Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the writer, and do not reflect Shoryuken.com as a whole.
If you have been keeping up with the competitive Super Smash Bros. scene, you will have noticed that there has been substantial hubbub around players being picked up by esports teams. In the past few weeks especially, players have been snapped up left and right as if there has been a mini-gold rush, with teams either starting their entry into Smash or increasing their reach by picking up top level talent. Whereas if you look at Street Fighter, there doesn’t seem to be that influx of Tier 1 esports teams investing in the game just yet, despite having the massive prize pots of the Capcom Pro Tour and mainstream exposure after the success of Evo Finals on ESPN2. This noticeable difference is an intriguing one and with some research and number crunching, I’ve got some possible reasons as to why there is this disparity in the presence of Tier 1 esports teams within both games.
To clarify what is meant by ‘Tier 1 esports teams’: these are the teams like Team SoloMid, G2, Team Liquid, or Evil Geniuses who have a strong presence in multiple esports like League of Legends, CS:GO or DOTA 2 and thus, have a massive social media presence and history of success backing them up. These are the organizations that if you mentioned them to a League or CS:GO player, they’d probably have strong opinions about that team.
One of the major reasons for this disparity comes from the plain fact that it is very expensive to run an esports team, and even harder to run at a profit. There is a significant financial risk in signing any player, especially if they are from a section of competitive gaming which that team is not familiar with, so many teams are simply not taking the plunge. As NRG chairman Andy Miller recently stated on the Videogame BANG! Podcast when talking about possibly sponsoring a Street Fighter player, “Street Fighter is a little more nascent.” Players either have to stream, which according to Miller they don’t do enough of yet, or they have to win. When you have to consider a salary and travel expenses, it is a tough sell to pick up a Street Fighter player solely on tournament wins, even if they are making top three at every event they attend. Most teams are looking for two out of three things when they are thinking of picking up a player–they must be likeable and marketable, they must be placing high, and they must be making content, either via streaming or general video creation. With Street Fighter, only a select few players are making consistent money from tournament winnings and even then, they probably don’t stream as much as they need to, in order to attract one of these Tier 1 teams.
Evil Geniuses is the Tier 1 team with the biggest presence in Street Fighter and if you look at their roster, it collectively ticks all of the three boxes. They have been clever in exactly who they have picked up so one of their players will invariably end up in the money. They do stream infrequently so there is an opportunity to build that audience, if more time is put into their streaming schedules. There is the added bonus that EG has massively successful teams in other esports so they can take a hit if their FGC division is running at a loss. However, EG is the outlier as they are the only Tier 1 team where their Street Fighter players outnumber their Smash players. Plus, there are teams like TSM, C9, and CLG who have no Street Fighter presence while sponsoring Smash players, and I feel this is down to Smash’s massive leg up when it comes to content creation.
Those magic words are king when esports are concerned and Smashers create tons. The majority of top players stream or make regular video content, tech videos are coming out every other day, and humorous Smash compilations are a dime a dozen. Smashers have a voracious appetite for content and top players realize that this demand must be catered to, if they want to keep themselves in the black. Besides his top placements, Nairo runs one of the biggest Smash 4 streams out there–and that was probably a major factor in his recent pick up by NRG. While Ally’s top placings played a big part in his pickup by Cloud9, it would not be surprising if he started to stream regularly as part of his contract. There is clearly a massive market for Street Fighter content; just look at the success of Capcom Pro Talk and shows like Excellent Adventures. But it is difficult to get the balance right between practicing to stay at the top and making videos to please your fans and team, making a career even harder to sustain as a viable income.
However, one key difference is that while Street Fighter may not have as many Tier 1 organizations investing in them, they do have corporate sponsors. Organizations like Razer, Qanba, Alienware and Red Bull have players for Street Fighter V and importantly, they can use their players to actively sell products like arcade sticks. For Melee especially, the CRT market is not exactly a thriving one and besides helping sell custom Gamecube controllers, it’s very hard for a corporate sponsor to back a Melee player when their game involves playing on a 14-year-old machine. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U has a little more luck, as it is played on current-gen hardware, but there hasn’t been that much market research to see what unique products Smash can sell, as opposed to other titles. With Street Fighter, organizations like Red Bull have a special stake in the success of the CPT and its players, as they run tournaments like the Proving Grounds and Red Bull Kumite. The same goes for Razer, as having the world’s best player playing on a (functioning) Razer stick is likely going to drive up sales. As such, Smash may need to beef up their content offensive as finding corporate backing is more of a challenge.
When it comes to the Capcom Pro Tour, let’s talk about the presence of a Pro Tour with a big prize pool–as it’s a double-edged sword for both teams and players. The obvious benefit is that it is a grand stage, with multiple opportunities for a player to prove their worth and get a chance of earning that $500,000 if you reach the Finals. The money is clearly on show and up for grabs with the CPT, but this has the downside of everyone and their nan coming to claim the prize. North America has the highest number of Premier events out of any region so naturally, players will be coming from all over the globe in order to secure a spot at Capcom Cup. As we’ve seen in the early part of this year, this means killers like RZR|Infiltration and Tokido fly over and either take the golden ticket or the money. So if you’re an up-and-coming player looking for a team, you’re already at a disadvantage, as going to a Premier event will mean you will eventually run into a god-tier player who probably already has a sponsor or team, making it hard for you to have that breakout performance to attract attention. Ranking Events will naturally be harder if national killers are denied at place at a Premier, forcing your team to potentially fork out for international and internal flights, as you look towards other regions to qualify. We’ve seen this in action with American players grinding points in Latin America and Asian players in Europe, so flying out to other regions is still a risky investment no matter what.
While the idea of a Pro Tour is great for publicity and does mean that players from all around the world get a chance at winning that grand prize, it can prove to be a poisoned chalice for potential investors. They obviously want their players in that Cup Finals but if that means spending extortionate amounts of money on flights and not receiving much back via their cut of the winnings or streaming money, you can see why teams may be reluctant to sign players on their way up. In Smash, the lack of a Pro Tour may actually be a boon to teams, as they can be tactical about which events they send their players to. There is no immediate impetus to send your player to this stacked tournament in order to gain Ranking Points to get a chance at that massive prize pot. Players and teams can make mutually beneficial decisions by picking specific events where they are likely to make money and send them there. There isn’t that constant threat of “if I don’t attend the next major, I won’t get to the Cup Finals,” so players can have time to stream, practice and take a break should they need to. At present, there is a big Smash tournament every other week at locations around the country, so there is always something to compete in.
Again, there is the obvious downside of not having a massive prize pot and this glut of tournaments is only really afforded to players within the US, but the absence of the Pro Tour pressure can offer everyone some well-needed breathing room. Much like the CPT though, North America is the crucible of Smash, which makes it a struggle for non-US players to get the notice of top level teams. Paying tax on winnings can be an absolute killer if you from outside the country too–just look at the rate of tax in Sweden for a player like Armada. Not including income tax or money potentially taken by his sponsor from his tournament winnings, the lack of proper tax reform for esports tournament earnings means that he may pay up to 30% tax on prize money. So for his $4,744.00 prize for getting 2nd at Evo 2016, he may have paid $1,423.20 just in tax. Even for players, just winning tournaments is not financially viable so if they want to make playing competitively a full-time career, you have to stream just for your own sake. Should the rumors about a Twitch and Nintendo-funded Smash Circuit be proved true, it will certainly be interesting to see how that tour learns from the CPT and takes into account just how expensive it can be for all parties to run a circuit of this magnitude.
One must also factor in the position of outside organizations helping players actually connect with teams and sponsors in the first place. In Smash, many community heads are actively working with players and teams to negotiate deals which are beneficial to both parties. Groups like MIOM which act as both player incubators and negotiators are crucial in getting players these deals with Tier 1 teams like CLG or C9. While many of these conversations and no doubt enlightening discussions are happening behind the magic curtain, it’s good to know there are individuals and organizations who are acting as a third party to ensure these agreements suit everyone. With Street Fighter, there doesn’t seem to be a public body which is actively helping players seek out these teams and connecting them to people in the know. I imagine with a nonpartisan group of tournament organizers, commentators and community boffins who know their way around both the legal and financial aspects of esports would be a great help in accelerating Street Fighter’s growth among the bigger organizations. There does need to be a push from players themselves to seek out teams and make themselves marketable, should they wish to see this aspect of Street Fighter blossom.
Now, for all this talk of getting good deals for players and teams, there is always the question of whether this is a rush before the bubble bursts. Is the decision for teams to see how Street Fighter V plays out over the next year a safe move to ensure that it has decent staying power, and is the Smash rush going to saturate the market? Many experts from various games have been discussing this as of late, and it is definitely a consideration that should be in the back of everyone’s minds. While it’s great to want continued exponential growth, is there the infrastructure and support to sustain bigger venues for events or to ensure casters get paid a proper wage, for example? Opening up the discussion about these issues is integral for everyone in the FGC to ensure a steady and secure future that doesn’t collapse under the weight of its own expectations.
Sources: VideoGameBang!; Esports Earnings; Swedish Tax Agency; Capcom Pro Tour; TSM ZeRo, TheHadou; Tafokints; Panda Global
