Esports, or electronic sport, is a term used to describe competitive video gaming. It is a form of sport where the competition is between two or more players using electronic systems. Video gaming has been around for decades, but competitive gaming as a spectator sport is a recent development. Esports are usually played in a tournament setting, with teams of players competing against each other for a prize pool. The most popular Esports games are first-person shooters, multiplayer online battle arenas, and real-time strategy games.

Popular Esports gaming titles include League of Legends, Fortnite, CS: GO, Overwatch, Call of Duty, Madden NFL, FIFA, etc. As these games have millions of fanbases, their range is constantly increasing due to the popularity of streaming.

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How Did Esports Become so Popular?

Although it is a creation of the modern age and has gained popularity in recent times, it started long ago. It is thought to have originated in the 70s. In 1972, Stanford University students organized a competition for the Space War Games. The prize was a one-year Rolling Stone Magazine subscription.

Video game competitions were successfully organized in the eighties. The Space Invader Championship was organized with tens of thousands of participants. From here, the roots of popularity were formed by defeating each other.

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As video games gradually became popular in the nineties, companies like Nintendo and Sagar started organizing tournaments. This is where the professional gaming tournament started. Prize money is associated with popularity.

But the 1997 Red Annihilation Quake Tournament was considered the first real Esports event. Two hundred competitors took part in it, the grand prize of which was the 1987 Ferrari 328 GTS Cabriolet. A few weeks later, the Cyberathlete Professional League was formed. This company is called the father of Esports.

Thanks to the availability of the internet and video streaming, not only gaming but millions of people have created their own interest in watching. Just as popular tournaments generate huge profits, professional players also make a lot of money from them. In addition, many people earn money by streaming directly.

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Who Can Play Esports and How to Participate It?

Anyone can play, but you cannot join out of anywhere. You have to build yourself as a gamer. All you need to play is a gaming computer or console. If you have it, you can play all the popular Esports titles. Every year there is a qualifying round for the popular game's tournament; you can also become a popular Esports gamer if you have professional-level skills.

Nowadays, mobile gaming is also becoming popular and becoming a part of Esports. The popular mobile game PUBG has been organizing a tournament for the last couple of years.

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Prospect of Esport Gaming Industry in Bangladesh

Although it is completely new in our country, many people in different countries have made Esports a profession. Not only gaming competition, but many gamers are also constantly building their careers by earning money by streaming and uploading videos on YouTube and Twitch.

Esports can be compared to a newly discovered gold mine. Since 2016, its viewership has increased at a significant rate. In 2016-17, the average number of viewers increased by 19.3%. In 2017, the number of irregular visitors was 192 million, and the number of regular visitors was about 143 million, which stood at 335 million.

In 2018, the growth rate of the audience was 17.8%. With 222 million irregular and 173 million regular visitors, the total number stands at 395 million. In 2019, the total number of visitors was 454 million, and the growth rate was 15%.

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It is expected that, by 2024, the number of occasional audiences will be 291.6 million, and the Esports enthusiast will be 285.7 million, which will be more than 550 million in total. Last year the total audience was 474 million.

According to Newzoo Global Games Market Report 2021, “The games market will grow with a healthy CAGR (2019 to 2024) of +8.7% to reach $218.7 billion in 2024.” And the introduction of Metaverse and VR will boom the gaming industry.

As the popularity of Esports continues to grow, new investment opportunities are being created. Many well-known companies have already entered it, and TV and digital broadcasting media have begun to compete among themselves for Esports content. Also, new features are being added all the time, which is increasing the interest among the viewers. Joining mobile gaming has opened the door to more new possibilities. If this continues, the Esports market is expected to generate 1.6 billion in revenue in 2022.

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Esports are also gaining popularity in Bangladesh. Already gamers are into it. Many are building careers in commentary from Bangladesh.

For the first time in Bangladesh, the Arena of Valor community in Bangladesh is going to organize an international standard Esports tournament in March 2022 for the South Asia region with a prize of Tk. 75 lakhs.

Further, first-world countries such as Japan and the USA have already started a major course in different universities. For example, Ohio State University has added a Department for Esports. States like Atlanta, Kansas City, Texas are investing a lot in Esports.

So, you can understand the prospect of Esports is beyond our imagination.

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Esports Teams and Community in Bangladesh

Over the years, many Bangladeshi teenagers and young people found interest in gaming, and now a big community has grown up. Several teams from Bangladesh have been doing great in the international gaming industry. For example, Excel Esports is one of the best Bangladeshi Valorant Teams. A1 Esports from Bangladesh is another popular team with 206K followers, but they are mainly famous for PUBG. Recently, they participated in the PUBG mobile star challenge and placed 4th.

Bangladesh has some very big communities based on E-Sports, such as Valorant Bangladesh Community Official consisting around 41K members, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Bangladesh has 13K members, PUBG Community of Bangladesh has 146K members, PUBG Mobile Underdog has 276K members, and Call of Duty Mobile Bangladesh has 233K members. These communities are very strong and have a very good connection within themselves. And they are getting bigger day by day.

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Final Words

The booming popularity of esports in Bangladesh is undeniable. It is now a billion-dollar industry, and it is only going to grow from here. Professional gamers are now celebrities, and the best of them make a very good living. Moreover, the future of Esports is bright, and there are many opportunities for those who want to get involved.