The US Esports audience is not likely to reach Super Bowl proportions anytime soon, but viewer numbers are expected to top 46 million in 2023. As Esports viewership grows, so do the vital links between this emerging world of competitive gaming and the traditional sports industry. The NBA sees the rise of professional gaming as an opportunity to expand its own audience and bring in non-endemic advertising partners. In 2018, the National Basketball Association launched the NBA 2K League, becoming the first US professional sports organization to have an Esports league of its own. Based around the popular NBA 2K video game series, Esports players compete in 5-on-5 games throughout a season running from spring to summer. As Esports grows, it will also bring in more viewers outside of its direct niche.
Since JIB is invested in many NBA teams already (such as Lakers, Mavericks, Warriors), it may be keen to look into the possible sponsorships or activations with these new Esports teams as well. With the NBA being the first US Sports organization to have an Esports league of its own, it is only a matter of time before other sports leagues follow suit. Not only is this a great way to reach cord cutters, but there is also a big opportunity with Twitch, which has over 15 million daily active users. As this world of NBA 2K League becomes more widespread, many of these Esports enthusiasts will make the cross over to check out this league as well and start to follow more of these type of professional gamers. Overall, activating with this new 2K League would provide synergy with our other sports properties while also extending a presence with an important known audience-gamers.
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