Esports and gaming creators represent two distinct but overlapping opportunities for marketers seeking to reach engaged audiences. US esports will reach 35.0 million viewers in 2026, while platforms like Twitch and YouTube Gaming have transformed individual streamers into influential brand partners. Yet confusion persists about how these ecosystems work, who the key players are, and how to evaluate partnership opportunities. This FAQ clarifies the esports and creator landscape for marketers planning 2026 strategies.

What are esports?

Esports are organized video game competitions among professional players and teams. Like traditional sports, esports feature leagues, franchises, coaches, and players competing for prize pools and sponsorship revenue. Major competitive titles include League of Legends, Counter-Strike 2, Valorant, Dota 2, Overwatch 2, and Mobile Legends.

Competitions range from regional leagues to global championships broadcast across Twitch, YouTube, and traditional television. Esports sit at the intersection of competitive gaming, livestreaming, and the creator economy, with many professional players also maintaining personal streaming channels.

How large is the esports market?

Global esports market revenue is expected to reach $5.1 billion in 2026, according to Statista, and projected to reach $6.2 billion by 2030.

US esports ad spend is expected to reach $270.6 million in 2026, up 5.0% year-over-year, per EMARKETER’s forecast.

However, the global game user base is much larger, and user growth outpaces monetization. The global player base for games in 2025, 3.6 billion, grew 4.4% year-on-year, while payer growth was up 4.9%, according to Newzoo’s Global Games Market Report. The resulting slight decline in average spend per payer indicates that the industry underpinning esports is still maturing.

Who are the key players in esports?

The esports ecosystem includes several interconnected stakeholder categories:

• Game publishers. Companies like Riot Games (League of Legends, Valorant), Valve (Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2), and Activision Blizzard (Call of Duty League, Overwatch League) develop titles and often operate official leagues. Publishers control competitive formats, prize pools, and broadcast rights.
• Esports organizations. Teams like Cloud9, Team Liquid, FaZe Clan, and T1 field rosters across multiple game titles. Organizations generate revenue through sponsorships, merchandise, and content creation. Many have expanded into lifestyle brands and creator management.
• Tournament organizers. ESL, BLAST, and PGL produce third-party competitions outside publisher-run leagues. These events offer sponsorship inventory including broadcast integration, venue branding, and digital activations.
• Streaming platforms. Twitch, YouTube Gaming, and Kick distribute esports content and host gaming creators. Platforms compete for exclusive broadcast rights and top streaming talent.

Brands enter the ecosystem through team sponsorships, tournament partnerships, or direct relationships with individual players and creators.

Why are gaming creators valuable for brand marketing?

Gaming creators deliver engaged audiences that traditional advertising struggles to reach. 86% of marketers will use influencer marketing in 2025, with that figure set to exceed 90% by 2027, according to EMARKETER. Influencer marketing spending is projected to grow 15.7% in 2026.

Gaming creators offer specific advantages:

• Purchase influence. 58% of consumers over 18 have purchased products because of an influencer endorsement, per the National Advertising Division of BBB National Programs (NAD).
• Deep engagement. 44% of Twitch viewers have purchased a product because their favorite streamer recommended it, according to Dentsu 2025 Gaming Trends Report.
• Young demographics. Twitch and gaming platforms skew toward millennials and Gen Z. Gen Z spends 2.5 hours daily on Roblox alone, per Dentsu.

Social media creator revenues will reach $17.76 billion in 2025, up 15.8% year-over-year, according to EMARKETER.

How do esports and gaming creator audiences differ?

Esports audiences and gaming creator followers overlap but serve different marketing objectives:

Esports audiences watch organized competitions, often for specific game titles. The audience skews competitive and knowledgeable about game mechanics. Sponsorship opportunities center on team partnerships, broadcast integration, and event activations.

Gaming creator audiences follow individual personalities across platforms. Engagement is consistent rather than event-driven. Viewers form parasocial relationships with creators, which aims to drive purchase behavior. While gaming, 45% of Gen Z and millennials express interest in buying products, per Dentsu.

Brands should match channel selection to objectives: esports for awareness and cultural association, creator partnerships for engagement and conversion.

What platforms do esports viewers and gaming creators use?

Three platforms dominate the esports and gaming creator ecosystem:

• Twitch. Amazon-owned Twitch captured 82.3% of livestreaming hours in Q3 2024, per Streamlabs, with 5.14 billion hours watched. Twitch will have 38.0 million US users, according to EMARKETER. The platform hosts both esports broadcasts and individual creators, with community features like chat, subscriptions, and channel points driving engagement.
• YouTube Gaming. YouTube posted 1.94 billion hours of gaming watch time in Q3 2024. The platform has aggressively recruited top Twitch creators with lucrative exclusive deals and offers advantages in discoverability through search and recommendations. YouTube also holds broadcast rights for major esports leagues.
• Kick. The newer platform recorded 533.9 million hours watched in Q3 2024, attracting creators with higher revenue shares. Kick skews toward edgier content and has drawn controversy alongside growth.

Discord serves as the community layer across all platforms, where fans engage with creators and esports teams between streams and events.

What challenges do marketers face with esports and creator partnerships?

Esports and creator marketing present specific obstacles:

• Measurement complexity. Esports sponsorships lack standardized metrics comparable to traditional sports. Attributing brand lift or sales to tournament exposure remains difficult. Creator partnerships offer better tracking through affiliate links and promo codes but still lack cross-platform attribution.
• Audience fragmentation. Viewers spread across Twitch, YouTube, Kick, and game-specific platforms. Reaching scale requires multi-platform strategies and relationships with multiple creators or teams.
• Influencer vetting gaps. Over 50% of marketers spend only 30 minutes or less vetting a single influencer, and only 25.6% consistently receive documentation on influencer vetting, per EMARKETER and Viral Nation. Gaming creators' extensive streaming archives create brand safety risks.
• Consumer skepticism. 26% of consumers don't trust influencer marketing, well above the 11% who distrust advertising overall, per NAD. 80% of consumers distrust influencers they don't perceive as honest and genuine.

Transparency about sponsorship relationships and authentic creator-brand fit are essential to overcome skepticism.

How should marketers evaluate esports and creator partnerships in 2026?

Brands considering esports or creator investments should assess opportunities across four dimensions:

1. Audience alignment. Does the team, league, or creator's audience match your target consumer? Examine demographics, geographic reach, and game title affinity.
2. Authenticity fit. 43% of gamers have improved brand perceptions when they see brands as genuine gaming partners, per Dentsu. Forced integrations backfire. Partner with creators who are genuine users of your category or teams whose values align with your brand.
3. Engagement depth. Prioritize engagement rate over follower count. Half of marketers consider engagement rates when choosing creators to work with, significantly more than those who prioritize follower counts, according to EMARKETER.
4. Measurement capability. Establish tracking mechanisms before launch. Creator partnerships should include trackable links, promo codes, or platform-native attribution. Esports sponsorships require brand lift studies or social listening to gauge impact.

Start with creators who have authentic affinity for your category before scaling to broader esports sponsorships.

We prepared this article with the assistance of generative AI tools and stand behind its accuracy, quality, and originality.

EMARKETER forecast data was current at publication and may have changed. EMARKETER clients have access to up-to-date forecast data. To explore EMARKETER solutions, click here.