The industrial ambitions behind an event
The future of e-sports in China
On October 31st, the newly unveiled Shanghai Pudong Football Stadium left its debut opportunity to e-sports.
At the 2020 League of Legends Global Finals (S10) held that night, the DWG team from South Korea’s LCK region defeated the SN team in China’s LPL region in four rounds and won the Summoner trophy after a two-year absence for the LCK.
Although they failed to witness the Chinese team win the cup at home, the more than 6,300 spectators who watched the game still lit the stadium with cheers and shouts like mountains and tsunami.
For a professional football stadium that can hold 37,000 people, the attendance rate of less than 20% is not worth mentioning in the past.
But for sporting events and industries that are still struggling under the new crown pneumonia epidemic, an audience of this size is enough to inject confidence and motivation. Behind the more than 6,300 lucky people who rushed to Shanghai from all over the country through lottery, there are more than 300 Millions of e-sports fans are eager to come to the scene and personally participate in this peak moment of global e-sports.
Confidence: 6300 and 3 million
At the beginning of this year, when traditional sports events were suspended due to the epidemic, LPL took the lead in online rematches, sounding the clarion call for the resumption of work in the sports field.
Although there is little cheering from the live audience, the wonderful LPL games are still a hot topic on Chinese social networks, accompanying many young e-sports enthusiasts to spend unforgettable "home time".
Under the epidemic, the speed of e-sports "breaking the circle" is also accelerating.
The "2020 Global E-sports Industry Development Report" recently released by Penguin Think Tanks and other institutions shows that during the epidemic period, there were about 26 million new e-sports users in China.
Among them, driven by their partners and children, more women and older users have turned from "e-sports knowers" to "event viewers."
"The new crown pneumonia epidemic has disrupted the planning of global sports events. E-sports offline watching and other aspects have been greatly affected, but the special environment also highlights the characteristics and advantages of e-sports." Tencent Group Chief Operating Officer Ren Yuxin said previously .
It was just after seeing the enthusiasm that e-sports fans have accumulated for a long time to watch the game, the organizers of the S10 event decided to let more spectators come to the scene and adopt a free and lottery method.
"When this kind of crazy idea came out, our team almost all agreed at the first time." said Lin Song, head of Riot Games China and co-CEO of Tengjing Sports. "This may be the best in special circumstances of the epidemic. Way out."
In just a few days, the number of people who signed up for the competition exceeded 3 million, and on average, more than 4,000 people participated in the "lottery" every minute.
Lin Song said that every audience who finally came to the scene was a sparkling "European King".
E-sports players from several countries gathered on the banks of the Huangpu River, and more than 6000 spectators poured into the stadium... In the case of global sports events being closed or empty arena, the S10 finals held in Shanghai was "scenery here." Uniquely".
Behind the smooth "advance" of the competition in Shanghai are China's world-recognized anti-epidemic achievements and measures.
"Without the tremendous help from Shanghai, none of this would have happened." John Needham, the global head of Riot Games e-sports, detailed his experience in Shanghai: For the first time in 9 months, he ate with others in a restaurant, Uncountable number of nucleic acid tests and meticulous epidemic prevention measures...
"Shanghai is safe, I don't want to leave." Needham said.
Vigor: E-sports ecology leads the world
In the final that night, 18-year-old Chen Zebin (Bin), the top laner of the SN team, scored an unprecedented "five kills" in the second game, pushing the atmosphere of the audience to a climax.
Although the young LPL team failed to keep the trophy in China, people are still optimistic about the future of this "dark horse".
The future can be expected, the same is true for Chinese e-sports.
This year is the second time that the League of Legends World Championship has landed in mainland China.
In 2017, the S7 final was staged at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium in Beijing.
The scene where the two South Korean teams met in the final is still a "pain in the heart" of many Chinese e-sports enthusiasts.
However, it was from then that China's e-sports gradually entered the "golden age".
In the two finals in 2018 and 2019, the Chinese team won the championship, ending the LCK's continuous five-year rule.
The influx of capital and talents has allowed the e-sports events represented by League of Legends and the glory of the king to blossom, and the development of the e-sports industry has entered the fast lane.
"If it were placed 10 years ago, I might say that South Korea is the future of e-sports. But now, the development of China's e-sports industry has caught up." Riot Games CEO Niccolo Laurent believes that China values e-sports Development, as the future of the sports industry, and many supporting policies have been introduced.
"China's e-sports ecosystem has been three to five years ahead of the rest of the world." Laurent said.
Data show that in 2019, the size of China's e-sports game market has exceeded 100 billion yuan.
In 2020, China's e-sports users are expected to exceed 400 million, of which young users are the mainstream group, and e-sports has become an important way for brands and culture to reach young people.
"In the past few years, I have been to Shanghai no less than 20 times. It can be said that e-sports has become the mainstream in China and is a way of life. China is the future of e-sports." Needham said.
With the settlement of e-sports competitions, the center of global e-sports is shifting to China-in August this year, the "e-sports Beijing 2020" King of Glory World Champions Cup finals were staged at the Cadillac Center in Beijing; previously, Riot Games also announced that 2021 The League of Legends World Finals will continue to stay in China.
"During this period, many foreign competition regions have not had the courage to hold the global finals for two consecutive years. We solemnly promise to hold two events to let global players see wonderful e-sports competitions. This is a very good embodiment of China's soft power." Song said.
"Last year when the S9 finals were held in Paris, France, local government officials asked me: How did China do it? How does Shanghai do the game?" Laurent said that this experience made him feel that Chinese e-sports The development experience of the industry has become a model for the Western market to learn from and learn from.
Resilience: Many cities compete for the e-sports capital
The League of Legends Global Finals, which lasted for nearly a month, turned Shanghai into the "e-sports capital" of the world's attention.
Around this competition, Shanghai also launched the "Urban Canyon Life Month" cultural activities, setting up a wealth of activities for watching, clocking in, and landmarks.
Walking through the streets of Shanghai, you can discover e-sports elements and feel the atmosphere of e-sports from time to time.
Behind the enthusiastic embrace of e-sports is Shanghai's ambition to build a "global e-sports capital".
In 2019, Shanghai proposed "20 E-sports" to develop the entire industry chain of e-sports.
Statistics show that last year Shanghai supported 24 e-sports games, events, clubs, anchor commentary, and broadcast production projects; more than 1,500 large-scale e-sports events were held, accounting for nearly half of the country; more than 250 e-sports companies and clubs accumulated. It accounts for more than 80% of the country.
Entering 2020, despite the epidemic, Shanghai is still in the most critical stage of epidemic prevention and control, announcing the news of "S10 non-stop", releasing strong market signals and confidence to the world, and contributing to this rare global final.
"In Shanghai, I saw e-sports-related construction projects, leading e-sports broadcasting technology, large-scale investment...No matter from which point of view, Shanghai is far ahead." Laurent said, yes For government departments in various countries and regions, it is no easy task to understand new technologies and new industries. However, Shanghai has a clear understanding of the e-sports industry and has provided practical help.
In fact, it's not just Shanghai.
In the post-epidemic era, seizing opportunities for the development of the e-sports industry has become a common choice for many places in China.
Beijing, which is striving to build the "online game capital", held a series of "e-sports Beijing 2020" events this summer, the Beijing International E-sports Innovation and Development Conference, the Light of E-sports Exhibition and Trade Fair, and the 2020 King of Glory World Champions Cup Finals Staged one after another.
A series of e-sports and related industrial policies are accelerating, demonstrating Beijing's ambition to use e-sports as a starting point to build an online game capital.
Last year, Hainan issued the "Six Maritime Rules" to support the development of the e-sports industry, gradually improving and launching corresponding support policies in funding, talent, taxation, visa exemption, competition approval and broadcasting, and vigorously supporting the development of e-sports.
Today, there are more than 1,000 digital cultural and sports companies in the Nanhai Free Trade Port Eco-Software Park, focusing on e-sports and games.
Industry insiders pointed out that the development of the e-sports industry can boost the confidence in the development of the digital economy industry under the influence of the epidemic, activate consumption power, and provide new employment opportunities.
Data shows that in 2020, China will surpass North America and contribute the largest share of the global e-sports market revenue, accounting for 35% of the total global revenue.
With a huge base of e-sports users, China's e-sports has entered the stage of user emotional cultivation, commercial value development and segmented market operations.
Liu Yao
Liu Yao