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eSPORTS Joins the Big Leagues
Watch What Happens When … a Goldman Sachs Analyst plays with the pros.
Third-party brands used in this presentation are the property of their respective owners
and are not intended to imply an affiliation with or endorsement of or by GS or its
products/services.
READ OUR REPORT ON eSPORTS
STAY IN THE GAME
276M
2022
167M
2018
Source: Goldman Sachs Investment Research, NewZoo survey (2018 Global Esports Market
Report)
eSPORTS MONTHLY AUDIENCE SIZE TODAY VS. WHERE IT'S HEADING
Source: Goldman Sachs Investment Research, NewZoosurvey (2018 Global Esports Market
Report)
Click to Compare
Our key estimates:
We see audiences, prize pools and monetization opportunitiesgrowing rapidly over the next
five years.
2022E
2021E
2020E
2019E
2018E
$2,963
$2,173
$1,592
$1,184
$869
MONETIZATION ($ M)
$413
$359
$307
$256
$170
PRIZE POOL ($ M)
276
250
225
194
167
AUDIENCE (M)
AUDIENCE (M)
MONETIZATION ($ M)
PRIZE POOL ($ M)
THERE'S NO STOPPING eSPORTS
In April 2017, the NFL announced that in partnership with Electronic Arts it
planned to air exclusive broadcasts of the Electronic Arts Sports Madden NFL 18
Championship and the Madden NFL 18 Ultimate League on a number of Disney
networks.
Third-party brands used in this presentation are the property of their respective
owners and are not intended to imply an affiliation with or endorsement of or by GS
or its products/services.
Source: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
NFL & ELECTRONIC ARTS SPORTS
Twitch will broadcast all NBA eSports matches. This league operates much like the
NBA with player salaries, marketing and product licensing.
NBA & TWITCH
eSports keep fans engaged during the offseason. For developers, tournaments can further
grow audiences, engagement, and monetization.
Traditional Pro Sports are Joining In
The Masters
$11M
League of Legends
$12M
Wimbledon (Women’s / Men’s Singles)
$16M
Daytona 500
$18M
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
$19M
2017 Dota 2 InternationalPrize Pool
$23M
Source: eSportsearnings.com, Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Monthly income of Ninja, an online personality who live-streams gameplay on Twitch
~$1M
Year 1 / Fortnite Tournament Prize Pool
$100M
Growing prize pools are a key factor in audience growth andplayer earnings are beginning
to resemble other pro sports.
Player Earnings are Surging
BY 2022
$3B
As media rights and sponsorship continue to grow, along with the formalization of pro
sports leagues, we expect total eSports monetization will reach
Activision signed a 2-year $90M deal with Twitch to distribute Overwatch League in
North America
LoL content is now available on ESPN+, Twitch and YouTube
To date, there have been several landmark media rights deals, including:
Source: Sports Business Daily, Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Landmark Media Rights Deals Taking Shape
eSPORTS REVENUE STREAMS 2022
…but we see media rights as the largest revenue opportunity in 2022.
40%
MEDIA RIGHTS
35%
SPONSORSHIP
4%
local
14%
ADVERTISING
7%
OTHER
eSPORTS REVENUE STREAMS 2017
Advertising and sponsorship are the largestsources of eSports revenue today…
38%
SPONSORSHIP
14%
MEDIA RIGHTS
9%
TICKETS
22%
ADVERTISING
17%
OTHER
eSPORTS REVENUE STREAMS 2017
eSPORTS REVENUE STREAMS 2022
Source: NewZoo, Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
Click to Compare
Like traditional sports, media rights will eventually become the largest source of
eSports revenue, followed by sponsorships.
Lucrative Monetization Opportunities Arising as a Result
Source: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research, SuperData, NewZoo, eMarketer
Amount of time users spend daily on the Chineselive-streaming platform Huya
MINUTES
98
Total number of minutes watched on Twitch in 2017, up 22% year-over-year
BILLION
355
In Asia they’re watching via Douyu and Huya.In the U.S. they’re tuning in via Twitch
& YouTube.
WHERE THEY'RE WATCHING
The audience on YouTube & Twitch is larger than HBO, Netflix & ESPN combined
Percentage of viewersunder 35 years old
79%
Asia’s online populationdwarfs other regions by far
A young, digital and global audience.
WHO'S WATCHING
With one of the fastest-growing fan bases in pro sports, a youthful global audience
that’s already larger than Major League Baseball’s and top players who are quickly
joining the ranks of millionaires—eSports have entered the mainstream.
Joins the Big Leagues
SPORTS
eSPORTS