company in eSports), or does not have properly educated people in charge of their player's communication. I am not here to blame anyone, but some people are specifically going through many years of studies to handle communication, press relations, sponsorships, etc. And I feel like even older structures are failing to develop such a team of skilled people, relying on people they know in the eSports world.

On the other hand, one of the recent hot topics on Reddit was the possible acquisition of XJ9 by Supa Hot Crew as a coach/analyst. I don't know if what he's done in the past is true or not, I don't know if he's surrounded of hate because of misunderstandings or whatever, and I don't care one bit: what's important is that people are aware of it, and that it creates an ugly controversy. I don't care if he's the best player in the world: controversy is bad for your brand's image and Supa Hot Crew has gone back in time towards global acknowledgment by simply not speaking about this rumor. If those things are true regarding XJ9 (if you're not aware of who he is or what he done, look it up on the interweb), there is a risk that a similar story might break inside SHC and do long-term damage to the teams reputation, at least on the brand side.

Gaming Structures Have to Make the First Step.

I talked in a earlier article about what could become of eSports when it goes mainstream, and when technology companies will come to be personal sponsors of star players. I still think, at this point, that it's up to gaming structures to move forward, and they can't wait to be seen by those mainstream companies hoping money will rain on them. The one with the best communication, around its brand and its players is the one who will get the juicy sponsorship contracts. Actually, in my opinion, the most “valuable” team right now is TSM, as they have really passionate fans, are getting quite good results, and never fail to appear in some epic commercials (like that last HyperX one,) and they've managed to make it into some mainstream news websites like The Hollywood Reporter. Plus, their players come from various countries and have different personalities. TSM is “bankable." Cloud 9 is too.

I think CLG could be one too, but clearly they don't appear in as much mainstream news as TSM or even Curse, who's using its business/company side to get fame. Teams are apparently investing different amounts of times in the search of business partners, as some mainly focus on the game. It's not something to blame, but in the end, some of the teams will get bigger financial means than others and will develop even further with staff, facilities, and financial means to recruit rising star players. In the end, for the long-term, maybe TSM will be the greatest winner of all this.

The point is: gaming is still just a "game" for some gaming structures. They want their players to perform well, and don't think about the rest. But it doesn't mean you should totally exclude this part and never seek potential partners. With the rise of eSports, it's first come, first serve, and some teams might actually focus too much on their performances. Cash prizes won't pay everything at some point. Moreover, it's not like they are alone in this since many eSports marketing agencies are popping up on the market - it's just they don't believe it's necessary or they think they can manage it themselves while doing some work for teams at the same time. Pro-gaming structures might need to trust a bit more in the external world and not focus so much on “gamers are the only ones that can help us.” It's good to get old players into the eSports world, but most of them will lack the expertise needed to successfully market their team's brand and image for the future.

Is the Generation Gap Slowing eSports Development ?

by Louis "Guichex" Lemeillet

“Hey son, shouldn't you go find some activity or join a sports club while you're searching for a job ? I know it's not your kind of thing but you could meet new people there !” “Dad, I'm already meeting new people quite often with my online games, and I have many friends I play with regularly” “Yeah, but that's not the same”. I bet I'm not the only one who went through a similar discussion with his parents. And in my opinion that last phrase is one of the best highlight of what is going on when you talk about “gap generation.” Our parents are having trouble figuring out what's going on within the digital age - where their children spend a lot of time playing video games or using social medias, because they don't understand where we're finding our fulfillment doing or watching such things.

For explaining this, the intelligentsia often refers to the introduction of “digital technology” and separates people born during or after the 2000s from those born before. Of course, it's not that strict and most generally includes people who grew up surrounded by those technologies. These generations are called the digital natives - versus the non-digital natives.

           

        A digi-what ?

            A digital native is a person “born during or after the general introduction of digital technologies”. It concerns every person who grew up with the technology, so every one between their late teens and early 30s. And to be even more clear : it is a person who can intuitively use any kind of digital device like smartphones, tablets, motion-control or such. Our parents don't know, at least intuitively, how to use such things; and they have to learn through a different process as they didn't grew up surrounded by this technology. For them, a similar situation would have been the introduction of the television, versus our grandparents who didn't knew that technology.

            Our parents had a similar way of life, except that it was not in front of the same technological device. They ate in front of their TV like we eat in front of our computers, they discover a new way to inform themselves, so did we. They saw the introduction of tape recorders, the all-new possibility to record and see something later, as we saw the introduction of the Cloud where you don't even have to record to see something you wanted to see. Both generations had their newfangled technology but they didn't grew up with the same, forever creating a gap between their behavior.

            Nevertheless, our parents perfectly understood the introduction of video games. They bought for us (well not all of us, some always see virtual games as “the devil”) Nintendos, Ataris, Playstations, etc. They understood it was something we liked and enjoyed as it was something completely new and dreamy. They even got into it at some point to share some time with their children. In the end, it was only like a board game that you were playing on your TV with “some technological device.” Where they lost us is with the introduction of the Internet and the possibility to interact with millions of people instantly and all over the world.

            They understood why we would play with our friends in our living room, but they couldn't understand why we would play with our friends each in our respective houses. Not seeing each other while we are playing is something totally abstract to a lot of our parents, but absolutely normal for us. This subject is extremely wide though and a lot of other things are coming in the way to explain this phenomenon like the birth and development of virtual identities, etc. If you wanted my point of view, here it is in its simplified version: Internet allows us to be whoever we want online and we can loosen up a lot more than our parents in real life. We're being more and more honest in our real lives because we can express all our bad sides on the “virtual” one, and we so create a generation gap.

        Digital Natives Rule eSports

            Now, let's look at the eSports stats we are beginning to harvest. Worldwide viewership for professional games tournaments exploded from 8.4 million in 2010 to over 70 million last year, with the lion's share made up of a demographic of men between their late teens to early thirties. Men over thirty are not a really big demographic in eSports; and you see here a real first difference regarding eSports audience. Viewers are digital natives & non-viewers are non-digital natives. Pretty manichean.      

           

            If we compare the audience of eSports, and what we discussed before about the digital natives, we can see a clear similitude between the two. eSports fans are digital natives who grew up surrounded by video games and Internet. It feels quite logical that people fond of virtual sports would be familiar with new technologies, even if they're not addict to it, but it also proves that non-digital natives wouldn't understand what we're seeing in all this. Somewhere along the road we lost our parents, the non-digital natives, and they can't come back now that we're becoming more and more connected by live, real life events, team bonding, sportsmanship or other values they could understand.

            Where I am going with this is: People playing and more importantly, watching video games are mostly between 12 & 30 years-old, people running eSports companies are also quite in their early 30's top. But the executive heads in charge of big mainstream industries are much older than that and belong to the non-digital natives generations.

        Are eSports Really Mainstream ?

            As much as they pretend to understand youngsters by showing how they love their smartphones or their Macbook (yes Dad, I'm looking at you), our parents generation won't see immediately what eSports is all about, how does it works, why do people enjoy that and most importantly where are the perks of all that. They can't see as easily as youngsters where can profit be made because they didn't grew up surrounded by digital technologies, Internet and its inter-connectivity, and don't understand as fast as us what are the perks, what are the drawbacks.
            And, naturally, if you don't see clearly where you can benefit from all this, then you won't take risks by investing in such a new industry. If you can't understand it, you'll fear it. Not like “Oh my god, nerds are taking over the world !” but more like “This is just a trend, it'll not last, no point in investing for a bunch of young utopists”.

            Of course, experienced strategists in huge companies will always see some potential in new industries, and will help their companies make a move towards eSports like Coca-cola did. But one believing in something won't make it popular, we need many. We can see that we're still far from the “mainstream” when you're looking at medias talking about eSports : even if its slightly changing with time, every report I saw was like a report on “wild life” where a specific kind of “humans” were enjoying watching other people playing video games. Ever saw that little smile and nod of a journalist listening to a report on eSports? It will necessarily change when it'll become mainstream, but for now we can just wait and believe that someday you'll smile and nod in front of this journalist like he did when he's forced to acknowledge eSports.

        Better Safe Than Sorry

            But we are also facing something more : because you are a digital native doesn't mean you understand eSports. In my opinion, you'll be more able to understand why it's working and how you create something which will result in profits for everyone ; but that is all. If you truly want to understand eSports, you have to drown yourself into it and live the thing : eSport is truly a subculture on his own. It means non-digital natives would have to understand a culture where people are using technologies they're not familiar with and share something that is not “real” to them. And by “real” I mean that we share something “virtual,” as a video game is taking place in a “virtual world.” Non-digital natives are really facing trouble deeply understanding that. It's not that they can't understand, it's that you'll never have the same approach towards it if you were raised surrounded by “virtuality”.

           
            These facts created invisible barriers which are hard to break for a lot of people, and eSports will have to take its time to become something “mainstream” and acknowledged by everyone. We have already forced it a lot, and it would be “delicate” to go further without taking others in consideration. But times are changing and Nintendo, for example, is now dedicating part of its efforts towards eSports while they tried to deny the EVO's crew to stream their Super Smash Bros Melee tournament just last year.

            Coca-cola invested this year into the Challenger Series of League of Legends with their brand Coke Zero : an ultimate proof that, despite companies are starting to understand the potential of eSports, they're just dipping their toes. Some companies could have gone all-in but many prefer to see where this is going; mainly because it's a whole new world they can't understand fast enough.

            Nevertheless, it's also a proof that mainstream companies are starting to see what is going on, and will seek advice towards the young generations to understand this new “thing”. Knowledge and feelings will be shared between eSports and mainstream companies to create something big and profitable for both parts. I often think that this cautiousness might be a good thing. For once, rushing things and injecting tons of money will not happen, and will not ruin our beloved virtual sport.

Marketing & Esports : A Future Fairy Tale?

by Louis "Guichex" Lemeillet

Esports teams do basic marketing, but do they have the future in mind? Esports is gaining in popularity, with a viewership boasting over 70 million people. Gaming structures are faced with a swiftly-growing market and need to adapt very quickly, and that requires planning out their future.

Esports has huge potential because it represents a bridge between traditional sports and high technology. Moreover, a new game-breaking technology is on the verge of being achieved and commercialized and it brings new stakes both for high-tech industries and Esports.

To Infinity and Beyond

Across social media, we've seen teams offer merchandise like clothing and accessories, do giveaways for sponsors, and even participate in commercials. Tech companies and electronics conventions like CES are showing the world what could be the next big step concerning technology and computers. After bringing smartphones and tablets, it is time to bring something which could revolutionize our habits once again: flexible computers.

You can see manufacturers such as Samsung and LG talking about flexible phones like this one and praising their merits. It is a cool innovation, but the best part will come just a bit later. What can you do with a flexible screen and components? You can twist it at will and include it in objects you couldn't before like glasses, clothing and wristbands. With it, you reach the full potential of this new technology. Wearable computers. If you're curious enough, you can see plenty of stuff about Apple having some “secret facility” working on the new iWatch which will basically do what your smartphone is doing: email, music, agenda, etc. You also have Google Glass which does the same but with a little bit more virtual reality included. Maybe the next step is a Wi-Fi hat with a screen inside it. The possibilities are infinite.

Of course, not all of these technologies are available to the masses yet, but Esports is also not fully developed yet. And we can assume that, in some way, those two worlds will reach a new point at almost the same time, creating so many new possibilities for tech companies to advertise their new products.

One of the most effective marketing techniques at the moment is using brand ambassadors: whether they are movie stars, famous bloggers, or from a rich dynasty. It doesn't matter as long as they can wear or consume your products and give a good review; promoting them in whatever way possible. This kind of marketing relationship can bring very good image to the company if their values and personality are matching those of the ambassador. It is also long-lasting and so can bring a lot of profits to both parts.

A Bridge Between Esports and High-Technology

Where is the link with Esports ? Our favorite e-athletes can't really hope for sports companies to support them since they are not committed to any true physical effort; and they don't really need sportswear. What pro-players use daily is top-notch gaming devices which can help them reach a better performance. Nevertheless, they are considered, at least for the moment in some regions, as professional athletes and bring entertainment to millions of people who are also hardcore users of computers, gaming devices and every kind of technology.

Since that audience is most likely to adopt these new products, we represent, as Esports lovers, a great target for those companies. With the rise of Esports, they might have found the faces of the ones who will represent their company on the field.

If we project ourselves three or four years into the future, I truly believe Esports will have grown a lot more and every company will be taking a closer look at "this new thing.” Also, tech industries will release the first projects of their new “flexible devices” and they will want to boast them as much as possible. Trying to sign sponsorship contracts with some great multi-gaming company can bring fame and profits to both parts.

As a matter of fact, you can see that in Korea, where Esports is kind of a national thing, it is technology companies which sponsor the teams: SK Telecom and Samsung among others. I think at some point in the future, when Esports are acknowledged by everyone, we might see the same deal in our occidental countries. Imagine “Google Solo Mid” vs “Microsoft Cloud 9”. (I really hope we won't have those team names though.)

Whether or not Google and Apple would buy pro-gaming teams is a different matter. But what we can be sure of is: Esports powerhouses will be sponsored by one specific brand and they'll build long-lasting relationships by advertising their new products on the players while obtaining fame from the team results, in exchange for money.

Beware of Fairy Tales

Bringing tech companies, which represent a lot of devices every one of us is using on a daily basis and which represent what kids will consider “normal” in a near future, can bring further fame and importance to the Esports world. If you mix this with the “international future” of Esports, and by that I mean that they are shared worldwide and not only popular in one region, it could become something bigger we could ever imagine.

I may be over-reacting, but I think bringing such companies into the Esports market will at least bring our virtual sports onto the same level as big traditional sports such as soccer, football or baseball. Traditional sports will have sports companies more than Esports, but Esports can claim sponsorships from bigger companies. Such deals would bring further development to the Esports world and help gaming structures improve their infrastructures, their team salaries, their staff and their power.

On the other hand, such deals can bring tons of money to a quite new sector, and with it some disappointments. With an industry growing that fast and that big, everyone is playing with the balance between investments and rewards. For the moment, gaming structures are trying to court any advertising possible to upgrade their financial possibilities, but many problems could come arise from that. For example, you can see with the last Dr. Pepper marketing campaign with the European LCS teams, that they're selecting only one player to represent them, and not the whole team. So where does the money go? Towards the team or towards the player?

Lots of teams might try to take advantage of their players by “selling” them to whichever company offers money while not paying attention to the overall image of the person. Or players' egos might get in the way as they want to claim part of the money for their own personal benefit. Such moves would potentially slow down the industry as a whole and discourage big companies from investing as they could.

Esports is growing at an explosive rate. Technology companies are on the brink of unveiling cool, innovative stuff. This may be destiny. The two industries will find a lot of common interest if they manage to create sponsorship contracts. The most important part of all this being: the first to hit is the first to win. Pro-gaming structures need to be aware of that fact, and need to decide on a precise marketing strategy oriented towards the future.

What are your feelings towards all of this ? Do you also think sponsorships between high-tech industries and pro-gaming structures might exist someday ? Feel free to leave your comments, everything is open to discussion!