All Rights Reserved. Activision Blizzards ability to maintain its Overwatch League and Call of Duty League operations during the pandemic was instrumental in making sure the North American esports scene remained relevant. With Valve postponing the 2020 Dota 2 International, there just wasnt a chance at taking home the same kind of money as last year when the organization took home $2.06M by virtue of a fourth place finish at the aforementioned International. Cloud 9 sit top of the tree with an estimated value of $400 million, and $29 million in revenue. It may also look to launch consumer products around its famous personalities. Fnatic has assembled dedicated teams for a range of games, including Dota 2, Hearthstone, and League of Legends. We have previously discussed the rise of eSports influence on brands. Total Prize Money Earned: $26,445,664.94. On the last edition of this list, in 2020, Enthusiast ranked No. Topping the list: Los Angeles-based TSM (formerly Team SoloMid), with a value of $410 million. Iconic sports namesfrom the New York Yankees and Houston Rockets to Robert Kraft and Magic Johnsonhave bought in. 1 ranking. Intel invests in IEM and the Overwatch League Net worth: $200 billion This team was able to still compete in various online events, even taking a third place finish in Flashpoint Season 2. He is also the highest paid eSports player that doesn't play Dota 2, however, he is ranked 41st in overall earnings. Our 12 companies have an average enterprise value of 13 times 2018 estimated sales. 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. 7 on the list at $175 million, up 6%. Last year there was approximately $240M up for grabs in esports prize pool winnings. Leading eSports players worldwide as of February 2023, by overall earnings (in million U.S. dollars) Characteristic. Intel 4. Team Liquid became part of the entertainment and sports management company, aXiomatic, in 2016. 4 in the ranking. Founded in 2016, its become home to over 90 gamers from around the globe. Last month, the company submitted an amended filing to the SEC indicating that FaZe posted an adjusted EBITDA loss of $28.7 million in FY2021, compared to a projected loss of $19 million. The esports team was founded in the Netherlands back in 2000. Esports clearly has massive potential. Evil Geniuses, aka EG, are a predominantly North American eSports organization, based in San Francisco. Alongside Fortnite and PLAYERUNKNOWNS BATTLEGROUNDS, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive accounts for over 60% of its earnings. The Shock ultimately defeated the Seoul Dynasty in the finals 4-2 to take home the lions share of the prize money. Team Liquid began as a gaming community website. Another CIS team from top 10 best esports teams of our list is Team Spirit. Here are some of the largest esports investors, organized by net worth. Top 100 Highest Overall Earnings - Esports Player Rankings :: Esports Earnings Player Rankings Highest Overall Earnings Highest Single Game Earnings Highest Earnings By Country Highest Earnings By Age Most Tournament Results Last 30 Days Last 90 Days Last 365 Days Female Players Console Players Fighting Game Players Newbee is a Chinese e-Sports team. With revenue expected to fall to $8.5 million this year, the teams value isless than half the $260 million Forbes estimated in 2019. Over two years, IGC paid $58 million for city-based teams that compete in each of the three major franchise leagues: the Call of Duty League (CDL), the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) and the Overwatch League (OWL). Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. TSM are one of the biggest names in League of Legends. Indeed, Team OG won five of the first ten tournaments it entered. 7 on the list. The club was founded in 2015, in Moscow, Russia. Facebook and Amazon go for 7.4 and 3.8 times this years estimated revenue. eSports teams tend to have similar components. Immortals Gaming Club drops off list as revenues plummet 23%. The deal covers multiple Disney-controlled networks including ESPN, Disney XD and ABC. FaZe Clans revenue figure was taken from its S-4 filing with the SEC as it seeks to go public; all other revenue figures represent an estimate for 2021, including both core esports and other divisions of each company. You are here: This would give the team a bye all the way into Winners Round 3 where it would face off against the Chicago Huntsmen, which it eventually defeated 3-2. The ad-supported app, which has 10 million active monthly users and offers playing analysis and training sessions, now accounts for half of the companys $45 million in revenue. Zai's net worth is thought to be around $2,459,054 US dollars. This is in stark contrast to the $753K the organization took home in 2019, and the $524K in 2018. The theory is: dilution is an acceptable consequence because 20% of something worth $1 billion is greater than 100% of something worth $100 million. It has built a series of teams for different games. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. . League of Legends franchises are being valued at $50 million by bankers. umbrella teams were able to take home a significant amount of money. Mercedes Benz Esports: The Next Big Thing? Here we have one of the biggest esports organizations with many teams in various disciplines and players from all over the world. A report last month by gaming data firm Newzoo found that the global esports audience was on track to reach 532 million this year, including 261 million esports enthusiasts who watch esports content more than once a month. We included only companies that compete in gaming and excluded game publishers and arena builders. eSports salaries vary by team and players. In August, the company acquired Omnia Media and expanded its reach to a total of 300 million gamers monthly, making it the largest gaming media platform in North America. Valued at $190 million, 100 Thieves jumps to the fifth spot on our list, from No. Their $4 billion value, up 11%, ranks fifth among all sports. In games that have objectives worth points, there's going to be a position or two on a team dedicated specifically to that. That same month the revenue of FaZe Clan was estimated $40 million. And Scooter Braun, manager of Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, recently co-led a Series A round, bringing total funding to $25 million. Simply put, the loss of potential prize pool money, especially in, with its $40M USD that would have come from the canceled The International, saw some teams struggle and others exiting the scene, as was the case with, , too, would feel the crunch as large prize pool events such as the. Still, that kind of aggregation doesnt reflect the opportunity in any one esporta fan of League of Legends doesnt necessarily care about Call of Duty, the same way an NFL fan doesnt necessarily watch the NBA. Team Liquid. Comcast Xfinity 3. Coming in at No. League, took home $1.55M in prize money out of a total prize pool of $3.05M over the course of the regular season and playoffs. Viewers of certain streams may donate money to their favorite players. To compile this ranking, Forbes spoke to two dozen esports organizations, investors, advisors to investors, and analysts. Tundra doing well by winning over 40.00% of their recent matches. That bravado has been tamed. Sponsored teams make ads, wear sponsored merch, and share. TSM was able to win $158K in prize money in League of Legends as well as $179K in Fortnite. FaZe Clan is trying to go public through a SPAC merger; the other nine companies in this years ranking remain privately owned. They have teams in Dota, Starcraft II, CS:GO and several others - and have $24 million worth of prize money under their belts. In 2017, there were 74 deals (the majority from angel and venture capital investors) worth $1.52 billion involving esports companies, according to PitchBook, up from six deals worth $34. Immortals is now reportedly shopping its OWL franchise. Steve Aoki An incredibly interesting figure, this EDM musician, DJ, and producer is no stranger to technology. Top 20 Richest Esports Players. Fnatic was founded in 2004 with a Counter-Strike team. In 2017, there were 74 deals (the majority from angel and venture capital investors) worth $1.52 billion involving esports companies, according to PitchBook, up from six deals worth $34 million in 2008. The modern battlefield in gaming is for larger social media and YouTube talent, says John Robinson, COO of 100 Thieves, a Los Angeles-based game outfit that owns franchise teams competing in League of Legends and Call of Duty. N0tail (Johan Sundstein) 7.18. It was also a signal that the esports industry had resumed its ascent after a couple of years in which team values had largely flatlined. By 2020, four of the top 10 were valued at more than $300 million. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. List of Top 10 eSports Teams 1. However, much like G2, Liquid has diversified its team portfolio and brings in money from multiple titles. team and the $321K it made in 2020 to the No. Earlier this year he signed 19-year-old superstar player Ali Myth Kabbani to his team and invested $1.5 million into a 4,300-square-foot house for his Fortnite roster of four to live, practice and stream for hours a day. Team Spirit have divisions in Counter Strike: Global Offensive (2016), Dota 2 (2015), Hearthstone (2016) and League of Legends (2022). Global eSports revenues are projected to reach $906 million in 2018. Plateauing values are leading early investorsincluding many venture capitalists, who according to Pitchbook have poured $4.8 billion into esports over the past five yearsto put the pressure on companies to make money. This is the ranking of the Top 5 esports teams in the world according to prize money earned. Red Bull 2. G2 Esports (Valued $165 million)8. Take a look at the diversified winnings with Team Liquids Dota 2 squad taking home $414K, CS:GO $292K, Starcraft II $95K, Player Unknowns Battlegrounds $83K, League of Legends $81K, Hearthstone $75K, Fortnite $64K, and Arena FPS coming in at $49K. Ill be rooting for them, says one rival team executive. In April 2018, LGD partnered with French football giants Paris Saint-Germain to create a squad called PSG.LGD. Importantly, eSports are not just some niche fad, likely to become old news by next year. Virtus.pro is a Russian eSports team, established in 2003. Simply put, the loss of potential prize pool money, especially in Dota 2 with its $40M USD that would have come from the canceled The International, saw some teams struggle and others exiting the scene, as was the case with Ninjas in Pyjamas. As the runner-up for the Call of Duty League the team took home a cool $900K to go along with its winnings from the various tournaments during league play. The company reported it is expected to make $95 million in revenue this year, which includes $61 million in ad share revenue that is contractually obligated to be paid to its content creators. A software development company is looking to the NBA for help. Evil Geniuses is a subsidiary of GoodGame Agency, owned by Amazons Twitch division. Most of the business will come from North America (38%) and China (18%). Image credit: Roman Kosolapov. It was Virtus.pros CS:GO team that brought in the bulk of this years prize money; bringing in $641K including a $500K payday by winning Flashpoint Season 2. And while team sponsorships can be lucrative, other revenue streams often have low margins. Gen.G is a Korean-based organization but have spread their wings over the last few years and entered the American market with huge success throughout 2018 and 2019. A chunk of that will go toward building a 20,000-to-30,000-square-foot training facility and home base for its operations in Los Angeles, scheduled to open in 2019. The team won the Dota Asia Championships a month later. JerAx (Jesse . Vici Gaming 11. TSM, which rebranded to TSM FTX after signing a $210 million partnership with the exchange, is valued at $540 million, the most valuable esports company in 2022. The manager for the team is Nimish "Nemo" Raut and the CEO for the team is Wouter Sleijffers. (Joint) Team SoloMid (Valued $400 million), Florida Mayhem compete in the Overwatch League. 3. Esports companies are constantly buying and selling teams and players to compete in the best leagues and build audiences on Amazons Twitch and Alphabets YouTube. Dutch-founded organization and North American basedTeam Liquid take third place in the rankings, with a $320 million valuation. It also released the film Crimson under FaZe Studios in 2020, with Brian "Rug" Awadis in a leading role. Overwatch Big companies approach teams with bids and contracts when they gain notoriety for their skills and a considerable fan base. gfinity.net. Team Liquid has won various tournaments over its life, over a variety of games. The team was formed in 2015 by Mark Mastrov and Andy Miller who are co-owners of Sacramento Kings. Team Spirit 5. Carlos ocelote Rodrguez ability to develop competitive teams in multiple titles helped propel G2 Esports to No. According to a new report from Forbes, the top 10 most valuable esports companies are worth a combined $2.4 billion, with some truly eyebrow-raising figures for teams like TSM, Cloud9 and.