In esports, winners include teams and investors, according to Nielsen.
Brands investing in leading esports teams which actively compete in top-tier gaming titles such as League of Legends, Valorant, Fortnite, and Dota 2 are seeing impressive year-on-year return on investment, according to a new study.
“The ROI of Esports,” a whitepaper conducted by Nielsen Sports & Entertainment in conjunction with London-based esports team Fnatic, explored how brands and sponsors can identify strong investment opportunities in the rapidly developing esports market–and the research points to impressive potential profits.
The study measured esports sponsor ROI across four major metrics: media exposure and reach; brand impact; activation and engagement; and business impact.
Nielsen’s report outlined a number of major factors that powered this dramatic rise in dividends, including a maturing esports ecosystem, strong audience growth, and a major improvement in the quality of esports themselves.
The Nielsen and Fnatic study concluded that:
- Companies investing in teams participating in the League of Legends European Championships had more than doubled ROI for sponsors between 2019 and the present day;
- Sponsors are largely well-received in esports, generating between 51% and 58% positive fan sentiment among followers;
- The esports audience base is growing by 10% to 20% per year, driven by digitally native, connected, and consistently engaged gen-Zs and millennials;
- Three-quarters of those from these eras (73%) are using some form of ad-blocking technology, meaning that brands might only find themselves connecting with them via gaming or esports partnerships.
Phelan Hill, head of strategy and consulting at Nielsen Sports and Entertainment, said the figures were a clear sign that esports is evolving, adding that the top esports properties have transformed into “24/7 multi-platform content businesses” that give their younger audiences a non-stop variety of engagement opportunities, which often find more success than those of traditional sports teams.
He continued: “Esports organizations [...] that have a strong and organic brand, which affiliate themselves with the biggest esports game titles and offer content opportunities through streamers and content creators, can truly deliver a positive ROI to sponsors.”
George Mead, partnerships director at Fnatic, added: “This study proves what we at Fnatic already knew: that esports is pushing the boundaries of what partnerships entail for major brands, enabling all involved to generate mutual brand growth with leading ROI that continues to increase year-on-year.
“Esports is the vehicle of today and tomorrow that is helping brands connect meaningfully to gen-Z and millennials in a dialect they understand to build their affinity with these generations.”
During the last 12 months, esports teams have announced a constant stream of brand partnerships. Global headliner G2 Esports has signed with Adidas, New Era, and, just this week, Kingston; FaZe Clan secured a collaboration with McDonalds; and David Beckham’s newcomer Guild Esports has penned deals with Subway and HyperX.
