Overwatch Grand Finals, A Near $1bn Industry You Can’t Bet Locally

• The Overwatch League Grand Finals happens on Sunday.
• $1.1 million will be awarded to the winning team.
• The esports industry is projected to reach $1.096 billion in revenue by the end of 2019.

PHILADELPHIA – On Sunday, two esports teams will compete in the Overwatch League Grand Finals. The San Francisco Shock will take on the Vancouver Titans at the Wells Fargo Center.

Esports And Sports Betting

With the growth of esports, it could affect how lawmakers put in place sports betting laws. At the moment, no state with legal sports betting allows for betting on esports. There are a couple of reasons why that is. The main reason is that people under the age of 18 can participate in esports events. Most states do not allow for betting on high school games for that reason.

However, offshore sportsbooks have provided odds on esports or the last few years. For example, popular online bookmaker Bovada has odds on both the Vancouver Titans (+145) and SF Shock (-200) ahead of Sunday’s tournament. Just as in traditional sports betting on a football or basketball game, bettors can wager on which team they believe will win the matchup.

But as you can see, esports as an industry is going to continue growing regardless of wagering availability. Conferences are being held to discuss the growth of esports. As states continue to create sports betting bills, they may consider including esports betting as well.

Plenty In Cash Prizes Already

The winner of the Grand Finals will be awarded $1.1 million. This is not even the biggest cash prize esports has recently handed out. The Fortnite World Cup’s winner received $3 million in prize money. That cash prize is larger than most other sport championship winners. Tiger Woods took home $2 million for the 2019 Masters. Novak Djokovic and Sim mona Halep took home around $2.8 million for Wimbledon.

The cash prizes for esports will likely increase in the coming years. Back in 2018, it was estimated that the esports industry was worth $865 million. That is a dramatic jump from 2017 when esports was a $655 million industry. Now estimates show that esports could become a $1.096 billion industry by the end of 2019.

Source Of The Revenue

The money from esports comes from a couple of different sources. This year, sponsorships have contributed $456.7 million to esports revenue. Media rights contribute $251.3 million, and advertising contributes $189.2 million. Merchandise and tickets bring in $103.7 million to esports. Finally, game publisher fees contribute $95.2 million to the esports industry.

With companies like Xfinity presenting the Overwatch League Grand Finals, it is easy to see where the money comes from. Companies like Honda are sponsoring esports teams as well. More companies are expected to throw their hat into the esports industry in the future. By 2022, esports is expected to become a $1.79 billion industry. Pushed by legal sports betting there’s no telling how high those numbers can climb.

News tags: 2019 Masters | eSports | Fortnite World Cup | Honda | Novak Djokovic | Overwatch League Grand Finals | Pennsylvania | Philadelphia | San Francisco Shock | Simona Halep | Statista | Tiger Woods | Vancouver Titans | Wells Fargo Center | Wimbledon | Xfinity