Esports has grown quite incredibly over the last few years. Today it’s an industry worth billions, with some players lauded in the same way the likes of Lionel Messi, Serena Williams and Usain Bolt are. And they’re paid in equal measure too.
Lockdown, where there was a lack of sport, proved a real catalyst for driving Esports forward, but from there it hasn’t really looked back. It comes in an era where digital forms of entertainment are at an all time high and there are valuable careers that have come from it.
Take the online casino industry. Chris Moneymaker, the first player to win the World Series of Poker by qualifying online started that boom, and it’s not slowed down with thousands looking to find their ideal online casinos in canada through review and seeing how they fare. In fact, many online players also stream through the likes of Twitch.TV and secure revenue through this way.
Like Esports it’s a growing market, and more and more people are seeking a career in the space. When it comes to Esports, there are a wealth of game titles driving this, but what are the top paying games for those that are looking to stream?
How Players Make Money in Esports
Firstly, understanding the ways to make money in Esports is important.
Wasif Ahmed at Esports Insider explains: “The economics of esports is fascinating to every gamer. The idea of playing video games professionally while earning a stable salary through an esports organisation has become a real possibility no matter where the player is based.”
He states the main ways for individuals and Esports teams to make money are through:
- Prize pools
- Merchandise sales
- Revenue share and in-game items
- Funding
- Diversification
- Player transfers
And those rewards can be bigger or smaller depending on the event and game a player is involved with.
Dota 2: The King of Prize Pools
The biggest prize pools can be found in Dota 2, with Esports journalist, Richard Lewis, once describing The International, the premier event.
He said: “In Dota 2, there’s one tournament a year that you just put all of the eggs in one basket. If you don’t qualify for it, it’s a f**king disaster. Team orgs, I’ve seen contracts. They were specifically drafted. They used to have these clauses for their Dota teams that used to say: If you win a prize over a million dollars, our cut of the prize money goes from 10-15% up to 50%. Obviously, I’m going back a while, that’s why I used the joke “TI clause.” Because the orgs wanted to cash in on it as well. The whole scene was all tailored around this one tournament.”
The International does hold enormous prize pools with players earning millions over their careers. But you have to be the best of the best to make it and just like professional football, only the cream of the crop make it to the top.
Counter-Strike 2: Consistent Earnings and Longevity
Once known as CS:GO, Counter-Strike 2 also has provided good earnings for Esports players over the long term, with a solid number of events across the year.
Players who specialise in Counter-Strike tend to enjoy long careers, and there are good opportunities for joining teams and generating sponsorship deals. As the game and its place within Esports is also well established, there is a strong fanbase that follows tournaments, making it a reliable streaming income for those that can find their place in the niche too, particularly in Europe.
League of Legends: Salaries Over Prize Money
When it comes to League of Legends, it’s a slightly different model to other Esports games. The prize pools are ok, but its real financial strength comes in player salaries and franchised leagues. Tournaments happen right throughout the year and players can earn solid annual incomes in the major regions.
This does offer more financial stability than prize-based Esports, but there is fierce competition for the professional contracts that are on offer.
Fortnite: High Risk, High Reward
Finally, Fortnite has never been far from the headlines and when it started to enter the Esports market its prize pools were huge. Its open tournament format meant anyone could enter and try to pick up a substantial prize too.
Over the years, though, it has been unpredictable when it comes to earnings. The competitive landscape changes regularly and players need to be on hand to adapt at every corner. Streaming online, with Fortnite’s huge global appeal, is hugely lucrative though, as well as being incredibly competitive.
Find Your Niche and Excel at it
Ultimately, to succeed within Esports, it’s all about finding your niche, your corner of the market and then excelling at it. While professional teams are looking for the most talented at a particular game, the opportunity for streaming via Twitch or YouTube can be lucrative of its own.
But there’s huge competition and you need to carve your own USP that connects with the masses in order to succeed. Do that, and it can be more than a passion. It can be a profession.
