Summary

Argentina is the second-biggest eSports gaming market in the region. ESports are associated with different video game genres, with the most popular being first-person shooters, real-time strategy (RTS), fighting, multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA), and others. There have been 1,046 Argentine esports players that have been awarded a total of $7,116,655.27 USD in prize money across 1,533 tournaments. Fortnite was the highest-paying game, with $2,071,577.03 USD won, accounting for 29.11% of all earnings by Argentine players. Thiago "k1nG" Bautista Lapp is the highest-earning Argentine player with $1,119,650.00 USD in prize money won overall, won from playing in Fortnite tournaments. Some of the top esports games are Fortnite, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Player Unknown's Battlegrounds, Hearthstone, League of Legends, Rocket League, VALORANT, FIFA 19, Magic: The Gathering Arena, Free Fire, and many more. Some of the top eSports players are Thiago Bautista Lapp, Nicolas Villalba, Nahuel Balseiro, Facu Pruzzo, Matias Delipetro, Facundo Vallerino, Lautaro Gusinsky, Matias Leveratto, Tadeo Timmermann, and many more. There are some Top eSports Tournament that are Fortnite World Cup Finals 2019 - Solo, FIFA eWorld Cup 2022, PUBG Global Championship 2021, Mythic Championship III 2019, Fortnite World Cup Finals 2019 - Duo, PGI.S 2021 Main Event, Magic World Championship XXVI and many more. Argentinian esports’ main stakeholders are the Spanish production company LVP (Liga de Videojuegos Profesional), responsible for some of the biggest tournaments in the country; the TV company Flow, owned by Telecom Argentina; along with international sponsors including Logitech, AMD, and AORUS.

According to the research report "Argentina eSports Market Overview, 2028," published by Bonafide Research, the market is expected to add USD 22.45 million by 2028. Streaming is expected to dominate the segment share during the forecast period. The growing emphasis on fan engagement is likely to fuel demand for live sports events. Furthermore, the rise in smart phone users is expected to fuel demand for live sports tournaments. Media rights are making a significant contribution to the country's esports industry. Fans can now track live esports activity across the country thanks to easy access to communication technology. Media companies pay exorbitant fees to win the exclusive rights to broadcast live streaming of major sporting events. In recent years, the sale of broadcasting and media rights has been the most important source of revenue for most esports organizers. The revenue generated by the sale of media rights is used to fund major sporting events, enhancement, and contribute to the grassroots development of esports. During the forecast period, sponsorship is expected to grow rapidly, followed by advertising. As the number of viewers grow, the sponsoring team invests in the platform to strengthen its brand image. Similarly, various gaming platforms include in-app advertisements to boost revenue generation.

There is no official recognition or specific regulation for eSports in Argentina. For most traditional non-endemic companies and investors, there is a culture in the country of waiting for regulation before investing, meaning government recognition will be an important step in unlocking investment in the scene. The Argentine province of Córdoba, on the other hand, has invested in the Córdoba eSports project, hosting a FIFA competition called Copa Cordobesa de FtbolElectrónico in April 2022.The province’s Minister of Science and Technology, Pablo De Chiara, has publicly stated that competitive gaming will be a boost for the entire video game industry, which is part of the knowledge economy and generates hundreds of jobs.

Argentina has a few smaller, domestically focused tournaments, but many of its biggest leagues and competitions are part of the wider LATAM circuits in which Argentinian organisations compete. There are some notable tournaments and leagues: Copa Elite Six, Fire League, Liga Latinoamerica, LVP Liga Master Flow, LVP Unity League Argentina, Torneo Nacional Free Fire Argentina, TorneoOficial Argentina, and many more. 9z Team, eBRO Gaming, Furious Gaming, Globant, Hawks, KRÜ Esports, Leviatan Esports, Velox, and many others are notable Esports organizations. Asociación de Deportes Electrónicosy Videojuegos de Argentina (DEVA), Federación de DeportesElectrónicos y Electromecánicos de Argentina (FEDEEMA), and others are notable.

As Argentina is part of the Spanish-speaking world, many education projects from North America, Europe, and other Latin American countries are available for access by the Argentinian audience. The Federación del Deporte Universitario Argentina (Argentinian College Sports Federation) promotes esports projects through a close relationship with the esports association DEVA. Moreover, the platform University Esports Argentina, which is supported by brands like Philips, Intel, and Logitech, holds an ongoing calendar of multiple esports events, including League of Legends, Rocket League, Free Fire, Clash Royale, and Rainbow Six: Siege. In 2021, the city of Buenos Aires launched a project called "Academia de Videojuegos," also in association with DEVA, to promote eSports and educate people about the industry.
Argentinian esports have had two explosive moments in the last three years. The first was in 2019, when current FaZe Clan player Thiago "k1ng" Lapp jumped into the spotlight on local mainstream media for winning almost $1 million (£800,000) in Fortnite. The second was in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic significantly pushed up online esports viewership as Argentineans stayed inside their houses. A further boost was given to the scene with the qualification of esports organisation 9z Team for the PGL Major Antwerp 2022.

Lucas Benaim is a local esports journalist who works at Infobae, one of the main news websites in the country. He tells The Esports Observer that Argentina is now seeing a lot of production companies willing to work on esports, making content, building programs, and building a lot of stuff. That is a good sign, showing that people are paying attention to esports, and they are also seeing all those big sponsors that are coming in.
ESports is a fast-growing market within the world of gaming, mainly driven by increasing digitalization, the growing use of smartphones, and rising awareness of gaming. Faster and better technology is opening up new opportunities, and the COVID-19 pandemic has been fueling the demand for eSports. The market is expected to grow steadily as more teams, tournaments, and companies form, creating a broad platform for sponsorship and advertisement. Due to the rising number of live-stream viewers and greater profitability, both the prize money from tournaments and the amount of money invested in different teams are projected to increase.

Health and addiction concerns for eSports impede the market's growth; gamers may experience metabolic disorders resulting from light-emitting diode computer monitors and psychological problems related to gambling and social behaviour disorders. The health effects of electronic sports players have been studied, and it was discovered that they are more likely to suffer musculoskeletal injuries in the back, neck, and upper extremities. Most of these issues arise from sedentary lifestyles and poor posture, which are common among these players. Furthermore, the introduction of electronic sports college scholarships is a source of concern, as young people can now justify their excessive use of games as being the next electronic sports stars, even if their chances of becoming the one are extremely slim.

Considered in this report
• Geography: Argentina
• Historic year: 2017
• Base year: 2022
• Estimated year: 2023
• Forecast year: 2028

Aspects covered in this report
• Argentina esport market with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Revenue Streams:
• Sponsorship
• Media Rights
• Merchandise & Tickets
• Publisher Fees
• Digital
• Streaming

By Device Type:
• Mobile (Smartphone, Tablet)
• PC (Laptop, Desktop)
• Gaming Device (Console, Handheld Devices)
• Other (VR, Smart TV, etc.)

The approach of the report:
This report consists of a combined approach of primary as well as secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list out the companies that are present in the market. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, and annual reports of companies, analyzing the government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources primary research was conducted by making telephonic interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this we have started doing primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting consumers into regional aspects, tier aspects, age groups, and gender. Once we have primary data with us we started verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience
This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations & organizations related to the esport industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing & presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.