As the global esports market evolves, more and more key trends need to be considered for success in this business. 2024 also promises to be a breakthrough year for the esports industry. Many aspects related to competitive gaming will change. With this in mind, the GBC Time team has carefully researched the situation in this area and found several trends that are likely to affect it this year.
More professional clubs will create esports teams
While numerous sports clubs have ignored the business potential of esports events, many of them have changed their minds in recent years. Manchester City, AS Roma, FC Bayern München, and other top-tier organizations have already begun promoting their brands through esports competitions. In 2023, this trend could help many clubs bounce back from the global pandemic in terms of brand awareness.
Esports will involve more celebrities
Sports, Hollywood, and other mainstream celebrities have also begun to see the prospects of the esports market. They often deal with well-known development studios to represent popular gaming titles, professional teams, and PC hardware manufacturers. For example, Lionel Messi, who won his first World Cup recently, promoted PUBG Mobile. Many famous people will want to follow his example in the coming months, and this decision will surely pay dividends for them.
Esports betting will reach the next level
Online betting operators are also realizing that the esports market offers countless growth opportunities. The lockdown showed companies that people are even more interested in streamed gaming events than expected. Therefore, it is not surprising that experts predict that even more gamblers will begin to include esports competitions in their bets in 2023.
VALORANT will continue to dominate the pro scene
Even though this game was released relatively recently, it took the pro gaming scene by storm. With the title remaining one of the most broadcasted competitive games last year, esports executives believe it will cover even more players in 2023. Riot Games has a ton of high-caliber events planned for this year. And on top of that, it wants to launch three prestigious leagues that will operate internationally.
Female esports players will get their portion of the glory
For the longest time, female pro gamers could not reach the level of popularity that would allow them to sign lucrative contracts with big-name brands. However, the global inclusion trend has changed the esports business landscape, and many organizations have begun looking for female gaming talent. Jeon “DangMoo” Su-jin already felt this positive change when Liiv SANDBOX signed her for the LCK CL event. She became the first girl to participate in such a significant League of Legends tournament. And industry enthusiasts believe that this and some other similar precedents will help the female pro scene develop faster.