E-Sports Global Market: Contemporary Trends

The purpose of this study is to identify aspects of the e-sports commercialization and analyze its entrepreneurial core. Based on the of the economic science initial models, e-sports genesis, data from the author's sociological survey and secondary sources of information, elements of commercialization of the entrepreneurial core of e-sports are systematized. The main milestones of e-sports development in the world in general and in Russia in particular are monitored; examples of the e-sports development in the period of COVID-19 pandemic are given; market participants of the industry are identified. Comparative analysis of multilevel ecosystems of sports competitions in the field of traditional sports and e-sports is carried out; statistics of the global e-sports market from 2016 to 2019 and a description of the resource base of e-sports are given. The authors methodize the elements of commercialization and monetization of the entrepreneurial core of e-sports. Based on the results of the author's sociological survey, and the analysis conducted in the paper, it is concluded that the basis of the entrepreneurial core of e-sports is the intellectual and physical activity of people based on electronic games. Thus, e-sports can be considered to be a fundamentally new intellectual discipline, forming around itself stakeholders that contribute to its monetization. It is concluded that the e-sports business core is bottomed on the physical and intellectual activity of people based on electronic games. The results of the study can be used by various entrepreneurial structures working in the sports industry.