The Edge - Volume One

Ownership and organization: the economics of eSports

In addition to professional leagues and teams, there is a burgeoning universe of collegiate eSports teams. In the fall of 2017, Lanxiang Technical School was the first Chinese school to enroll students in eSports classes 7 . In the U.S., there is now a governing body – the National Association of Collegiate eSports (NACE) – that boasts membership of more than 80 schools and 1,500 student athletes. those [eSports franchises] … They know it’s the future.” – Mike Francesa on The Bill Simmons Podcast 6 “If I was 15-20 years younger, I would buy an eSports franchise. I’d sell everything to buy one because they will be worth so muchmoney. The future of that where you can have the world involved to the level of 40 and 50 million people with no expense is mind boggling. It is a license to print money. That’s why you see smart guys in sports buying into

In addition to a strong and growing volume of participants and spectators, eSports as a business is gaining credibility. Several eSports teams and/or leagues are owned or co-owned by owners in the big four North American sports leagues (NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL). For example, Robert Kraft (New England Patriots), Jeff Wilpon (New York Mets) and Stan Kroenke (Los Angeles Rams and Colorado Avalanche) are all investors in the Overwatch League, which includes 12 teams and competed in its inaugural season with the Grand Finals Championship at a sold-out 5 Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Former athletes are joining the eSports ownership ranks as well. Shaquille O’Neal, Alex Rodriguez and Jimmy Rollins were all involved in a financing round for NRG eSports earlier in 2018. Magic Johnson – who is also an owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB), Los Angeles Football Club (MLS) and Los Angeles Sparks (WNBA) – is part of an investment group that acquired controlling ownership of Team Liquid, which has more than 50 players competing professionally across a dozen different games. Other notable owners include Ashton Kutcher, Mark Cuban, Rick Fox and current professional athletes Jeremy Lin (NBA) and Roger Saffold (NFL).

eSports: noun

A form of competition using video games. Most commonly, eSports take the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly among professional players.

1 PwC U.S. edition: Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2018-2022 2 According to the Twitch website. 3 Billed on the Newzoo website as “the market intelligence and data partner of choice for any company with an interest in games, mobile, and eSports.” 4 Based upon Nielsen ratings numbers via CBS Sports. 5 According to the Barclays Center website the facility has a capacity of up to 19,000 seats. 6 The Bill Simmons Podcast published on July 30, 2018 (35:10 mark). 7 According to eSportbet.com.

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