Why Creator Content Studios Are the Future of Esports

While winning gaming tournaments will always be the main objective for esports brands, original content creation has evolved into an important factor in cultivating an audience in the growing industry. There will be 29.6 million monthly esports viewers in the U.S. in 2022, according to Insider Intelligence. That figure is up 11.5% from last year. And more viewers means more money: Analytics firm Juniper Research estimated that the global esports and games streaming business will be worth more than $3.5 billion by 2025, up from $2.1 billion in 2021. Original content is an important avenue for brands to authentically connect with gaming audiences, as it gives deeper background on esports personalities and teams through interviews, competitions and other storytelling. Tatiana Tacca, founder of gaming, esports, anime and livestreaming consultancy Oni Vision, told Adweek that content creation is a vital vertical for esports brands. It helps engage their communities while simultaneously developing their branding. Coca-Cola Hits Reset Button in Global Esports Deal With Riot Games "Building and further establishing a brand in the gaming and esports space is rooted in cultural engagement and activation," she said. "By leveraging creator content studios, esports teams aim to not only build their scale and tell their stories, but intersect the various communities and fandoms that exist in gaming." Tacca added that creator content studios also allow access to cross-cultural segments that intersect the gaming space, such as music, fashion and entertainment. That intersection allows esports teams to redefine their role in broader culture. Evil Geniuses gets into the content game Esports brand Evil Geniuses has worked over the past year to shore up its original content and compete with other gaming brands like FaZe Clan and 100 Thieves. The company is in the process of building full-service creator content studios in its Seattle headquarters as well as its Los Angeles office. The new studio has already been used for an online docuseries called EG Files that covers Evil Geniuses' League of Legends League Championship Series (LCS) roster, as well as a social media clip starring the brand's CEO Nicole LaPointe Jameson. The content studio provides an opportunity for Evil Geniuses to look at potential brand partnerships through unique storytelling, whether from its esports players and teams or influencers affiliated with the brand. "There's a lot of brands that are so curious about our space," said Krystal Hauserman, head of global marketing at Evil Geniuses. "They ask how to get into the game, how to authentically connect to that community. What we will offer is a conduit through creators to bring content to life. It's a path for those brands to make those connections." Earlier this week, Evil Geniuses partnered with Acer's gaming brand Predator, making it the official provider for its players' laptops and desktops. The partnership will also see the Predator logo on Evil Geniuses jerseys. The brand also extended partnerships with its official gaming chair partner Secretlab, official beer sponsor Bud Light and official craft beer sponsor Elysian Brewing. Establishing the creator collective Last year, the brand appointed a creator collective of gaming personalities including Dominique “SonicFox” McLean and Ricki Ortiz, TikTok personality Aruuu and comedian Lisa Wallen. Evil Geniuses plans to expand its work with the collective this year, hoping to build inclusive communities through streams, events and original content. "We started to think about how we've moved the brand forward and how in the context of conversations with new creators and new talent that we would recruit, what we bring to the table for them as talent or creators joining an esports organization or a gaming organization," said John Jung, vp of operations and studio at Evil Geniuses. "One of the biggest pillars for the creator collective is that we are all about telling diverse stories for audiences that are trying to be bold without being bound by expectation," he added. "It's really about providing tools and resources for our creators so that not only would we be able to work with them to grow the creator collective and EG brands, but also to help them grow their own brands." The race to build an esports content studio Evil Geniuses isn't the only esports brand looking at content studios. GameSquare Esports launched its own content production shop, Fourth Frame, earlier this year, and OverActive Media partnered with Red Bull on the naming rights of a new gaming studio in Toronto in 2021. FaZe Clan partnered with energy drink brand G Fuel on a content studio in 2020. "The biggest benefit to brands around esports' content creation capabilities is the opportunity for more bespoke integrations that are better able to deliver on a brand’s strategic approach to gaming," Tacca said. According to business intelligence firm Stream Hatchet, there's been a 79% increase in livestreaming brand sponsorships on platforms like Twitch and YouTube, which offer flexibility and more creative activation opportunities beyond simple logo integrations. "To continue to bring in sponsorships, it’s vital that esports organizations can execute a variety of content executions that bring in significant scale to brands," Tacca added. This Esports Agent Credits Video Games—Not Coaching—for His Career