During its earlier days, Esports would usually get sponsorships from graphics card brands, energy drinks, and many others. Now, other industries, like betting companies, jump into the trend to sponsor these teams.
The interest of betting companies in esports tournaments and teams brought some changes to the industry. Gambling-related sponsorship can now make up roughly 25% of the entire esports sponsorship revenue in some tournaments. This shifts the focus of the industry deeper into betting sponsorship.
Betting Companies as the New Face of Esports Sponsorships
During early esports days, most sponsorships came from hardware brands. Intel and Razer were two of the most well-known early esports sponsors. Some energy drink brands like Red Bull and Monster Energy are also common sponsors. These brands are chosen because they align with the interests of most esports audiences at that time.
Some teams are still in partnership with these traditional brands. Yet, when iGaming steps into the landscape, it changes how the entire industry’s sponsorships are.
Betting Canada sites are also key players in esports as they allow fans to bet on their favourite teams and events. With iGaming receiving more attention, crypto casinos and sportsbooks emerge as better sponsors. Events and teams for games like Dota 2, Counter-Strike 2, and Rainbow Six Siege are then seen with iGaming companies’ logos on their jerseys.
With betting and esports going hand-in-hand, it’s natural for this shift to take place. Slowly, both industries merged and started influencing one another. For betting sites, esports sponsorship is a profitable marketing strategy. Betting sites can also reach a broader audience through sponsorships as more people tune in to esports.
Why Esports Developers Seek Betting Partnerships
While iGaming companies might actively offer their sponsorships, esports developers and event organizers are also announcing their interest. One of the most recent ones is Riot Games. It had recently announced sponsorship opportunities for Valorant teams in the Americas and EMEA, and for Tier 1 LoL to iGaming companies.
From Riot’s point of view, sponsorships serve as a way to build a sustainable and lasting ecosystem. They focus more on what they can do to support the players, teams, and fans who have been contributing to the landscape. Riot sees iGaming partnerships as a more stable and predictable revenue stream that can support this vision.
Riot is aware that sports betting isn’t an activity that every audience member participates in. Yet, they notice fans have a strong feeling towards it. Wagering has been a big part of sports, and will always exist regardless of engagement. With how technologies like apps make esports betting more accessible, more fans will likely join the activity.
Riot used to leave out betting companies from their sponsorship system. Many teams have asked the company to reconsider. After a thorough analysis, Riot noticed the impact that iGaming companies may bring, especially in terms of revenue opportunities for the team.
Supporting the teams and fans isn’t all. Riot also sees this shift as a way for them to encourage a healthier betting tendency. The total betting turnover for VCT and LoL Esports has reached $10.7 billion in 2025. The downside is 70% of the bets across all sports came from unregulated markets through unlicensed bookmakers. Riot hopes, by opening their arms to betting sponsorships, they can help direct audiences to legitimate sites.