Mexico. At the beginning of February of this year, Mexico became the only country in Latin America that has a space dedicated to live esports competitions: the Arena eSports Stadium, located south of Mexico City. An infrastructure of more than 300 square meters that meant an investment of almost 2 million dollars.
Milestones like this allow us to talk about the growth of an industry that, according to the consultancy Newzoo, moves about $ 1,400 million dollars in the world (with an average annual growth of 6.6%), where Mexico ranks first in the region in video game consumption, according to the consultancy.
Following the declaration of states of emergency around the world in the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak, the main internet operators have registered increases of between 40% and 80% in traffic: behind this figure is not only teleworking or virtual education, but a remarkable growth of electronic leisure activities.
In addition to streaming content, online video games have become one of the most consumed products these days, recording record numbers; being FIFA, Fortnite, Playerunknown's Battlegrounds (better known as PUBG), League of Legends (LoL), Apex Legends or Overwatch the games that concentrate the most viewers today.
In the same vein, Xbox Live, the online gaming service of tech giant Microsoft, recently reported an "unprecedented demand"; Sony, for its part, was forced to decrease the download speed of its Play Station Network (PSN) in Europe in order not to affect its stability in the face of the high number of connections.
It should be noted that in the midst of the paralysis suffered these days by all kinds of industries and economic activities around the world, the Covid-19 pandemic has become a showcase for eSports or online video game tournaments: a competitive offer to take into account before the cancellation of the major leagues and events of traditional sport.
Marcos Antón, director of the Master in Esports Management at the International University of Valencia (VIU), points out that "the 'online' nature of this sector has allowed the vast majority of competitive circuits to continue their calendar. During the lockdown, the consumption of broadcasts over the Internet has increased on almost all platforms of streaming video game content services such as Twitch or YouTube Gaming, which has become a meeting place for fans and where numerous content creators have multiplied their hours of appearance in the same way as their audience numbers. "
Dynamic and high-potential industry
Among the opportunities that the Covid-19 situation can mean for certain industries, eSports has the opportunity to emerge strengthened from the crisis, given that it has been a growing phenomenon for several years and that takes place in an environment of professional maturity in development, where market agents (such as investors, sponsors and event organizers) are still accommodating to the particularities of this niche.
In Latin America, it is estimated that three out of ten people play video games. In addition, the region has about 185 million gamers: 146 million play on their PC, 43 million do it from their mobile phone and 13 million have a console.
Likewise, according to the consultancy Newzoo, the revenues generated by eSports in Latin America will reach 59 million dollars in 2022, mostly the product of brand sponsorship.
Francisco Asensi, professor of the Master's Degree in Management in Esports at the International University of Valencia (VIU), explains that "the industry must accumulate knowledge and lessons learned, since the disappearance of the original World CyberGames was a consequence of the withdrawal of the investment of the main sponsors, for example. Then, the growth of the sector or, rather, its dynamism, can "stay big" or exceed the capabilities of some companies that intend to enter it. "
According to Asensi, the professionalization that eSports pursues goes hand in hand with the increasing linkage of profiles such as specialized audiovisual content producers, business and sponsorship strategists, health experts focused on 'gaming', software engineers and developers specialized in products linked to competitive gaming and responsible for event production, data analysts, among others."
"The legal sector has even been the area where the impact of eSports has been taken into account the most intensively. Let's think about how many lawyers specialized in this field there are at the moment; it was a specialty that had no practice five or ten years ago, "adds the professor of the International University of Valencia (VIU),
University education is the way
At present, we are seeing the specialization of various professions based on the needs of the industry. This is happening in some disciplines linked to technology, audiovisual communication and business, mainly. Precisely, the Master's Degree in Esports Management of the International University of Valencia is a relevant program for those who plan to practice in this industry. Its contents, dictated in a 100% virtual methodology, are at the forefront of this ecosystem and its professors have experience in companies such as DreamHack, LVP, ESL, Riot, Mediapro or Razer.
It should be noted that the Planeta Group -to which the International University of Valencia belongs- sealed an agreement with the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) which will allow OSLSpain (the eSports project that the Group promotes) to be the operator of the qualifying phase for the most important FIFA competition (the successful football simulator of EA Sports): the eNations or world of selections.
"Thanks to this agreement, what is pursued in the project becomes a reality: to operate a competition of a video game suitable for all audiences, which is one of the most practiced in the world and that allows opening up to a community eager to participate in professional instances," says Francisco Asensi.
