Madison Square Gardens, or rather the company that owns it, has recently announced that it has taken a controlling stake in an eSports Franchise. This adds the electronic sporting events to its portfolio of live entertainment events. The franchise that Madison Square Gardens have bought a share in is one of the oldest League of Legends organizations in the United States. They’re also one of the most successful.
Madison Square Gardens Buys Part of Counter Logic Gaming
Counter Logic Gaming, was founded back in 2010. It originally started out as a League of Legends team and even went on to win two North American Championship Series Tournaments for the game. Since it found success in League of Legends, it has also added other games to its roster, with teams competing in other popular video games, including Counterstrike: GO, Call of Duty, and Halo.
The eSports organization has been purchased using the same corporate umbrella as the Knicks and Rangers. This means that any teams that are part of Counter Logic Gaming are now able to call Madison Square Gardens their home. While this certainly is exciting news for eSports fans, the stock market took little notice of the news, with MSG shares showing little change.
eSports Gaining Recognition
Competition in video games is nothing new, dating back to the 1970s. However, eSports really started to gain popularity in the 1990s, with the growing popularity of home computers and growing internet infrastructure. While some people still see video games as a waste of time, there is actually very good money to be made, if you’re good enough to be a professional. This will only increase as the popularity of eSports grows.
Earlier this year, the NBA officially created the NBA 2k eLeague, which will see 17 different Basketball eSports teams competing in an 82-game season. The eSports industry is expected to be worth $1.5 billion by 2020, so it certainly looks like a good move from Madison Square gardens.
