eSports accelerated their mainstream momentum with their newest crop of celebrity investors with the likes of Shaquille O’Neil, Alex Rodriguez and MLB Short-stop Jimmy Rollins. Amplifying this new era of competition are Andy Miller and Mark Mastrov, both minority owners of the Sacramento Kings.
Boasting a deep understanding of the traditional professional sports arena, Miller and Mastrov concluded quickly that replicating their investments in eSports was their next venture.
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“I’ve been a sports guy all of my life and started to hear more and more about eSports so I started to investigate to see if there would be a good place for investment,” Miller told Justin Mozer at Postgame.
Miller and Mastrov founded NRG eSports, a team of seven professional gamers to merge cultures and backgrounds and compete in the prominent League of Legends Championship Series.
In 2015, 360 million viewers consumed live streams of the League of Legends Championships, doubling last year’s metrics. The mostly millennial audience is clearly devoted to their favorite gamers and teams, devouring hours of content on Twitch and other platforms to be closer to the action.
“Viewing is mainly on Twitch for the live tournaments,” Miller said. “Big numbers watch League of Legends Championship Series every Saturday and Sunday. Players stream [live] on their own to thousands each night. “
Despite the strong numbers, eSports remains a side conversation to the mainstream sports coverage. The emerging venture has not deterred sponsors like HyperX and Twitch from partnering with NRG and it’s gaming stars.
“New team. Big plans. Grow with us,” Miller described his pitch to sponsors.
NRG is on to something and others are want in, especially gaming athletes.
While Shaq’s presence in the space is new, Miller already projects the value he brings.
“Shaq brings the fun. It’s a game, supposed to be a good time. Shaq brings attention and credibility,” Miller told SportTechie in an email.
The eSports community is being shaped right now and with Shaq, A-Rod and Rollins involvement, the space is about to get more vibrant.