We know that eSports is more popular than ever with many competitive games being broadcasted on mainstream channels such as ESPN. According to Dell and Alienware, the video game market exceeded $30 billion USD in 2016 with a projected forecast to grow at a 6% compounded annual growth rate through 2019.
People spending money on eSports
On top of that, we are seeing many fans and viewers being more interactive on livestream platforms such as Twitch. Lendedu recently put together a detailed survey of just how much the community is growing. In their survey of 1,000 self-identified eSports fans, they found that 62% of respondents spent money on eSports before with an estimated average eSports expenditure coming in at $566 per year.
49% of respondents would rather spend money on eSport event tickets instead of sporting or concert tickets. Further, 51% of respondents would rather spend money on eSport merchandise instead of sporting merchandise.
If they only could afford one, 45% of parents would rather pay for their child’s one-on-one video game lessons instead of sport or academic lessons. Below is the full survey results.
Full Survey Results
1. How long have you been a fan of eSports?
a. 13 percent of respondents answered “Less than one year.”
b. 30 percent of respondents answered “One to three years.”
c. 24 percent of respondents answered “Four to seven years.”
d. 12 percent of respondents answered “Eight to ten years.”
e. 21 percent of respondents answered “Over ten years.”
2. Have you ever spent money on eSports including on things like Twitch subscriptions or donations, event tickets, merchandise, or gambling?
a. 62 percent of respondents answered “Yes.”
b. 33 percent of respondents answered “No.”
c. 5 percent of respondents answered “I’d rather not say.”
3. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Specifically, how much money do you estimate you spend or will spend annually in-total on all things eSports?
a. The average annual spend on all things eSports was $566.
b. The median annual spend on all things eSports was $200.
4. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Specifically, how much money do you estimate you spend or will spend annually on eSport event tickets?
a. 21 percent of eSport spenders indicated that they will not/do not spend money on eSport event tickets specifically.
b. Amongst those that will spend on eSport event tickets, the average annual spend was $440.
c. Amongst those that will spend on eSport event tickets, the median annual spend was $200.
5. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Would you rather spend money on a ticket to an eSport event or a ticket to a major sporting/entertainment event like an NFL or NBA game, or popular concert?
a. 49 percent of respondents answered “I’d rather spend my money on the eSport event ticket.”
b. 39 percent of respondents answered “I’d rather spend my money on the sporting or concert ticket.”
c. 12 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
6. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Specifically, how much money do you estimate you spend or will spend annually on a subscription through a streaming service like Twitch to watch a professional eSport gamer?
a. 17 percent of eSport spenders indicated that they will not/do not spend money on a subscription through a streaming service like Twitch specifically.
b. Amongst those that will spend on a subscription, the average annual spend was $286.
c. Amongst those that will spend on a subscription, the median annual spend was $100.
7. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Would you rather spend money on a subscription through a streaming service like Twitch to watch others play video games or a Netflix or cable subscription?
a. 47 percent of respondents answered “eSport streaming service subscription.”
b. 46 percent of respondents answered “Netflix or cable subscription.”
c. 7 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
8. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Specifically, how much money do you estimate you spend or will spend annually on eSports by purchasing merchandise to support your favorite eSport gamers or teams?
a. 14 percent of eSport spenders indicated that they will not/do not spend money on eSport merchandise specifically.
b. Amongst those that will spend on merchandise, the average annual spend was $174.
c. Amongst those that will spend on merchandise, the median annual spend was $100.
9. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Would you rather spend money on eSports merchandise to support your favorite eSport gamer/team or merchandise to support your favorite NFL/NBA/MLB/NHL or soccer team?
a. 51 percent of respondents answered “Merchandise for my favorite eSport gamer or team.”
b. 40 percent of respondents answered “Merchandise for my favorite sports team.”
c. 9 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
10. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Specifically, how much money have you gambled or will gamble (excluding winnings/losings) annually on eSport tournaments or competitions?
a. 25 percent of eSport spenders indicated that they will not/do not spend money on eSport gambling specifically.
b. Amongst those that will spend on eSport gambling, the average annual spend was $607.
c. Amongst those that will spend on eSport gambling, the median annual spend was $200.
11. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Would you rather gamble on an eSport tournament/competition or a major sporting event like the Super Bowl or Kentucky Derby?
a. 51 percent of respondents answered “An eSport tournament or competition.”
b. 39 percent of respondents answered “A major sporting event.”
c. 10 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
12. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2) Have you ever made donations to your favorite eSport professional gamers that stream through a service like Twitch?
a. 50 percent of respondents answered “Yes.”
b. 47 percent of respondents answered “No.”
c. 3 percent of respondents answered “I’d rather not say.”
13. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q2 & “A” to Q12) Specifically, how much money have you donated or will donate annually to your favorite eSport gamers that stream through a service like Twitch?
a. Amongst those that will make donations to their favorite eSport gamers, the average annual donation amount was $465.
b. Amongst those that will make donations to their favorite eSport gamers, the median annual donation amount was $100.
14. Right now, what is more important to you: eSports or your favorite sports team or league?
a. 30 percent of respondents answered “eSports.”
b. 33 percent of respondents answered “Favorite sports team or league.”
c. 27 percent of respondents answered “Equally important.”
d. 10 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
15. Would you rather become a world-famous professional athlete, actor, or musician or a world-famous professional eSport gamer?
a. 44 percent of respondents answered “World famous professional athlete, actor, musician.”
b. 40 percent of respondents answered “World famous professional eSports gamer.”
c. 16 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
16. Do you think there will ever be a time when eSports becomes bigger in terms of revenue and popularity than the other major sport leagues like the NFL or the MLB?
a. 49 percent of respondents answered “Yes.”
b. 23 percent of respondents answered “No.”
c. 28 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
17. (Asked only to those who answered “A” to Q16) How long do you think it will take for eSports to surpass the major sports leagues in terms of revenue and popularity?
a. 72 percent of respondents answered “Within the next 10 years.”
b. 21 percent of respondents answered “11 to 30 years.”
c. 5 percent of respondents answered “31 to 50 years.”
d. 1 percent of respondents answered “51 to 70 years.”
e. 1 percent of respondents answered “over 70 years.”
18. (Asked only to those respondents with children) Knowing what you know now about the dangers of professional contact sports, would you encourage your child to focus on playing in eSport competitions over playing in more traditional sports?
a. 27 percent of applicable respondents answered “I would encourage them to pursue eSports.”
b. 20 percent of applicable respondents answered “I would still encourage them to pursue traditional sports.”
c. 48 percent of respondents answered “Whatever they would want to do.”
d. 5 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
19. (Asked only to those respondents with children) Would you pay to have your child take one-one-one video game lessons from a professional gamer if they asked?
a. 70 percent of respondents answered “Yes, if they wanted to do it.”
b. 14 percent of respondents answered “No, even if they wanted to do it.”
c. 16 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
20. (Asked only to those respondents with children & who answered “A” to Q19) If you could only afford one, would you rather pay for your child’s one-one-one video game lessons or something more traditional like sport or academic lessons?
a. 45 percent of respondents answered “One-on-one video game lessons.”
b. 44 percent of respondents answered “Sport or academic lessons.”
c. 11 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
21. Would you want an eSport based credit card that gave you reward points for all eSport-related purchases including event tickets, merchandise, Twitch subscriptions, etc.?
a. 35 percent of respondents answered “Yes, definitely.”
b. 25 percent of respondents answered “Most likely.”
c. 24 percent of respondents answered “Not sure.”
d. 9 percent of respondents answered “Most likely not.”
e. 9 percent of respondents answered “Definitely not.”
We are beginning to see the rise of more and more superstars in the eSports community with players such as Faker, Ninja, Myth, and many more who are even more famous than superstar athletes. They receive huge amounts of money for endorsements and competition prizes that overshadow many athletes in the MLB, NFL, and the NBA without putting their bodies in harms way.
It does seem like the gaming community is becoming incrementally bigger every year and we look forward to seeing just how big some of these gaming communities become.
