The global gaming industry is worth billions of dollars every year with everything from game development, retail, supply chains, hardware construction, and more all contributing.
As well as being a fun and exciting recreational activity, it can also be a lucrative career for the top gamers.
People have been making money from games for years, with professional gamblers earning a living from casinos. Online and offshore casinos available to US players now provide an excellent, convenient alternative to land-based operations.
Casino expert Andrew O’Malley explains how offshore operations have been perfect for bettors in states where online casinos are prohibited.
They provide a secure way for people to practice and win money at home or on the move.
Online casinos have benefitted immeasurably from technological developments, and so has the gaming community.
Gamers can now stream their gameplay and earn money from followers, or take part in competitive gaming events that have earned global fame through live events and huge sponsorship deals.
The U.S. is second only to China in overall Esports earnings, with Kenya placing 149th.
Kenyan Esports Insights
The Kenyan Esports market is projected to reach $7.6 million this year and continue with an annual growth rate of around 5.8%. This growth has been attributed to a variety of factors including support from local and national businesses.
Gaming cafes and small gaming tournaments are helping the Kenyan gaming industry, but it has been the backing of telecoms provider Safaricom and partners in creating the Blaze tournament in 2019 that has kicked things on.
Kenyan gaming has since seen sponsorship deals from Logitech, Huawei, MSI, and ASUS.
Kenya’s ranking in 149th place in the earnings list sees them placed between Mozambique in 148th and American Samoa in 150th.
Kenya’s 3 pro gamers have earned $2,004.94, while this figure is some way off that of the U.S., the development of Esports in Kenya should see this figure rise significantly in the future.
Kenya’s Top Esports Players
Kenya’s top tournament gamers include Ian “KingNairobus” Njoroge, Eric “Demon” Ngige, and Mawira “DarkTempest” Nyaga who have competed in 6 tournaments in total.
Ian Njoroge has earned the most playing Overwatch, winning $1,482.62. Eric Ngige is next on the list having earned $372.32 playing EA Sports FC 24, and Mawira Nyaga has earned $150 playing Tekken 7.
Ian “KingNairobus” Njoroge competed in 4 tournaments in total, with his largest win coming at the ASUS GamesFest in 2016 when he won $907.56.
U.S. Esports Insights
Comparing Kenya’s Esports industry to that of America’s is a bit of a mismatch with Kenya’s 3 players pitted against the 27,621 U.S. players. Having this many competitive gamers will obviously result in significantly higher earnings and the $279,264,085.11 earned by U.S. players is a phenomenal figure.
The U.S. Esports market is worth over $1 billion thanks to significant backing that has facilitated the growth of its infrastructure.
The U.S. hosts thousands of Esports tournaments every year and it is estimated that there are more than 212 million gamers in the country.
Top Esports Players in the U.S.
The top three U.S. players have all earned over $3 million from their gaming, with Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf making the most at $3,720,091.72. Saahil “UNiVeRsE” Arora is in second place on $3,057,237.67 and Peter “ppd” Dager has made $3,029,331.36.
The biggest earner for U.S. players has been Fortnite with winnings of $48,889,765.73. Dota 2 is the second at $18,346,687.37, with Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Rocket League, and Apex Legends close behind.
At just 21, Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf is the top earner in the country and 99% of his $3.7 million comes from playing Fortnite across 137 tournaments. Incredibly, he made the majority of his money when he was just 16, earning $3,080,191.67 from 41 tournaments.
He is currently ranked in 22nd place in the world rankings, with Danish Dota 2 player Johan Sundstein in first place with earnings of $7,184,163.05.
Conclusion
The U.S. can serve as a great example to Kenya in terms of its gaming infrastructure, however, it does have a greater budget to work with. America’s 2022 GDP of $25.44 trillion dwarfs Kenya’s $113.4 billion and has a huge head start.
If Kenya is to improve its global standing in the gaming community, it will have to rely on further support from industry giants, as well as recognition from the government who can help by improving connectivity in the country and supporting community projects.
Competitive gaming and online gambling both offer the opportunity to make a lot of money for the top players, and Kenya has the potential to race up the rankings with one or two good performances.
