eSports
European Gaming: Esports round-table feature
The growing value of esports
Esports betting has exploded in popularity across the past year and shows no sign of slowing down, with a huge number of in-play markets now available to players. In this round-table feature, Alexandr Iaroshenko, CEO of BetBazar, Sergey Tsukanov, Head of Sportsbook at Betby and Rohini Sardana, Head of Product Propositions at SIS, discuss the driving forces behind the fastest growing vertical in sports betting.
Esports betting grew hugely during the pause in sports last year, but what factors are behind its continuing appeal?
Rohini Sardana: “The entertaining experience that esports betting offers is what ultimately keeps bettors coming back for more. The suspension of live sports last year undoubtedly helped to bring it to the attention of a wider audience, but its continued engagement would not be possible without a strong product in the first place. In fact, demand is as strong as ever for our content. Through our esports betting product, SIS Competitive Gaming has increased output of events by 800% compared to the same period last year, due to strong customer demand, with stream downloads for our events still very high. It is safe to say that esports betting has established itself within the wider sportsbook ecosystem and that demand continues to grow.”
Alexandr Iaroshenko: “Players had the time to get to know a new product during this time that they now love. The last year showed the need for entertainment and filler activity. This is largely as a result of timing, but our time to market also played a huge role here. We are very proud because even though this is a product that was enjoyed because other forms of entertainment were scarce, it continues to be enjoyed in significant numbers. It is a solid offering that was in the right place at the right time to kick off.”
FIFA and NBA2K are particularly popular as a betting option for sportsbook customers, but is there a divide between these disciplines and followers of other Esports events?
Alexandr Iaroshenko: “People want to bet on live events and it becomes vital that they get their results quickly. This is what has helped esports’ popularity to grow so rapidly. When it comes to games like League of Legends and Defence of the Ancients – which aren’t based on sports – results may vary largely depending on different demographics. The new generation of player is more focused on the ‘computer game’ elements of esports, such as Battle Royale or Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds – if they like those types of games, they will still bet on those even when they aren’t into sports. However, it is fair to say that betters of esports that are based on traditional sports like football and basketball are much more reliable bettors that those that follow LoL or DoTA.”
Sergey Tsukanov: “Of course, the most popular sports have always attracted players that differ from the followers of more traditional esports markets. FIFA and NBA2K markets, perhaps unsurprisingly, have a much bigger following amongst soccer and basketball fans than from followers of other esports markets, and for this reason, FIFA and NBA2K have become a staple of our classic market offering. That said, it must be noted that despite their differences, players at both ends of the spectrum universally prefer it when competitive games are played without real players, instead using AI-led technology to add to the random nature of the results.”
Rohini Sardana: “The core elements of the product remain the same, regardless of whether you are offering FIFA 21 matches or first-person shooter events. The availability of quality live streams and a variety of markets, all underpinned by strong integrity, are the key fundamentals that are required for every single esports betting opportunity. Of course, sports-themed games are more likely to resonate with existing sports bettors given the familiar characteristics. We have seen great success with our NBA2K head-to-head games given basketball’s global appeal. Moving forward, we are planning additional titles to help us expand our content offer, which will further help operators drive profitable revenues.”
What are the challenges involved in offering live streaming and in-play betting across esports events taking place 24/7, across the world?
Sergey Tsukanov: “The challenges vary in different locations, but they are the same for all elements of iGaming, not just esports. Internet penetration, mobile play, latency of streaming, and so on. However, the benefits of providing clear, accessible, and most importantly, popular content for users, clearly have a positive impact for both products and turnover. This is the key to maintaining our audiences and attracting new users.”
Rohini Sardana: “The lack of resources that have the specialist knowledge of esports betting appears to have been one of the main challenges for operators. Esports betting solutions are still in the early stages of the product lifecycle and there is an element of risk for sportsbooks trading on such events, particularly the potential for savvy esports bettors getting the upper hand. Partnering with third party providers such as SIS, that have relevant knowledge of esports is highly advantageous, giving operators the confidence and trust that the products being offered are reliable and relevant. At SIS we have more than 30 years’ experience of live streaming and data distribution, and we partner with 400 customers across 45 countries, which gives operators peace of mind that SIS Competitive Gaming is an esports betting product they can depend on. We have low latency live streams available for our content, running throughout the day to serve our global customer base. The frequent and high uptime betting opportunities have proven to be popular with both operators and bettors across multiple markets in recent months.”
Alexandr Iaroshenko: “This is our speciality and we can take two approaches. Firstly, there is live streaming. There are lots of challenges that an operator needs to be prepared for. Organising the right people and level of play to make the product popular and keep it running 24/7 can be difficult. There needs to be a product on tap that can constantly engage players. One focus should be on growing our existing player base and the other should be retaining them. In terms of organising these events, we have partners in Europe that have created their own Esports academy to help develop the players of the future and create top-class tournaments and other activities. Secondly, there is in-play. This is the odds and infrastructure to supply sportsbook. We have a team placed to constantly trade and price. It can be challenging to provide underdog or favourites for events, which motivates players to play. We work hard to deliver this and the latest in tech to price these games like never before. This involves investing in the best in maths models to ensure we can deliver.”
How is AI having an impact, both from an odds-setting perspective and in producing human-versus-AI content?
Rohini Sardana: “Accessibility and accuracy of data plays a key role in establishing a betting product’s usability. Esports games are visually rich and provide more data points than sportsbooks would have consumed with other sports content. This vast amount of data needs to be processed to create a good user experience, and processing vast amount of data, efficiently, requires the use of technological advancements such as AI.”
Alexandr Iaroshenko: “In terms of betting, we have mathematical models which are stats-driven and give us a concrete prediction via an algorithm. This involves so many variables and no fewer than 15,000 events every month, which enables us to constantly learn and evolve to better understand and price games. As a result, we are able to provide some of the most accurate odds in the business. We take this very seriously and when our traders join, they go through a vigorous player schedule to prepare. AI verses live human bears a strikingly similarity to RNG vs. live action. In this instance, the operator is relying on an RNG bot originally created by EA Sports, which has nothing to do with the world of betting. It’s simply a black box inside the game that determines the action. Players simply have less trust in this.”
Sergey Tsukanov: “At Betby, we primarily employ AI technology to acquire live data. We want to use AI to create mathematical models to produce enhanced odds, but when generating odds, it doesn’t differ too much from the traditional aspects. What does set AI apart is generating results with innovative AI software to ensure that our products are available 24/7 across all markets, providing users with the best possible environment to place their bets, all the time.”
What can the traditional sports betting world learn, if anything, from the new breed of quick-fire esports betting opportunities?
Sergey Tsukanov: “If you compare traditional sports betting markets with these modern AI-led esports solutions, you can see a few differences. The new markets are available around the clock, utilise innovative mathematical models that make the games more efficient, and provide a variety of previously unseen markets for users to enjoy – there really is something for everyone. For me, it’s not even about betting, and more about the phenomenon of soccer and basketball losing popularity amongst young people. Officials really need to look into how to attract young people to soccer again, and they could do this with faster game formats or the equivalent of an All-Star match. As for betting, with the current format of soccer and basketball competitions locked securely in place, it’s very difficult to invent something new. Instead, we have explored making our platform more efficient and user-friendly to help players place bets as efficiently as possible, and it has paid off.”
Rohini Sardana: “For sportsbooks, offering esports betting opportunities has now become a necessity. The strong demand for this type of content and the resulting engagement levels means that these events cannot be ignored. Sportsbooks already value quick-fire betting opportunities that horse and greyhound racing and virtual sports offer, and esports events can provide a similar format with results within minutes of a bet being placed.”
Alexandr Iaroshenko: “In sports betting, we see a lot of hype for a lot of products and, more often than not, this burns out quickly. Looking at the most popular esports titles at the moment including Counter Strike, LoL and DoTA – these are now making esports history and I believe they’re here to stay. Live sports and esports have reached a synergistic co-operative relationship, where, for example, esports supports the hype for an overall event. There is no threat that esports will cannibalise sports. In fact, what we have seen is that it works as a complementary product.”
eSports
We ran CS2 Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024 through a SuperComputer to predict the final stages — with Neymar’s FURIA team set to cause more massive shocks on home soil
- Natus Vincere and Team Vitality are heavy favourites with a 29.7% and 23.5% chance of winning in Rio, respectively
- However, FURIA — the hometown team backed by Brazil star Neymar — have been the tournament’s biggest overachievers in the group stage and are on set to cause an upset
- G2 on the other hand are the biggest underachievers, crashing out in the group stage to hurt their chances of going into the Major season as top seeds
- FURIA were given just an 20.9% chance of making the playoffs on home soil while G2 had been ranked as third favourites to win in Rio before the tournament with a 19.3% chance of glory
Natus Vincere (NaVi) remain the overall favourites to come on top at Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024 according to the CSDB.gg CS2 Tournament SuperComputer but FURIA, the Brazilian team co-owned by Neymar, are on course to threaten a serious upset on their home turf.
They have already stunned the competition by beating NaVi in a group to secure passage directly through to the semi-finals, with G2 Esports the biggest underachievers in the opening rounds.
G2 had been a team rated as the third favourites to seize glory in Rio before the tournament only to fail to even make the playoffs. Team Vitality are still second only to NaVi according to the SuperComputer’s rating of who can win but FURIA are backed to knock them out in the semifinals to go to the decider for a dramatic rematch with NaVi to decide who will end the tournament as champions.
A total of $250,000 in prize money and a spot at IEM Katowice 2025 are at stake for the winning side, and after NaVi’s loss to G2 Esports in the Blast Fall Final they will be gunning for a chance to bounce back in style. Vitality on the other hand will be chasing their first title since IEM Cologne.
FURIA, the hometown heroes, are in the mix to potentially upset the odds and after entering the tournament with only a 20.9% chance of even making the playoffs now find themselves third favourites to win the whole thing after their heroics in the group stage.
Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024 predicted by the CSDB.gg CS2 Tournament SuperComputer
- Final: Natus Vincere (29.7%) to beat FURIA (17.6%)
- Semifinal 1: FURIA (41.0%) to beat Team Vitality (40.7%)
- Semifinal 2: Natus Vincere (48.1%) to beat HEROIC (33.0%)
- Quarterfinal 1: Team Vitality (63.8%) to beat MOUZ (36.2%)
- Quarterfinal 2: Natus Vincere (67.0%) to beat Virtus.pro (33.0%)
Playoffs
- Natus Vincere – 29.7% to become champion; 48.1% to make final; 67.0% to make semi-final
- Team Vitality – 23.5% to become champion; 40.7% to make final; 63.8% to make semi-final
- FURIA – 17.6% to become champion; 41.0% to make final
- HEROIC – 11.3% to become champion; 33.0% to make final
- Virtus Pro – 9.7% to become champion; 18.9% to make final; 33.0% to make semi-final
- MOUZ – 8.2% to become champion; 18.3% to make final; 36.2% to make semi-final
It had been quite the run for NaVi prior to Rio despite their loss to G2 at the Blast Fall Final, with back to back grand finals in recent weeks.
Their momentum was immediately slowed by FURIA who got the home turf buff to shock them with a 2-0 in the Upper-Final to skip straight into the semis.
FURIA’s last appearance in a semi-final in front of a Brazilian crowd came at IEM Rio in 2022 where they lost 2-1 to Cadians Heroic after beating Navi in the quarters. They also lost to Heroic in the quarters of the same tournament in 2023 and will be hoping to get all the way to the final this year.
They are now third favourites to take the event with NaVi and Team Vitality still first and second favourites coming into the playoffs, even after slipping up against FURIA and Heroic, respectively.
Vitality have experience at recovering in this competition. They won IEM Rio 2023 from the quarters and will be looking to go back to back in Rio in 2024.
The MVP race is on too with Vitality’s ‘Zywoo’ currently on a 1.54 rating after five maps. He will be looking to take his career total to 21 tying the all-time record currently held by s1mple.
Another MVP would also be a massive step towards taking a record-breaking fourth HLTV number one award for the best player of the year for 2024.
FURIA could cause an upset here too though with home boy KSCERATO on a 1.56 rating after six maps.
The MVP award will almost always goes to the winning team’s best player and he could pick up his first career MVP on home soil should FURIA continue to confound expectations. Neymar would be proud!
How was the CSDB.gg CS2 Tournament SuperComputer created?
The CSDB.gg CS2 Tournament SuperComputer is a predictive model created using world ranking points, team quality ratings and performance trends. An element of randomness is also included in the model to avoid the best teams and players always winning, to reflect the fact that upsets can happen.
Every tournament is simulated 1,000 times with the results aggregated into a percentage rating of the chances teams or players have to achieve the predicted result.
CSDB.gg CS2 Tournament SuperComputer playoffs forecast in full
Elimination stage:
Asia
Top Gaming Creators join hands with Regional Influencers to Drive Record Engagement into College Rivals Season 2
A diverse array of city-based influencers from across the country, in conjunction with an established roster of creators, has been driving exceptional engagement and transforming the grassroots esports and gaming scene at the College Rivals Season 2.
The Ampverse DMI owned, largest collegiate gaming talent hunt, College Rivals Season 2 has covered 5417 kilometres with its one of a kind cool gaming truck, visiting more than 11 cities. It has surpassed a record-breaking 100,000 plus registrations, engaging with students in both online and offline format, exceeding the total engagement numbers compared to the first edition in just over three months of the tournament.
Ashwin Haryani, Country Head of Ampverse DMI, India, highlighted the broader vision behind this collaboration: “Our partnership is built on the belief that nurturing esports and gaming talent requires more than just competition—it demands inclusivity, mentorship, and localized engagement. By bringing together creators across different tiers and regions, we’re not just amplifying visibility for emerging talent; we’re creating a sustainable pathway for them to transition from amateur to pro. College Rivals is evolving into a platform where every creator, regardless of their background or following, can find opportunities to grow, learn, interact and thrive in the esports and gaming ecosystem.”
Season 2 features prominent and popular creators like Payal Gaming and Ankkita C, two of India’s top female gamers; Snax, known for his informative gaming content with over a million YouTube subscribers; and popular names like Joker ki Haveli and Regaltos. Also, joining the lineup are Antaryami Gaming, AlphaClasher, Brightfox, Willy Gaming, SardarjiYT, Vadhiyaar, and Mazy, making it an exciting season for gaming enthusiasts.
“By collaborating with local influencers and deep diving into diverse audiences to create a more relatable gaming experience. This strategy not only enhances community interaction but also brings unique regional flavours to the game, making it more appealing to players from different backgrounds. It’s a smart move to leverage local voices and personalities, driving excitement and participation in the competition, said India’s top women gamer, Payal Gaming.
As per industry reports, nearly 55 million urban Indians actively engage with nano-influencers. This dynamic blend is revolutionizing the way to connect and energize the gaming community.
The College Rival Season 2 is being staged across 22 Indian cities, including Jaipur, Lucknow, Patna, Assam, Vizag, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Mangalore, Kochi, Goa, and Mumbai being part of it.
Adding to the excitement, the winners from the first two rounds of qualifiers for all three games, Valorant, BGMI and EA FC 24 have also been revealed. They will move on to the next stage, aiming for a spot in the Grand Finale scheduled for February 2025, wherein the winners will win a prize pool of up to INR 50 lakh and the chance to join a top gaming organization to compete professionally.
Asia
Gujarat Titans challenges E-sports Athletes to battle it out in “Battlegrounds Mobile India-Titans Rising” Tournament
Gujarat Titans becomes the first IPL team to step into the world of E-sports with “Battlegrounds Mobile India-Titans Rising”, an electrifying BGMI tournament with a massive ₹22 Lakh prize pool. The tournament guarantees intense matches and nail-biting finishes as top-tier professional teams clash with rising stars who advance through the open qualifier process to lock horns in the Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) tournament.
The tournament starting from October 10th will be sure to provide riveting entertainment for E-sports enthusiasts. E-sports’ inclusion in the Olympics and Asian Games has been a game-changer. This recognition has legitimized E-sports as a globally recognized competitive sport, attracting mainstream media, sponsorships, and investment, ultimately fuelling rapid professionalization and expanding its global fan-base.
The “Battlegrounds Mobile India-Titans Rising”, tournament features multiple elimination phases leading to a Grand Finale. The thrilling competitive journey kicks off with five offline open qualifiers in Phase 1 from the 10th to the 15th of October. These qualifiers are open to all to provide a platform for aspiring BGMI teams to showcase their skills. Moreover, 2,048 teams consisting of over 10,000+ gamers have already registered for the tournament and are buckling up to jump into the battlegrounds.
From these qualifiers, 32 teams will advance to the pre-quarters phase where they will battle alongside 32 invited teams with established and top-ranked players, creating a fiercely competitive pool of 48 teams. Phase 2 intensifies the battle with Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, and ultimately culminates in a Grand Finale where the top 16 teams fight to become the Ultimate Champion.
Col. Arvinder Singh, COO of Gujarat Titans, remarked, “With the IOC set to hold the Olympic E-sports in 2025 and the Asian Games featuring E-sports as a medal event since 2022, it has gained widespread international recognition. With ‘Titans Rising,’ our goal is to engage fans and broaden our brand presence. This tournament will create opportunities for aspiring players to compete with professionals, while also allowing our fans to tap into their competitive spirit in BGMI. This initiative enables us to connect with our fan base in innovative ways and highlights exceptional talent in the E-sports arena.”
The behemoths of the E-sports world namely Revenant E-sports, Team IQOO SouL, Team Orangutan, Carnival Gaming, and many more will join the fray to win it all. Marquee gamers like Sc0utOp, Omega, Goblin, and many others will be competing against each other in this all-star tournament,
All matches, starting from Pre-Quarters, i.e. from 16th October, will be streamed on the GT YouTube channel, ensuring maximum exposure and excitement for both participants and viewers. Don’t miss a moment of the action! Catch all the excitement live on the Gujarat Titans YouTube channel, featuring expert commentary and in-depth analysis.
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