Gaming is still widely considered to be a male-dominated activity. Yet, as the eSports industry has grown to be worth some $950 million by 2020, it is interesting to note that the rising participation of women is one of the factors helping to drive this market forward.
Professional eSports players are a new breed of highly-paid and celebrated people who play games competitively in front of huge audiences. Women and men can compete in the same team, making this possibly the only major sport that is played by mixed-gender teams at the highest level.
Among the top female players is Canadian Sasha Hostyn, who is known as Scarlett in the gaming world. She became the first woman to take first prize in a major tourney and has evidently made a big impression, gathering over $330,000 in prize money along the way. However, the top-earning male players can earn millions of dollars, so there is still a significant gap.
Another powerful role model for female gamers is Katharine Gunn, known as Mystik, who has also excelled in the competitive gaming sphere. With more women making their mark in this industry, it is no surprise to see that they are helping to encourage the next generation of female players to come through.
While very few gamers reach the elite levels of the pro competitors we have looked at, there are many more who enjoy following the tournaments online. It is thought that there are around 500 million people who regularly view games on platforms such as Twitch.
Some estimates suggest that the global audience could grow to well over 600 million in the next couple of years. Recent studies show that around a third of the spectators are women, with this report showing a rise from 6.5% in 2016 to 30% in 2019.
The percentage of women playing these games is higher than the percentage watching them, but the gap is closing. One possible issue is that there is a drop to just over 20% when we look at the number of female viewers among the total amount of people who watch leagues.
The huge growth in esports means that it is now also a popular subject for betting on. For example, when searching for the best eSports betting site, we can see that major games are typically covered. Top betting sites like GG.Bet, 1xBet, and Unibet all include this genre, with welcome offers to get new players started. This small sector of the industry affectively illustrates the large impact eSports has had on mainstream entertainment.
While there are no numbers yet known for the number of female esports gamblers, it seems safe to assume that plenty of women enjoy this aspect of the sports too. Other roles with a strong female presence include presenters, casters, and event organizers.
If the eSports market is to continue to grow in the way that it has done in the last few years, the increasing presence of female viewers and players is likely to be ever more crucial.
