The Potential of eSportsBy Sean Desmond

What is Esports?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wNFG7uyOUIn

Esports Rapid Growth

● League of Legends is most popular game in the world

● 67 million unique users a month

● More than 32 million streamed World Championships in 2013

● Professional leagues in North America, Europe, Korea, China, and Southeast Asia

● Continues to expand globally

● So, why the $11M for Dota?

The Compendium● Players/Fans purchase a “share”

● 25% of purchases gets donated to prize pool

● When total prize pool meets certain benchmarks, each player with a share gets benefits

● Created revenue stream out of the appreciation for professionals

● Prize pool 4x bigger than prior year

Currently Two Major Sponsors

“Since Coke is a global brand, we see value in the global nature of eSports”-Coke Zero

“The fact that AmEx is getting involved in eSports could be a sign of better things to come”-New York Times

“Brands like Coca-Cola and American Express ‘have lined up as sponsors’ and prize money ‘has soared to the millions of dollars.’”-Sports Business Daily

“Riot’s ability to reach an elusive demographic will continue to attract investment.”-Matt Wolf, Coke’s global head of gaming

Potential ActivationsSimilar to the traditional sports industry, sponsors can sign on for more than signage and commercials on streams. @CokeEsports has a huge following that can be utilized for contests to earn backstage passes or caster meet-and-greets. Fans appreciating Coke Zero for allowing them to meet their favorite players or Rioters can be a worthwhile investment.

Sponsors for Teams

Professional League of Legends TeamsSponsors Cloud 9

Former sponsor of TSM

These are great examples of how sponsors will pay for an incredibly narrow demographic of predominantly young,

male, technology savvy people