Three Problems for Esports Under the Conditions of the Coronavirus Pandemic

The current coronavirus pandemic influenced all spheres of society. Sports events and public events are the ones that have suffered most. Almost all championships got suspended while the concerts were canceled or rescheduled until further notice. Everything that was not able to move online had to halt its work. And how did it affect esports? People have formed a lot of unsound opinions and judgments concerning the way COVID-19 influenced virtual competitions.

1. Cancelation and Rescheduling of Major Tournaments

Many people think the main Dota 2 and CS:GO championships will continue to happen as it is possible to play these games online. In fact, this is not true. The most popular tournaments have to be held offline at the stadium and due to the quarantine, the borders of most countries are closed. That’s why CS:GO and Dota 2 tournaments got canceled. It is especially tragic for Dota 2 as there is a system of DPC points at such tournaments. Not only the team are unable to score points for getting to The International but also the main event of the year was rescheduled. 

The main championships got replaced by online tournaments but it is just a temporary solution to fulfill the sponsors’ contracts and not to lose the audience. The viewer may watch a similar competition and even see the principal meetings more often. However, they got deprived of staginess which is peculiar for the LAN format. Another unpleasant fact is that the teams have to play within one region due to the ping.

2. Teams’ Problems While Playing from Home

Admittedly, each of the professional players has modern devices, powerful computers, and broadband internet in hand. It lets them play from home without any problem. On the other hand, the moment of a team gathering together in one place is also important. If bootcamps were not fruitful, the organizations would not spend a considerable part of the budget on it. All professionals admit that it is easier to play from one location and it improves their game a lot.

Not all esportsmen live in one region. If Bakyt Zayac Emilzhanov periodically has problems with the ping playing from Kyrgyzstan in the European region, Roman RAMZEs Kushnarev has no opportunity to play for Evil Geniuses from Russia. That is why many famous tags play with substitutes.

3. Financial Losses of the Industry

The main sources of income in esports are connected with sponsor and prize payments. Both of these components are all about tournaments. Companies are not interested in sponsor contracts without participation in major competitions and prize pools of online championships are inferior to LAN’s. Many organizations opt for reduction of salaries or even give up on rosters in the discipline. For example, the coronavirus affected the Dota 2 roster of forZe as the organization decided not to enter into a regular contract with the esportsmen.

Apart from the organizations, tournament operators and broadcasting studios suffer as well. The former do not have a chance to hold an event and the latter to cast it. Online competitions are not as profitable as offline ones so organizers of tournaments get serious income from tickets and sellings on the holding place. Besides, they have an opportunity to video exclusive content with esportsmen and to attract sponsors.

Conclusion

Along with the common misbeliefs, people are really right about some things. COVID-19 not only affected the industry negatively but also brought in some advantages. Basing on objective information, we may find the places where all advantages and disadvantages of the pandemic for esports are born. 

Advantages:

1. The audience of the industry is growing due to lack of alternative sports;
2. A chance to hold events online;
3. Bookmakers paid more attention to Dota 2 tournaments and CS:GO events offering different bonuses for players.

Disadvantages:

1. Impossibility of holding Major LAN tournaments;
2. Teams have to play having problems or substitutes due to high ping and impossibility of gathering at the bootcamp;
3. All spheres of the industry have suffered financially losing a considerable part of income.