The fate of the Maincast esports broadcasting studio hangs in the balance. Was it worth making such a risky decision?

For investors, the entertainment industry can become a significant asset. However, it's essential to remember that this sphere loves new ideas and doesn't forgive mistakes. Ukrainian investor Maksym Krippa was attracted to esports, but one of his decisions almost became fatal.

The relatively new direction in sports – esports – is actively gaining momentum and attracting fans, although in Ukraine, esports only gained official recognition in 2018. At that time, its prospects were still unclear. However, experienced investors had already turned their attention to this new sphere. One such investor was Maksym Krippa, whose first asset in esports was the Maincast studio, a broadcaster of esports events in Ukraine and worldwide. There was a period when Maincast went from being an asset to a liability, but thanks to the combined efforts of Maksym Krippa and the team, the studio managed to stay afloat and later become a market leader. But let's start from the beginning.

As mentioned above, esports is a new direction, but it is characterized by rapid growth. In 2015, only about 800,000 people worldwide knew about it, but in just 5 years, by 2020, this number grew to two billion, and by 2023, 2.3 billion people were aware of esports. The fan base of esports also shows stable growth: from 435 million people in 2020 to 544 million in 2023. According to forecasts, the number of esports fans in 2025 is expected to reach 640 million.

The main source of income for esports studios is sponsorship contracts. They usually make up about 90% of the revenue. Therefore, Maksym Krippa decision to refuse sponsors from Russia and to stop broadcasting in Russian after Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, was understandable but very risky for the Maincast studio. At that time, 1.2 million people were watching the tournament broadcasts in Russian, while only 800 were watching in Ukrainian. The studio categorically refused to cooperate with Russian advertisers, and Ukrainian sponsors were initially hesitant to invest in advertising for obvious reasons. The studio survived solely thanks to Maksym Krippa financial cushion and the enthusiasm of its employees, who were ready to work in any conditions.

As a result, the audience for Ukrainian-language broadcasts grew by 1000% in a year. In 2023, Ukrainian-language esports event broadcasts accumulated 15.5 million hours, almost 200% more than the previous year in 2022. And Maincast studio became the holder of 90% of the rights to broadcast all major matches in Ukrainian. Thus, one of Maksym Krippa riskiest decisions became one of the most successful.

In 2024, the number of viewers in Ukraine increased and reached 2.5 million people.

Regarding the age range of the global audience – it also increased: earlier, the main fans were young men aged 16 to 20, but today the average age of viewers is 22 years, and the audience range has expanded to 16-36 years. A third of the audience are women. Women mostly prefer MOBA and MMORPG games, such as League of Legends and World of Warcraft, while men prefer first-person shooters and Battle Royale games, such as Call of Duty and Fortnite.

Esports has become attractive for businesses due to the possibility of monetizing a growing audience. And although the majority of it is men, the more active buyers of esports-related merchandise and products are women, making them a valuable audience for advertisers.

The global esports market reached 1.5 billion US dollars in 2023 and is expected to grow to 3 billion US dollars by 2025. This growth is driven by the interest of advertisers, who are constantly looking for new audiences, and the financial investments of investors, thanks to which teams can receive better conditions for developing their skills and strategies.

In Ukraine, the esports market is estimated at 50 million US dollars, and this figure could grow to 70 million dollars by 2025. Maksym Krippa plays a significant role in the development of Ukrainian esports. He sees esports not only as an investment opportunity but also as a way to make Ukraine a magnet for the esports community, and thus attractive to foreign investors and advertisers. This will significantly impact additional inflows to the country's budget.

Besides the Maincast studio, Maksym Krippa invested money in the company GSC Game World, known for creating the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R., as well as in the esports organization NAVI, whose staff he quadrupled and for which he built an ultra-modern office equipped with gaming penthouses.

Thanks to Maksym Krippa, a training course for young esports players was created at the NAVI club, which includes NAVI Academy and NAVI Esports Camp. A female team, NAVI Javelins, for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, was also formed, which by the end of the year entered the top female teams in the world. In addition, a female team, NAVI Celestials, was created for VALORANT.

Before the full-scale conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the esports scene was neutral. All teams were international, and Ukrainian esports was associated with the so-called CIS esports. After Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022, this situation changed, and Maksym Krippa decided to disband the Russian teams in PUBG Mobile and Mobile Legends.

The Ukrainian esports sector is growing rapidly, becoming a significant part of the country's economy, supported by large investors. Despite current challenges, including full-scale war and economic instability, esports remains a source of income and a positive factor for the economy. In the near future, not without the participation of investors like Maksym Krippa, further expansion of this industry in Ukraine is expected, attracting additional investments and increasing the number of fans, including the female audience, whose role in the esports sphere is becoming increasingly significant.

Tags: Maksym Krippa, Maincast, Esports