E-sports are team or individual competitions in computer games. The most popular e-sports disciplines are CS 2, DOTA 2, Valorant, League of Legends, Rainbow Six, Rocket League. Recently, the popularity of e-sports has increased greatly, world and national championships in computer games with large prizes have appeared. Therefore, many people have paid attention to this area and want to know how to make money on e-sports.
Player’s career
This is quite a difficult and long, but also the most profitable path. Professional players in top teams such as Navi or Monte earn 10-50 thousand dollars a month, depending on the discipline and performance. In teams of a lower level, the salaries are, accordingly, not so high. But good players can already receive 1-3 thousand dollars at the start of their careers.
But salaries are not the only income. There are also prizes for tournaments and championships. The size of the prize money in this case also depends on the level of the eSports event and its sponsors. The largest prize pool in the history of eSports was in the DOTA 2 The International 2021 tournament. Then the players shared a total of 40 million dollars among themselves.
Professional eSports players get media coverage and become popular. They run their own blogs, where they can advertise products, services, companies and thus indirectly earn money from eSports. Teams also place sponsor logos on the players’ uniforms. Players also receive a portion of the advertising contracts.
In general, professional players can earn tens of thousands of dollars on eSports and advertising. But to do this, you need to be a pro, sign a contract with a good team and successfully compete with other eSports athletes.
Coach
Experienced players can become coaches of eSports teams after finishing their careers. You don’t have to be an eSports star, win world championships, and so on. It is enough to understand the mechanics and features of the game, experience in different positions, for different characters, and so on. And of course, the level of the game must be above average.
But the most important thing in a coach is the ability to direct the team, work on its coordination and monitor regular training. One of the features of eSports is that young people, sometimes from 16 years old, most often participate in tournaments. Therefore, the coach must be able to effectively and efficiently communicate with young people.
Also, the coach of an eSports team must understand the features of holding various championships and tournaments, the requirements for competition participants. A good coach tries to know the opponent and build an effective strategy against his game.
Coaches’ salaries are slightly lower than those of top players and can reach up to 10 thousand dollars a month in the best eSports teams. Coaches of lower-level teams can expect an amount of up to 2-3 thousand. They also earn tournament prizes, a portion of advertising contracts, and so on.
Commentators
If you love eSports but aren’t ready to spend several hours a day training in computer games, consider becoming a commentator on eSports events. Just like in regular sports, there are companies in computer game competitions that broadcast or cover news.
They hire commentators who follow the events of the eSports match and comment on the players’ actions. The salary of eSports commentators directly depends on the level of the company, the championship, and the media presence of the commentator. At the start of a career, a commentator’s salary can be $500. More experienced and well-known specialists receive 3-5 thousand.
Streaming
If you do not want or do not have the opportunity to sign a contract with news outlets and companies broadcasting eSports matches, think about a career as a streamer. To do this, just create an account on Twitch or any other streaming platform and connect the broadcast of the competition to your channel.
You will also need to host this broadcast, tell the audience about the tournament, the organizers, the team. Streamers must retain the audience, so a high level of competence in eSports and charisma are important. A streamer’s earnings depend on the number of views. Sources of income are advertising of various brands and user donations.
Analytics
E-sports competitions have long been used to earn money not only by sponsors and teams, but also by bookmakers. For example, in Ukraine there are three legal bookmaking companies, one of which (GGBet) specializes in e-sports betting. Therefore, many bettors expect forecasts from competent specialists.
Quality analytics requires complete immersion in the world of e-sports. You need to know not only the features of games and competitions, but also the characters of the players, the style of play, reactions to defeat or success, the style of the coach, and so on. High-quality analytical materials can interest a wide audience of computer game lovers and, accordingly, bring in income.
The earnings of analysts primarily depend on professionalism. Salaries also vary depending on the company they work for. A personal blog with several dozen subscribers can bring in 2-3 thousand dollars a month or even more.
Creating text eSports content (news, forecasts, reviews)
If you are interested in the topic of computer games, competitions on them, the personalities of iconic figures, teams and organizers, then you can try yourself as a journalist. To write news, you only need minimal knowledge of eSports. Moreover, deep analytics or professional criticism of the team’s actions in a particular tournament are not required.
You just need to cover the matches, talk about the results, current positions and prospects of the teams. Also, to earn money on eSports, you can use the personal stories of players, talk about their relationships, publish news from companies that organize competitions.
The author of the news can run his own channel or blog, as well as work for one of the eSports publications. Earnings can reach several thousand dollars a month.
Video content
We have already talked about streaming as a means of earning money on eSports. But there is also the option of creating a channel on YouTube or Twitch, where you can upload pre-shot and edited videos. You can shoot news or analytical videos, reviews of games and championships, guides for beginners and much more.
One of the most popular areas is video instructions on games using the techniques of professional eSports athletes. References to famous teams and players increase views and, accordingly, the income of the video blogger.
The most popular platform for video is YouTube. You can also promote it using Facebook and Telegram. In this case, earnings on eSports consist of three main components – payment for advertising integrations, monetization from YouTube and viewer donations.
You can also use the YouTube platform to aggregate and redirect traffic. You can create video content on computer games and eSports competitions and advise betting on the upcoming championship in a certain bookmaker. You will receive a promo code or referral link from it. Earnings on eSports in this case will depend on the number of registrations or promo codes used.
Esports groups in social networks
Recently, Telegram has become the most popular platform for such content, but you can’t ignore Instagram and Facebook either. You can create an original post for one social network, adapt it or simply copy it to other pages.
In social networks, you will need to make posts and short videos with catchy titles and a bright presentation. After gaining a certain number of subscribers, you will receive offers to place ads. You can search for and work with advertisers directly. This requires more time and effort, but you can earn more on eSports.
You can also contact a professional agent or a special company that will sell advertising on your blog for a commission or a pre-agreed fee.
Investing in eSports
This method of earning money is suitable for people who have significant funds, the desire and ability to invest. It cannot be said that eSports is a blue chip and that income from investments is guaranteed. As with other markets, eSports has a certain level of volatility, so the investor always risks the invested funds.
You can make money from investing in eSports in the following ways:
- Investing in a team. You can buy, create, or promote an eSports team. It will generate income from advertising, championship wins, sponsorship, and so on.
- Opening an analytics studio. We previously wrote about creating analytical content. But investors do not need to do this on their own. You can invest in an existing analytics studio or create one from scratch.
- Organizing eSports tournaments. In this case, you need not only money, but also contacts in the industry. You can personally sponsor the entire tournament if you see benefits in this, or invite sponsors.
There are many ways to make money from eSports. You can start your own business, invest, or join a successful team. This area will only grow in the coming years, so now is the time to find your place in it.