a fast-growing sector

Electronic sports news marked this week by the submission of the first report from the Economic and Sports Observatory. Details from our consultant, Laure Valée.

The esports sector is doing well, even very well, according to the first report from the economic and sports observatory.

franceinfo : So a satisfaction for this industry, at least in terms of turnover, Laure?

Laure Valée: This report shows us interesting growth in the sector, at a time when there is a lot of talk about “esport winter”. In any case, we are aware of an evolution since 2019, until 2022, in the different sectors which make up the industry, we estimate the economic weight of esports in France, at 141.4 million euros. in 2022, which is therefore triple compared to 2019.

Is everyone doing equally well?

The results should be qualified, because the number of respondents to the questionnaire does not necessarily correspond to the industrial distribution, by sector concerned. So we have the organizers of competitions, for example, who represent 35% of the overall turnover, for only 13% of respondents, and the service providers, on the other hand, who responded at 51% even though they do not represent in worth only 15% of the sector’s overall turnover.

On the other hand, we can clearly note a large concentration of the sector around a small number of players. And today, French esports is trying to consolidate foundations that are already quite solid around an economic model that is viable, and less dependent on regular fundraising.

And is it a sector that employs?

On the jobs side, obviously, there is an evolution: 650 jobs recorded in 2019 compared to 1017 in 2022, and a total of 230 professional players recorded.

Today, most companies are based in the Paris region, but the lines are moving well

Esports, due to its diversity, can be associated with sport, but also with culture and tourism. There are events that take place regularly across the four corners of France, which mobilize a lot of people who travel and therefore benefit from these events, and communities are increasingly interested in leveraging esports for promote the region.

We saw Montpellier, for example last year, which hosted an esports event and developed many jobs in the sector. The city of Nice also, which is in association with the French League of League of Legends on events for several years. So tourism is linked to activity and sporting events and this obviously has motivated the different cities of France to get involved.