The athletic world came to a standstill during the epidemic.
The Olympics, Formula One racing, the UEFA Champions League, and American
basketball have all been postponed.
Formula 1 established a virtual grand prix series using
professional F1 drivers as an alternative. Similarly, the football club Leyton
Orient hosted an online FIFA tournament.
This competitive online video game is known as esports, and
it provides excitement and competitiveness when traditional athletic events
cannot. The worldwide virtual audience of esports surpassed 700 million viewers
in 2021, thanks to a surge in popularity during COVID-19.
At the same time, the hotel and tourist industries suffered
the opposite fate. Consistent lockdowns resulted in a dramatic drop and the
near-complete cessation of tourism activities for several months.
When professional sports were restarted, the vast majority
of contests and events were held behind closed doors. With no fans or visitors
attending games, large-scale global events such as the Tokyo 2020 Olympics made
little money.
Mega athletic events typically result in an increase in
spending on food, beverages, accommodation, parking, concessions, and
merchandising. However, internet viewership only resulted in cancelled trip
plans and reservations to host cities.
Shouldn't the hotel business be aggressively wooing e-sport
enthusiasts, with a rapidly rising e-sport industry and a tourist sector only
beginning to recover from lockdown? We wanted to look at how the sector can
grab the e-sport fandom and convert them into active visitors in our research.
In addition to a 12-month observational research of active World of Warcraft
players, we polled 549 fans of the professional e-sport video game League of
Legends.
Fans,
e-sports, and live events
The League of Legends 2021 global championship attracted
over 4 million online viewers at its peak. Despite large online audiences, even
before the epidemic, only a small portion of e-sport revenue came from ticket
sales, indicating that few fans are ready to travel to real events.
Some stadia, such as Korea's Sangam Stadium, have attracted
massive audiences. For these viewers, the experience may be extremely
enthralling. Huge immersive displays are set up to depict the fierce game play
between teams, heightening the audience's enthusiasm and suspense.
The tourist and hospitality industries, on the other hand,
risk losing a burgeoning worldwide following by not aggressively courting e-sport
spectators. This means that the appealing and possibly profitable market's
prospects may be lost.
Dota 2, League of Legends, and Call of Duty teams such as
Na'Vi, Alliance, T1, KT Rolster, OpTic, and FaZe have strong rivalries. Loyal
fans and spectators are devoted to their favourite teams, and branded goods is
booming in the esports industry.
There is a chance for host towns to provide activities and events tailored exclusively to individuals attending competitive esports tournaments. To capitalize on the loyalty of ardent fans, special team-specific fan zones and social spaces, for example, should be considered. They bring passion and energy to athletic events, making them must-see events for dedicated fans.
Increasing
interest in events
E-sport is perceived as a social community online. However,
for the most part, it is eaten in isolation from other viewers.
This suggests that a potential spectator is more likely to
be traveling alone or wanting to finally meet up with internet buddies in
person. Many people are put off by the notion of purchasing tickets and
traveling to an event.
Local event producers, on the other hand, may do more by providing forums and discussion channels that could increase excitement and anticipation in the run-up to the event. These online places would also allow fans to get advise and assistance on where to stay and what to do, making the transition from online to offline much easier.
Renowned international championship events such as League of
Legends, StarCraft II, and Crossfire dominate the e-sport calendar. Smaller
qualifying or regional events elicit far less passion. In reality, they almost
always take place entirely online.
Many fans find overseas travel to contests less enticing.
Attending huge athletic events is expensive, especially for esports' largely
younger demographic.
Local events might provide an entrance point for first-time live event fans, fostering an interest in witnessing e-sport competition in person.
The
allure of star players
E-sports prize money and wages are skyrocketing. The top DOTA
2 esports tournament winners have taken home almost $5 million (£3.8 million)
in prize money.
By any standard, they are major celebrities, and their
appearance at events may be a great draw for fans. Meeting and connecting with great
players is a once-in-a-lifetime chance that should be incorporated into the
esports marketing plan.
Event organizers should provide more opportunities for fans
to see players practice and warm up. This would offer the live event experience
more value than watching it online.
The expansion of e-sports shows no signs of stopping,
although live events have yet to reach the same heights as online viewing. If
tourism and hospitality can attract even a tiny portion of esports' 700 million
online viewers, communities hosting these events might benefit from a large new
cash source.
Mega e-sport tournaments might become major athletic events on the calendar. These events have the capacity to fill whole stadiums, which supports nearby hotels, pubs, stores, and tourism. Tourism is suffering as a result of the epidemic. The hotel business must become more inventive in order to attract enormous internet audiences to experience their interests in the real world.
Social Plugin