In terms of revenue, Tencent is the largest gaming company in the world. In 2018, it earned more than $19 billion in gaming software sales, representing 18.4% of the global market. The Chinese company owns stakes in several notable game publishers, game developers, and livestreaming platforms.

League is one of the oldest esports, having recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary by announcing 8 million daily active players. It is also amongst the most developed in terms of infrastructure and scale, with parent company Riot Games overseeing franchised leagues on 3 continents. In 2019, Evil Geniuses acquired a slot in the North American LCS for a reported $30.25 million. In addition to League of Legends, Riot released Teamfight Tactics in 2019, and announced plans to release a series of additional titles in the coming years. Apex Legends is a free-to-play battle royale game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by EA.

The ranking and the market cap data shown on this page are updated daily. NetEase is one of China’s largest game companies, with an emphasis on mobile games. NetEase owns the Shanghai Dragons, one of four China-based teams to participate in the Overwatch League. The Shanghai Dragons did not win a single match in their first season in the Overwatch League, going 0–40.

  • Sean graduated from the University of Kansas in 2018, where he worked for the University Daily Kansan as a sports editor covering Kansas hoops.
  • The esports companies that end up winning this shootout will likely be those that have arenas and multiple teams in multiple leagues.
  • NRG has a successful content business, including a studio in Los Angeles, where the company is based, and a brand in Full Squad Gaming that targets “social gamers” as opposed to esports enthusiasts.
  • Some of Activision Blizzard’s well-known games are Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush Saga.
  • According to Newzoo, which tracks usage and trends in eSports, video games, and mobile, it’s a growth industry.
  • Ltd develops and manufactures portable and console gaming machines and software.

Bilibili owns two prominent esports teams, the Hangzhou Spark of the Overwatch League, and Bilibili Gaming, which competes in the League of Legends Pro League in China. In December 2019, Bilibili reportedly signed a 3-year, $113 million deal for exclusive Chinese media rights for the League of Legends World Championships, complementing its team ownership. The company recently received an offer from Microsoft (MSFT -1.04%) that would value Activision Blizzard at $95 a share. If it goes through, it appears Microsoft would add Activision Blizzard to its Xbox and other gaming subsidiaries to bet on video game subscription services. As a part of Microsoft or on its own, Activision Blizzard stock could be a long-term value in the esports space.

These brokerage services are offered by broker-dealers other than Public Investing, who may pay us a referral fee or other compensation. While they’re technically gaming companies, eSports companies wear multiple hats within the industry. They concurrently work as competition organizers, owners, and content creators. A single eSports company can be responsible for financing a tournament through brand partnerships, creating streaming broadcasts, and distributing that content sometimes to platforms. According to Newzoo, the number of esports enthusiasts worldwide will reach 165 million in 2018, which translates to year-over-year growth of 15%. Esports revenues will grow 38% this year, to $906 million, and reach $1.65 billion by 2021.

You are unable to access esports.net

Team SoloMid, the second-most-valuable company ($225 million) and the only one known to be cash-flow positive, is the winningest North American team in League of Legends, with six championships. Founder and former player Andy Dinh has plans for TSM to be the Dallas Cowboys of esports. “There’s a broad-based agreement that esports as a stand-alone doesn’t work as a business,” one team executive says bluntly. The acquisition combines Complexity’s winning track record in competitive esports with GameSquare’s content creation, sales, marketing and branding expertise. “We get to be sister companies alongside other esports verticals, marketing, merchandising … And other companies that [GameSquare is] looking to acquire, which provides us diversification in an industry that can be difficult to monetize at times,” Lake said.

  • Once again, TSM, owned by Andy Dinh, leads the way, rising 32% to $540 million.
  • The teams play across major titles including Apex Legends, FIFA, Fortnite, Rocket League and Valorant.
  • In 2019, Epic Games purchased Psynoix, the developer of popular esport Rocket League.
  • It has a big following of watchers on platforms like YouTube and Twitch but, because it’s more of a creative platform than competitive gaming stock, it has less attention from esports competitors.
  • Roccat offers a complete line of gaming mice (9), keyboards (8), and headsets (5).

Over the past few years, esports and game streaming have rapidly moved from the fringe to the mainstream, and viewership is challenging that of traditional sports. Activision Blizzard (ATVI -0.05%) has made a more aggressive push into esports than most video game companies. aafx trading As an investor, it’s extremely difficult to pick the companies that will succeed in the long run, and this is especially true for newer sectors like esports. Many esports stocks are reliant on the performance of a handful of games, or sometimes only one.

The following is just a handful of video game companies that are publicly traded. So, with all this talk of esports teams, how can you invest, given that a large majority of teams remain private entities? We have identified 15 public companies that provide exposure to one or more esports teams. ESL, formerly known as ‘Electronic Sports League’, is the world’s largest esports-dedicated company, offering services in gaming technology, event management, advertising, and media production. Each year, ESL runs 13 mega esports events with thousands of attendees and millions of viewers online. Most recently, ESL One hosted the Intel Extreme Masters Major in Katowice, Poland.

Most Popular NFL Teams & Players: Who’s Really No. 1?

They offer markets for sports as well as all of the major esports titles and are fully licensed under the Online Gambling Regulation Act. Trading as GFIN on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM, Gfinity operate in three main sectors. Trading as TGS on the TSX Venture Exchange, The Gaming Stadium went public in August 2020. They operate a competitive gaming venue in Richmond, British Columbia, that hosts viewing parties, organized events, and coaching.

Download the app to start investing now

Now, you can invest in your dream companies with whatever dollar amount you have. For example, if a company you like is trading at $100, but you have only $20 to invest, you could now buy 20% (or 1/5) of a share of the company. Should the price of that stock rise and you decide to sell, you would earn a return in proportion to your original slice. There are a large number of gaming and eSport companies publicly traded in the U.S. stock market, with a great many priced at more than $75 per share.

As of their most recent filings, Huya and Douyu collectively accounted for 310 million monthly active users. The market for watching pros play video games is growing rapidly, and engagement and investment in the entertainment category surged amid social distancing conditions in 2020. Even as COVID-19 lockdowns what is software development moderated in 2021, the video game and esports industries continued to expand. While the majority of the biggest esports organizations are notorious for raising huge amounts of venture capital funds in order to continue their expansions, we’re slowly seeing companies opting to go public instead.

Investing in gaming and eSports companies is appealing for many investors given the growing prominence of this industry in culture. The sector has shown huge growth in certain years and expected to experience continued growth. For those who like to game, you can start by researching online or connecting with other enthusiasts in Public’s community to share ideas before deciding which players you believe in for the long-term. Thanks to slices, investors can buy stocks without having to purchase the whole share.

How to invest in gaming & eSports companies

From Future Nostalgia to Un Verano Sin Ti, Boardroom breaks down the most-streamed albums in Spotify history to date. If you were asked point blank to rattle off your all-time favorite … Read more… Riot Games is the private company that brought League of Legends to 150m LOLers around the world. Skeptics point to the company’s $36.9 million net loss for 2021, among other things, and Forbes now values FaZe at $400 million, No. 4 in the ranking.

Microsoft Resets Video Game Industry as $69 Billion Activision Blizzard Deal Goes Final

The first step is signing partnerships with cryptocurrency platforms like FTX and Crypto.com, as TSM and Fnatic have done, but the real payoffs could come later. There are also ideas emerging around so-called play-to-earn games, which reward users with NFTs or cryptocoins. Media rights revenue hasn’t caught up with those viewership numbers, in no small part because of a lack of competition, with Twitch and YouTube still the only platforms all that interested in esports content. On top of that, talent is getting considerably more expensive, with players of the up-and-coming game Valorant able to demand as much as $30,000 a month, according to industry insiders. In 2019, Mail.Ru sold 51% of its stake in ESforce to Modern Pick, retaining a 49% position. Comcast Spectator, a subsidiary of media giant Comcast, has an emphasis on sports – and esports.

Similar to Ajax, Roma is best-known for its professional football club, which competes in Italy’s Serie A. Roma created its own FIFA team in February 2017. EA can boost engagement by tapping into the excitement surrounding real-world sports seasons. bitfinex review For example, the 2021 NFL Pro Bowl was conducted as a Madden game with NFL players competing against each other virtually instead of physically. This template was repeated in 2022 with a hybrid physical world and virtual game experience.

Apex Clearing Corporation, our clearing firm, has additional insurance coverage in excess of the regular SIPC limits. One particularly notable partnership is with cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb as Gen.G ties itself to Web3 technologies. The worry now is that esports companies might be swept up into a metaverse bubble.