Esports Insights And Trends - January 2018

Leveraging its long history and extensive experience in all aspects of the sports arena, the Foley Sports Industry Team is actively immersed in the booming esports industry. Our Esports Insights and Trends will be a recurring post which is designed to deliver to esports industry insiders and watchers up-to-date information on the latest trends and developments in the fast-moving world of esports. To that end, today's post covers a variety of topics, including the intersection of esports with privacy, traditional sports models, science, gambling, college programs, and investment activity.

Big Traditional Sports Names Are Stepping Into Esports.

This is becoming more and more commonplace with every big name that enters the esports market. Below are some of the notable stories of big traditional sports names entering the esports market or furthering their already sizeable investments into the market . . .

The Sacramento Kings unveil esports facility inside Golden 1 Center. The center will act as a state-of-the-art training facility for esports, as well as a broadcast center and player lounge. To read more about this facility and how the Kings are encouraging the growth and development of esports players, click here.

Warriors, Cavaliers and Rockets join the League of Legends ("LoL") ranks. Three of the 10 franchises competing in the 2018 North American League Championship series are backed by the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets. For more info, click here.

Esports names in 50 most influential people in sports. Some of the SportsBusiness Journal's top 50 most influential in sports have invested in esports. For the full list, click here.

Mark Cuban's take on how the NBA and esports work together. The Dallas Mavericks' owner envisions tapping into the younger demographic with his team's foray into the inaugural NBA 2K League season. For his take on the investment, click here.

Manchester City signs second FIFA player. Manchester City signed Marcus "ExpectSporting" Jorgensen to represent the club playing FIFA in PlayStation 4 competitions. For more information, click here.

Schalke 04 presented a LoL squad to its soccer fans at a home game. The popular Bundesliga team is hoping its massive fan base will embrace its LoL team. For more insight into their plan, click here.

The Line Between Traditional Sports and Esports Is Blurring.

Esports organizations and traditional sports teams were organized very differently in the past and had different needs. Esports organizations are beginning to take on traditional sports models now, and are utilizing many of the same tools as traditional sports. Below are some of the notable stories from the past month regarding this topic . . .

OWL team, London Spitfire, hires British corporation to increase its foothold in the community. Similar to how traditional sports franchises focus on endearing themselves to the local community, esports teams like the London Spitfire realize how valuable it is to have their local community support them and are taking measures to accomplish that. For more info, click here.

NBA 2K League will feature in-game sponsors and ads just like its real world counterparts. Teams will be able to sell patches on virtual jerseys as well as virtual signage and logos on the court. For more info, click here.

Hearthstone Masters is another step in compensating esports players like a full-time job. Blizzard, the developer behind Overwatch, is taking steps to get Hearthstone players to commit to a professional player lifestyle. To read about how Blizzard is doing this with its vastly popular online card game, click here.

SK Gaming Partners With DreamTeam to create first esports and gaming recruitment and management network. Companies like DreamTeam have long-existed in traditional sports and their impact has resulted in more potential players being reached and their skills nurtured. As support for competitive gamers grow, so should the level of competition. For more info, click here. For more on how DreamTeam plans to help millennials pursue their professional esport careers, click here.

Google adds esports to its livescore feature. When you type the name of a sports league into Google, you receive league scores and schedules. Now, users will be able to do the same with esports. For more info on how Google has updated its livescore feature to incorporate esports, click here.

NRG CEO Andy Miller believes the Overwatch League is taking cures from traditional sports. For more on his take on how the Overwatch League is affecting the esports model, click here.

The Parade of Investments Into Esports Continues.

Investment deals into esports organizations are growing more frequent and larger and are coming from unexpected sources. Below are some of...