Recently the renowned Forbes magazine released their list of top 10 Esports org's by the amount of revenue generated for the year 2020 and the amount of money these Esports organizations generate is insane. 80 Pine Street, Suite 3202 New York, NY 10005, Start and end your day with FOS in your inbox. The company is also looking to expand globally with a particular eye on the U.S., with plans for a flagship in New York. Industry-wide revenue, which was expected to jump 16% to $1.1 billion in 2020, instead fell $150 million after the pandemic canceled most live events, according to industry research group Newzoo. Notable performances include winning 2013, 2015, and 2016 League of Legends World Championships. The New York Knicks headline nine hoops teams in the top 50 this year. With esports events like the 2019 League of Legends World Championships bringing in almost four million concurrent viewers across Twitch and YouTube, its no surprise that competitive gaming is now a multi-million dollar industry, and shows no signs of slowing down. Player costs typically eat up half of a companys operating budget. The team finished second at The International 2014. That is why eSports players stream as well. Team Spirit 5. Kevin Hitt is a business reporter for The Esports Observer that specializes in investigative journalism. T1 1. We painstakingly compiled our list of the 12 most valuable esports companies by talking to company owners, bankers and industry experts. Esports is a rapidly-growing industry, and Forbes has revealed the 13 richest organizations in the professional gaming scene, including fan-favorite teams like TSM, Cloud9, and FaZe Clan. What could go wrong? The company, which has offices in both Los Angeles and the Netherlands and is considered especially brand-safe for advertisers, is diversifying in several directions at once. Ninja is the type of gamer every esports company and their sponsors covet. Salary. Gen.G is a Korean-based organization but have spread their wings over the last few years and entered the American market with huge success throughout 2018 and 2019. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 7 at $180 million. This represents a 70% growth in the next four years. It was Virtus.pros CS:GO team that brought in the bulk of this years prize money; bringing in $641K including a $500K payday by winning Flashpoint Season 2. Sources include news articles, forum posts, live report threads, interviews, official statements, reliable databases, VODs and other publicly-accessable sources that preserve "historical" information. By estimation, it will be worth around $1.62 billion by 2024. For LoLbeing one of the leading esports titles in the world, the prize money is actually comparatively modest. When compared to traditional sports valuations, esports companies have already reached major league hockey status. The team own an LCK LoL franchise spot in their native South Korea but also compete in Overwatch and NBA 2K League. The valuations were rooted in actual 2021 performance, with multiples applied to each revenue stream individually and adjusted somewhat to reflect future projections. Fox became the team's starting small forward and achieved double-figure scoring. General partners include Nike, Red Bull, HyperX. But having a rich owner can change that. Video games might be all the rage during the pandemic, but pro video game teams are not. The deal covers multiple Disney-controlled networks including ESPN, Disney XD and ABC. Electronic Arts has lowered its full-year revenue guidance. match was the catalyst behind the No. To compile this ranking, Forbes spoke to two dozen esports organizations, investors, advisors to investors, and analysts. No. Iconic sports namesfrom the New York Yankees and Houston Rockets to Robert Kraft and Magic Johnsonhave bought in. . Syed Sumail Hassan, otherwise called Sumail, is a Pakistani-American expert Dota 2 player for Team Secret. The team makes an estimated $9 million per year and is valued at $185 million. Worth an estimated $210 million, Immortals Gaming Club made headline news in June 2018 when it was announced that they had acquired OpTic Gaming, who will compete for IGC in the 2020 Call of Duty League. Some of the gap was filled with its higher-margin online content business, including sponsored streams on Twitch and videos on YouTube. Another team steeped in esports history, FaZe Clan started life as a Call of Duty sniper team, but now operate teams in the franchise CoD League and CS:GO, and are home to some of the biggest Fortnite streamers and professional players in the world. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Copyright 2012-2023 Esports Earnings. 10 spot. Using NFTs to sell the in-game digital items known as skins would allow teams to collect a fee if the item was resold, the way that Dapper Labs collects a percentage of any trade of its NBA Top Shot NFTs on the secondary market. FaZes plan to go public has come with risks. Red Bull 2. Spacestation, much like G2, has teams in multiple esports titles winning $5K here, $10K there, that helped to bolster its numbers for 2020. (Newzoo, 2021) Meanwhile, the global esports market combined with games streaming is expected to be worth $2.1 billion in 2021 and more than $3.5 billion by 2025. A software development company is looking to the NBA for help. 14 Leading eSports Agencies for Influencer Marketing Managers to K 18 Talent Management Agencies for eSports, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive - $1,024,251.21, Magomed Khalilov (Collapse) - $3,973,920.01, Yaroslav Naidenov (Miposhka) - $3,973,920.01, Alexander Khertek (TORONTOTOKYO) - $3,973,920.01, How to Become an Amazon Influencer a Step-by-Step Guide, RFP Management Software for Growth-Focused Companies. Teams had 3 encounters in the past, Aster won 1 times. An eSport player salary usually ranges from 1.000 to 5.000 a month, with some highly skilled players earning a salary of a stunning 50.000 a month. In 2017, there were 74 deals (the majority from angel and venture capital investors) worth $1.52 billion involving esports companies, according to PitchBook, up from six deals worth $34 million in 2008. Esports revenue makes up only 6% of revenue. he nascent esports industry resembles the Wild West. In the meantime, though, new sponsors have found their way to teams as the pandemic has supercharged online viewership numbers, with esports young male audience long considered a desirable but hard-to-reach demographic among advertisers. Perhaps the biggest surprise is despite Fortnite being the name video game of 2018, it doesnt appear anywhere near the top of the high-earning tournament games. Natus Vincere Intel invests in IEM and the Overwatch League Net worth: $200 billion LGD Gaming 15. ot gs bu. Sumails father gained a job in the USA, and Sumail joined Evil Geniuses in January 2015. * Data compiled using information from EsportsEarnings.com. They also operate in games like Fortnite, Smite, and StarCraft 2, and according to Forbes, their estimated revenue sits at $5 million, with a total valuation of $120 million. Here are 15 of the most popular eSports teams right now in alphabetical order. However, much like G2, Liquid has diversified its team portfolio and brings in money from multiple titles. The Kraft Group 9. 1. The favorite for this one looks to be Tundra Esports with maximum odd of 1.66 offered by Pinnacle. Last month, the company opened the Castle, a funhouse, gamers version of a fraternity house and production studio to churn out digital content that can be sold to sponsors. Revenue figures in our table represent an estimate for 2020 and are separated into competitive gaming and related businesses, based on information provided by the companies. The manager for the team is Nimish "Nemo" Raut and the CEO for the team is Wouter Sleijffers. The average value of the top ten teams flatlined at $240 million in 2020, following a 54% rise in 2019, according to our exclusive annual ranking of the most valuable esports companies. Skeptics point to the companys $36.9 million net loss for 2021, among other things, and Forbes now values FaZe at $400 million, No. Teams must pay each player a minimum of $12,500 for the 28-match season. There are also ideas emerging around so-called play-to-earn games, which reward users with NFTs or cryptocoins. The multiple titles approach has allowed Liquid to maintain its elite presence in esports having been the No. Those numbers dont tell the whole story, however. Dota 2 is one of the most featured games and also one most eSports teams have made big bucks playing. This year? Among the hardest hit was Immortals Gaming Club, another Los Angeles-based group, which fell off the list because of a singular focus on competitive gaming. Team Spirit is now stationed in Belgrade, Serbia. Most of the ad revenue from a streamers videos is returned to the streamer. Below are the 12 most valuable esports companies in the world. All Rights Reserved. For Spacestation, it was its. Tundra won 1 times. Ranking The Top Esports Teams 10. FaZe Clan announced plans in October 2021 to go public through a merger with blank-check company B. Riley Principal 150 Merger Corp., valuing the combined entity at $1 billion. Team Liquids parent, aXiomatic Gaming, is fresh off raising $35 million in a round announced this week that values Liquid at $415 million. The organization have dominated League of Legends in the United States, winning three consecutive splits, and secured three top 4 finishes at the last three Dota 2 The International tournaments. Top 100 Highest Overall Earnings - Esports Player Rankings :: Esports Earnings Player Rankings Highest Overall Earnings Highest Single Game Earnings Highest Earnings By Country Highest Earnings By Age Most Tournament Results Last 30 Days Last 90 Days Last 365 Days Female Players Console Players Fighting Game Players Tyler Blevins With an estimated net worth of 15 billion dollars, he is also known as the king of Twitch. Activision Blizzards ability to maintain its Overwatch League and Call of Duty League operations during the pandemic was instrumental in making sure the North American esports scene remained relevant. If it were negotiating terms now, it would likely fetch an even higher price. 10 spot. G2 Esports (Valued $165 million)8. The club was founded in 2015, in Moscow, Russia. Valued at $190 million, 100 Thieves jumps to the fifth spot on our list, from No. The theory is: dilution is an acceptable consequence because 20% of something worth $1 billion is greater than 100% of something worth $100 million. By creating a plan and pivoting to online events, NRGs umbrella teams were able to take home a significant amount of money. 4. (Joint) Misfits Gaming (Valued $120 million)11. It also reported that $24.8 million of the $53 million in revenue generated in 2021 came from brand sponsorships. In July, Activision Blizzard signed a multiyear deal with Walt Disney to broadcast the Overwatch League on linear television. 68 - 46 = 22, so the average value of the non-USP guns would need to be (22 / 3) 7.33 or more for this to make sense. Dallas Cowboys (NFL) Value: $5.7 billion Five-Year Change In Value: 43% Owner: Jerry Jones Year Purchased: 1989 Price Paid:. Immortals Gaming Club (Valued $210 million)4. Since the pick up, NRG have locked down the Chicago Call of Duty spot, and continue to operate in many of the world's biggest esports, such as Fortnite, Smash, Apex Legends, and more, valued at. Maroun "GH" Merhej $4.1 Million. At present, teams from the organization compete in CS:GO, Dota 2, League of Legends, and Hearthstone. 24 Success in professional eSports demands rigorous teamwork and unflinching commitment to high performance 25; winning teams can earn millions in prize money, with . According to Forbes, the team brings in $35 million in estimated revenue, and are currently worth an eye-watering $240 million. Overwatch franchise valuations are $60 million to $80 million, depending on country and city. League. Team OG also won the Manila Major 2016 event, making them the first squad in Dota 2 history to win two major tournaments. Last year, Team Secret was fifth on this list with $3.36M. The eye-watering valuations for the rest of the top ten similarly belie the reality of the industry right now: Esports is a tough business, and in some ways getting tougher, and the rise in these companies valuations is largely being driven not by their esports teams but by their other divisions. The esports companies that end up winning this shootout will likely be those that have arenas and multiple teams in multiple leagues. 100 Thieves emerged as the second-most valuable esports company with a $460 million valuation. Huge prize pools in this industry are common. But while money is pouring into the metaverseFortnite publisher Epic Games announced last month that it had raised $1 billion in funding to support its metaverse initiativethose days are a long ways off, and game makers are in no rush to cede control. While it is typical in esports that one event, such as the, International, is usually the cause of a teams No. Intel 4. In January its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team became the first North American squad to take top honors at a major tournament. More recently, the team bagged the 2018 Demacia Cup Winter and came in at second place in the 2019 Spring Split regular season. Cloud9 finishes second with valuation of US$350m; Team Liquid, Faze Clan and 100 Thieves round out top five. To account for market fluctuations, we used an average enterprise value between September 1 and December 1 and value the company at $180 million, ranking No. LGD then created another Dota squad, which they called LGD.int. According to Newzoo, the number of esports enthusiasts worldwide will reach 165 million in 2018, which translates to year-over-year growth of 15%. Mercedes Benz Esports: The Next Big Thing? FaZe Clan also plays Rainbow Six Siege, COD: WWII, and Valorant, and are the 2021 Call of Duty League Champions. With a diversified team fielding structure, TSM participated and won money in 11 different games including League of Legends, Fortnite, and Valorant. Not only are they valued at more than $320 million with a revenue on par with Cloud9, but they also hold the title of most tournament winnings ever. In an even more distant future, the establishment of a metaverse linking multiple popular games together could steal some power from publishers, allowing teams to sell items or avatars that could transfer from game to game and mitigating the IP issues they are currently navigating. List of Top 10 eSports Teams 1. Its a multi-game eSports outfit with over 90 players, most of which are from China. They are known for their League of Legends, Dota 2, and StarCraft II teams but have recently expanded into CS: GO and Hearthstone. It has separate teams of players playing Dota and League of Legends. Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. In addition, 100 Thieves is dipping its toes into traditional sports; in November, it signed YouTube stars 2Hype, who have amassed a following of 18 million subscribers through their basketball-themed challenge videos. Lee Aik Soon/Riot Games Inc. via Getty Images, TSM has the richest sponsorship deal in esports, a ten-year, $210 million naming rights agreement with crypto exchange FTX, but its real selling point is its tech businesses: Blitz, an app that trains users in popular video games, and Dyno, which offers a moderation bot for Discord servers. Those results are pending. 4. Here are some of the largest esports investors, organized by net worth. It even supports television coverage, for those who still prefer the big screen, rather than livestreaming via Twitch on their tablet or phone. 100 Thieves Estimated Value: $190 million Richest Esports Organizations 100 Thieves, LLC is an American lifestyle brand and gaming organization based in Los Angeles, California. , and more in other titles. The next frontier is on the digital side. Sponsored teams make ads, wear sponsored merch, and share. Teams not only have to pick the right games to compete in but also have to hope those titles stay relevant. Getty Images Valued at $190 million, 100 Thieves jumps to the fifth spot on our list, from No. Some around the industry express wariness about the Los Angeles-based companys leadership, however, with CEO Andy Dinh accused late last year of bullying. Paid subscriptions are also a great way for streamers to bring in revenue. We have accumulated data from a few dependable sources, for example, Forbes and ESports Earnings to decide the total assets of the most extravagant Esports players living in the world. This team was able to still compete in various online events, even taking a third place finish in Flashpoint Season 2. team was able to secure $168K in winnings playing in a very limited amount of events, having played in no events since Sept. 27. One other development that could help or hurt teams is Microsofts pending acquisition of Activision, one of gamings biggest publishers. Rodriguez has been able to weather the pandemic and dwindling esports prize pools by fielding multiple teams, with some not requiring a lot of overhead expenses. The Walt Disney Company chose Team Liquid to participate in the 'Disney Accelerator' program in 2017. The esports team was founded in the Netherlands back in 2000. (Joint) Cloud9 (Valued $400 million)1. A mere $92M. Front Office Sports covers the influence of sports on business and culture. Dota2, in particular, appears to be where most of the money is nowadays.Cumulative prizes for Dota 2 nearly reached. They handpicked skilled players who were highly ranked on the Chinese Dota ladder at the time. Importantly, eSports are not just some niche fad, likely to become old news by next year. The ad-supported app, which has 10 million active monthly users and offers playing analysis and training sessions, now accounts for half of the companys $45 million in revenue. What you have seen in the last year is other esports companies are catching on to what has been our philosophy from Day 1, which is to explore the outer reaches of what gaming can be, says FaZe Clans CEO, Lee Trink. Overwatch is already adding expansion teams, and Riot Games has begun selling franchises for its European league. Cloud9 & Team SoloMid (Tied) - $583.8 million Cloud9 Franchise League (s) - Team (s): LCS - Cloud9, Overwatch - London Spitfire Cloud9 Non-franchise Teams: CS:GO, Fortnite, Hearthstone, PUBG, Rainbow Six, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros, Teamfight Tactics, WoW Esports revenues will grow 38% this year, to $906 million, and reach $1.65 billion by 2021. 2 earner last year by receiving more than $9M in prize money. Chipotle took notice and signed what could be a seven-figure deal with TSM. Games go in and out of style, which would mean companies would need to drastically change their rosters. FaZe saw its net losses increase 28% year-over-year in 2021. A year ago, esports companieswhich play competitive versions of games like Fortnite and Call of Duty, sometimes in front of crowds of 40,000 or morewere gushing about war chests; oversubscribed funding rounds; celebrity investors like Drake, Stephen Curry and Jennifer Lopez; and a future that would see gaming teams eclipsing NFL teams in monetary value. FaZe Clan (Valued $240 million)3. Theres a broad-based agreement that esports as a stand-alone doesnt work as a business, one team executive says bluntly. Page generated in 5.569934845 milliseconds, BetBoom Universe: Episode I - Comics Zone, RLCS 2022-23 - Winter: EU Regional 2 - Winter Cup, RLCS 2022-23 - Winter: NA Regional 2 - Winter Cup. Fnatic (Valued $175 million)6. Team Liquid is a professional eSports team founded in the Netherlands in 2000. Reach Mike Ozanian at mozanian@forbes.com. Their breakthrough came in the Frankfurt Major 2015, where they defeated Evil Geniuses, CDEC Gaming, and Team Secret. Traffic cop at the intersection of money and sports. NRG Esports (Valued $150 million)10. Gamer Murat "Arbalet" Zhumashevich created an open invite for all like-minded players to form a team. G2 earned $383K in League of Legends, more than $330K in CS:GO, $163K in R6, $159K in Rocket League, more than $100K in Valorant, and more in other titles. Influencer Marketing Hub Influencer Marketing Top 15 eSports Teams, Earnings, and Salaries. Million-dollar sponsorship deals are few and far between right now in esports. 10. In 2016, he also became the vice-chairman and partner of the Oilers Entertainment Group . 1 seed for playoffs, having accumulated the most points during regular season competition. While many companies are expanding beyond esports, Forbes chose not to consider for this ranking Luminosity Gaming parent Enthusiast Gaming, which derives just 3% of its revenue from esports, according to its filings as a public company. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. This organizations prize pool money is directly tied to the. Faker has earned more than $1.17 million from 40 tournaments, the highest from Korea. The teams base is in Hangzhou, China. They have teams in Dota, Starcraft II, CS:GO and several others - and have $24 million worth of prize money under their belts. US organisation Evil Geniuses have gone on to become one of the biggest names in esports. Zai's net worth is thought to be around $2,459,054 US dollars. Theyre very much Dota 2 specialists. And for Team Secret, Dota 2 is a staple. Cloud9 is tops from a competitive standpoint as well. You are here: However, Team Secrets prize winnings are tied to its. Big companies approach teams with bids and contracts when they gain notoriety for their skills and a considerable fan base. FaZe Clan has broken into mainstream culture in a way no other esports organization has been able to, creating tremendous brand value as it looks to become a full-fledged media company with original content like the contest series Road To FaZe1, the horror movie Crimson and a comic book crossover with Batman. Team Liquid's estimated value is $310 million and they successfully generated $28 million this year. One Rio Major and its $2M were lost to the pandemic. TSM's League of Legends team is one of the most successful in the game. The team gained fame for winning The International 2014 (TI14). Thus revenue and projections could be slashed and the high valuations could tumble. The American organization own LCS and Overwatch League spots, and also compete in CS:GO, Fortnite, Rocket League and more. Once again, Johan "N0tail" Sundstein has managed to amass the biggest prize purse of awards thanks to his commitment to professional Dota 2 and string of successes in 2018 and 2019 with his team, OG. Following this, the market saw immense growth going into 2020 with a 15% rise on the previous year. Before the halt of Dota events, Virtus.pro was able to take home more than $472K in winnings by playing in various tournaments including EPIC League and winning ESL One Los Angeles. 1 ranking. 10 in 2019. The police have back . The organization has had an occasionally bumpy experience with esports franchise model but limits its risk exposure by fielding a manageable number of teams. Team Spirit have divisions in Counter Strike: Global Offensive (2016), Dota 2 (2015), Hearthstone (2016) and League of Legends (2022). Winning competitions is arguably the most straightforward way to make money in eSports. Fnatic also qualified for both Dota Majors this year and Dota's season-ending championship: The International 2022. Still, that kind of aggregation doesnt reflect the opportunity in any one esporta fan of League of Legends doesnt necessarily care about Call of Duty, the same way an NFL fan doesnt necessarily watch the NBA. 10 in 2019. You may opt-out by. as well. Newbee is a Chinese e-Sports team. The net worth for the team is $24,384. Its a South Korean team with reach into Seoul, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. Over time, the team changed the games they played. This month, the five-year old company, which is owned by Jack and Paullie Etienne, raised $50 million in Series B funding. A single tournament can yield hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money, but almost all of it goes to the players. Team OG 3. No team in Forbes ranking has appreciated more than 100 Thieves, which was fifth on the 2020 list at $190 million. This is a BETA experience. Here are the ten most valuable esports companies. League, took home $1.55M in prize money out of a total prize pool of $3.05M over the course of the regular season and playoffs. Here is a list of the top 10 eSports teams in 2022. Thats rich. The Biggest Esports Sponsors in the World 1. The top 10 esports companies are worth an average of $353 million, a 46% increase compared to December 2020. Most of the companys revenue has occurred outside of competitive play. Esports companies are constantly buying and selling teams and players to compete in the best leagues and build audiences on Amazons Twitch and Alphabets YouTube. Here we have one of the biggest esports organizations with many teams in various disciplines and players from all over the world. FaZe Clan are one of esports most historic teams. FaZe Clan is a popular Counter-Strike: Global Offensive gaming team. Coca-Cola 7. Virtus.pro 9. When this team was created in 2014, it quickly caught fire. Let's take a look at the highest-earning individual players along with the top teams that are raking in big bucks. The interest in eSports has hit critical mass, ensuring that there are sufficient high-paying tournaments to justify a competitive full-time lifestyle. GH was a relatively unknown commodity prior to his signing with Team Liquid in late 2016. For gaming and trivia enthusiasts, Natus Vincere is also referred to as NAVI, which is borrowed from James Camerons blockbuster success Avatar. This has led to esports companies raising capital by the buckets. Here is an interesting visualization of the top 15 Esports Games by Prize Money below. It competes in several video games that include Call of Duty, Fortnite Battle Royale, League of Legends, Valorant, and Call of Duty: Warzone. Enthusiast Gaming is ranked for the first time. Team Liquid became part of the entertainment and sports management company, aXiomatic, in 2016. Tundra doing well by winning over 40.00% of their recent matches. There are some similarities to traditional sports leagues. However, Team Secrets prize winnings are tied to its Dota 2 squad. The organization will look to its multi-game approach once again in 2021 with the hopes that more events become available as more tournament organizers become comfortable running live events with the permission of local governments. Revenue flatlined at Los Angeles-based NRG after its CDL and OWL teams had to cancel ticketed in-person events and stage them online for free. The company, founded by former Call of Duty champion Matthew Nadeshot Haag, 28, expects to make $16 million in revenue this year, a leap of 60%. TSM was able to win $158K in prize money in League of Legends as well as $179K in Fortnite. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.