Professional athletes have always been seen as those incredible individuals that do what not many other people can do. Yes, maybe you played football in high school or soccer in college, but when it comes to being a professional athlete, so much more is needed and necessary to be successful. At least, that was the idea.
The emergence of e-sport athletes has created a new definition for professional athletes, and this new frontier of “gamers” creates a new way for companies to make money. These companies in turn now new methods for their campaigns to reach consumers.
E-sports are competitive video games that are played in teams against other teams. Although they can be individual one-on-one games, the e-sport leagues that exists consist of teams that enter tournaments or are in a league with a big pay out. How big you ask? Well, the largest in the world is the Dota 2 International Tournament with purse of $24 million and the winning team splitting $10 million. So playing video games is no longer a waste of time, if you are good.
In turn, with the emergence of this new sport; leagues are surfacing and a new need to market and sell these leagues, teams and merchandise is needed. There is a need to reach out to get people aware that this is no longer a waste of time for kids, but rather a possible career, such as professional football players or basketball players that play the game their entire life for a chance to reach the “big leagues”.
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