Global Esports Market 2020 $1 billion Revenues, Asia Region $543 million

Asia Region Esports Constitutes 54% of $1 Billion Global Esports market.

In a recent report published by Niko Partners, renowned market researchers, Asia constitutes more than 54% of the $1 billion global esports market. This makes Asia the world’s most significant and largest region for esports. Asia alone is responsible for generating $543 million in revenues last year. Despite the massive hurdles posed by the COVID-19 worldwide outbreak, the Asia region recorded an increase of 4.9% year over year.

In 2020, gaming enjoyed a lot of upward trajectory in almost every domain, however, it was esports that suffered the brunt. Esports had to shut down in-person events and shift to online-only esports tournaments and broadcasts. Despite all the challenges, the Asian market continues to grow and is on course to stay on an upward trajectory in 2021. According to the Niko Partners report, revenues this year will reach $600 million; a growth of over 10.5% for the Asian esports region.

Moreover, the report also suggests that many sponsors sought alternatives last year when traditional sports got halted due to the pandemic. This increased the value of esports licensing and media rights.

Another important point in the report shows that esports viewership in the Asian region grew by a massive 21% last year; 618.4 million spectators. This increase in viewership made up for the loss of physical revenues like ticket sales and merchandise.

[novashare_tweet tweet=”This makes Asia the world’s most significant and largest region for esports. Asia alone is responsible for generating $543 million in revenues last year. Despite the massive hurdles posed by the COVID-19 worldwide outbreak, the Asia region recorded an increase of 4.9% year over year.” cta_text=”Asia Region Esports Constitutes 54% of $1 Billion Global Esports market” hide_hashtags=”true”]

As for the in-person esports events, it is likely to continue in China but not elsewhere in the region. Alexander Champlin, the director of esports research for Niko Partners said, “The Dota 2 One Esports Singapore Major, one of the largest in-person esports events to take place in Southeast Asia in 2021 will likely be more of a fluke than the start of a return to normal”.

He added, “However, the industry has already begun a strong pivot away from in-person events as the cornerstone of esports. Brand partnerships and streaming deals are becoming the heart of the industry in an online-only world. Most growth in 2020 came from these two sectors of the industry and we predict, even after in-person events resume, these will remain the segments that drive the market.”