Adobestock

Live sports, in general, is having a valuation bubble moment. In 2021, the NFL negotiated over $100 billion in media rights deals. Even Bowlero, the operator of bowling facilities, saw a huge valuation spike at $2.6 billion in a 2021 SPAC deal. From my perspective, there is no outcome where esports doesn’t benefit from this frothy market.
 

Here are the top sports and gaming trends I believe we’ll likely see develop in 2022:
 

1. Increased Celebrity Investment and Involvement in Esports
The esports industry has the potential to garner even more attention from celebrities, athletes and high net worth individuals. On the heels of Roc Nation Sports, owned by Jay-Z.
 
Expect this trend to continue as gaming pushes even further into mainstream media consumption. Sponsorship revenue could be the biggest moneymaker in esports in the coming year, potentially accounting for more than 30% of total revenue, meaning the benefits of being involved in the esports market are becoming substantial and more like traditional sports.
 
2. Live Events Return to High GDP Nations
While the pandemic challenged the live sports and esports ecosystems for more than a year, vaccinations, proven Covid-19 protocols and fans’ desires to get back to in-person events could bring fans, ticket revenue, venue revenue and sponsorship dollars back in 2022. This trend may not extend into the second and third world. However, the bulk of sport’s revenue has largely come from first-world markets where ticket prices, merch, food and beverage, and media rights values can be maximized.
3. Increased Non-Endemic and Luxury Brand Integration
To cater to this common passion among 18- to 34-year-olds — a generation by and large not deeply engaged in traditional media — old-line luxury, travel, fintech and other brands are racing into sports and esports to build engagement and brand preference.
 
On the gaming side, Vans and Gucci have set up stores in gaming metaverses and Louis Vuitton created the trophy case for the League of Legends Esports Championship and did a capsule collection as well with the publisher, Riot Games.
 
This comes after several years of record labels and artists using gaming worlds for virtual concert appearances and promotions. Expect all of this to accelerate quickly in 2022.
 
4. A Shift to Mobile
Sports has been traditionally centered on the “big screen” experience. But today, with the advances in processing power and battery life of mobile devices, accelerated by cord-cutting and the rise of mobile-first culture, the mobile device is taking center stage in sports and gaming.
 
5. Data Could Fuel New Forms of Revenue
Just as data drove the explosive growth in digital advertising, data could unlock massive new revenue streams in sports and esports. From third-party betting and fantasy platforms like FanDuel and Draft Kings to first-party data such as the PFL’s “SmartCage” technology in MMA, data could help fans evaluate player performance as well as earn revenue from their fandom, increasing engagement and participation.
 
6. Educational Opportunities in Gaming Drive Mainstream Legitimacy
Parents used to tell their children to go to college for a fallback career when told that their child wanted to pursue a professional gaming career as a player or as a game designer or developer. Today, those same kids can point to dozens of degree programs, new labs and publisher partnerships at some of the finest schools in the U.S. In parallel, console makers, publishers, venture capitalists and others are investing in the educational ecosystems around gaming and esports.
 
Along with these trends, overall, there will be larger prizes for professional players and more opportunities for them to succeed in securing sponsorship and media deals outside their endemic worlds.