Esports at the Olympics, virtual sports take on importance, with professional gamers making big profits

Gaming, in addition to attracting more and more attention and players, also proves to be very profitable, as demonstrated by Esports at the Olympics.

Exactly, just as happens with "real" sports, electronic ones also receive the global notoriety and fame that only an Olympic event can bring.

Esports at the Olympics

It is now a fact that Esports is gaining more interest, day after day, as demonstrated by the ever-increasing space given to it even in "non-sector" columns and magazines.

Now, however, in the last year, the Esports sector has returned to power and if at the end of 2021, the idea of ​​Esports at the Olympics might have seemed only a chimera, in just a few months many steps forward have already been made.

In a short time, a strong current made up of players, associations and the public has managed, at least in part, to change the mind of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) which is seriously evaluating, together with the various national federations (Coni in Italy), this sensational opening .

Esports could arrive at the Olympics very soon, probably already in the next edition of the Olympics.

Paris 2024

This could be the first edition in history in which Esports will be present. A temporary, experimental entry, which however could materialize starting from the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.

There are still many things to check and negotiate. First of all, if esports and the related medals will be added to those of real sports. Then it will be necessary to understand whether participation in the Olympics will be open to all esports or only to those that replicate real sports.

On this point the IOC has always been quite adamant, with a partial opening reserved only for Esports that simulate sports.

Nothing is defined to date, but a small glimmer of hope has opened for Esports at the Olympics and between now and 2024 or 2028 many things could change.

The world of sport is getting closer and closer to the niches in which it can find money (given by sponsorships) and audiences. Certainly in this respect Esports has nothing to envy of many other real sports, surpassing many in both areas and competing with the most famous.

Competitive gaming

Competing in Esports is in fact an exciting activity, which if mastered can lead to excellent successes in terms of popularity and earnings.

Earning with gaming, salaries

The possibility of Esports at the Olympics is not so remote even for Esports themselves now attract volumes of interest equal to the major traditional sporting events worldwide.

Some Esports finals already compete in terms of spectator volumes achieved with the major football sporting events (the sport par excellence and comparison in Europe). The end of League of Legends for example was seen by more than 200 million people around the world. A user base that has almost doubled that of the NBA final match and almost reached that of the last Champions League final.

Salaries

Such high volumes of interest and spectators obviously attract technical and traditional sponsors, leading this sector to be much richer on average than other sports.

This is demonstrated by the average salaries of professional gamers, which although vary based on the game in which they compete, the circuit and the team, see salaries for American professional players that fluctuate around 100 thousand dollars a year.

Volume almost reached also by other gamers, with South Korean, Chinese and European players earning variable salaries between 60 and 90 thousand dollars every year.

Fixed salaries to which bonuses, personal sponsorships and tournament winnings can be added.

Why so many?

The money goes where there is public interest and for esports it cannot be denied that there is a lot of interest.

The average salary of a professional gamer is in fact made up of some items that largely reflect the public's interest in his gaming experience.

If the first item is the fixed one of belonging to a team or a team, it is often also the least profitable, covering only 10 or 20% of the annual turnover of a professional gamer.

Everything else comes from personal contracts signed with sponsors. Professional gamers are in fact often very active on social media, starting from Twitch, the reference social network for those who play online, up to YouTube and Instagram.

A continuous presence, rewarded by popularity, contacts and many views which are appreciated by sponsors who propose new collaborations and partnerships with the players.

Some numbers

Esports streaming sees an average of 500 thousand regular viewers per day. Each player has at least one live channel where he broadcasts daily workouts, tips, sessions open to the public and much more.

Continuous exposure that leads some players to become millionaires.

The richest gamers

In a sort of continuously updated ranking we cannot fail to notice some numbers and gamers who have already made history.

How can we not mention, for example, the Swedish champion Johan Sundstein known as "N0tail" who in 2021 earned more than 7 million dollars playing Dota 2.

Or the one who was League of Legends champion for three years in a row, the Korean Fake, with an annual salary that exceeds three million dollars.

The richest games

This list is also constantly evolving, but at the current date the Dota2 game stands out in terms of "money paid".

Next we can consider League of Legends, Starcraft II, Fortnite and the more traditional Esports such as FIFA or PES.

Football esports

Obviously among the most loved by Italians and the most likely to end up among esports at the Olympics, FIFA and PES allow professional players to earn hundreds of thousands of euros a year, between sponsorships, direct winnings or actual hiring from part of the Serie A teams.

The eSerie A

Created in 2020, this virtual league replicates the performance of the real parallel one. All the major Italian football clubs are present in it, who have hired the best gamers to wear their jerseys. Teams that, based on agreements with individual brands, often even have two teams, one dedicated to FIFA and one to PES, thus managing to include at least 4 egamers in their player workforce.

Of course, our eSerie A is still an evolving sector compared to more consolidated esports, but the boost of eGames at the Olympics could soon overturn everything.