For our "Esports 2019: eMarketer's Forecast for US Audience, US Ad Revenue Growth" report, we spoke with industry experts about the role of traditional sports operating in the esports space. Here's what they said:
Brendan Donohue, Managing Director, NBA 2K League
The NBA has been planting the seeds of being a global sport for a long time, but 99.9% may never have the opportunity to go to a game in an arena. We've viewed [the 2K League] as another way to engage that audience. It's a popular global sport, but 2K is very popular internationally, too. We have another big opportunity with esports enthusiasts. Twitch has 15 million daily active users on its platform, and we've seen—through our partnership with them—that a lot of esports enthusiasts are crossing over and checking out the 2K League.
Going into Season 2 of the [NBA 2K league], we see a lot more non-endemic brands realizing they need to invest here. And that is newer to esports.
Sam Asfahani, former Head of Content, NBA 2K League; CEO, OS Studios
I was with the NBA when we built this strategy, but for many brands we work with, esports is exactly that: a marketing tool for fan acquisition. It's not about selling a product or service, it’s about the lifetime value of a fan and how we acquire them. For the NBA, that's easy—they have a fantastic game in NBA 2K, so they have a very authentic position in gaming. They're not forcing any link. A lot of people enter NBA fandom through playing the video game. That's a successful way to approach video games and esports because they're high-engagement entry points. It's not surprising that several brands, not just the NBA, see [the 2K League] as an opportunity.
Grant Paranjape, Director of Esports Business and Team Operations, Monumental Sports & Entertainment (owners of the NBA’s Washington Wizards and Wizards DG esports franchises)
The NBA 2K League is relatable to a traditional sports audience, but is also reaching the hardcore audience that plays video games every day. You see a team like Wizards District Gaming or Bucks Gaming and you follow the players and storyline. When you grow older and need an NBA team to root for—or take your kids to watch—you turn to the NBA [2K League] as that vehicle.
Going that one step further and transforming a hardcore League of Legends fan into a Washington Wizards fan is where this is becomes a longer term play. But it's a really exciting time, and if you're a sports owner, you want this audience.