ASEAN esports market grows at fast rate

NANNING, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) — The ASEAN esports market is witnessing a “golden period” of development.
“ASEAN is one of the most dynamic regions in the global economy, which provides excellent opportunities for the development of the esports industry,” NIP Group Chairman and CEO, Macau Esports Federation President Mario Ho said at the recently launched 2024 China-ASEAN Electronic Sports Industry Week.
With the rapid improvement of the Internet and other infrastructure, many ASEAN young people have begun to embrace esports, more and more international esports events have chosen to land in ASEAN countries, and a large number of local esports teams and players have emerged on the global stage.
According to market researcher Newzoo, esports revenues in Southeast Asia grew at a CAGR of 20.8% from 2019 to 2024, a growth rate almost equal to twice the CAGR of global esports revenues (11.1%) during the same period. With a projected market size of nearly US$30 billion by 2025, Southeast Asia is expected to become a major force driving the global esports industry.
Kitiwhuth Phimphahu, leader of the Thai Esports League, who is participating in the 2024 China-ASEAN Esports Tournament, said esports has a good youth base in Thailand and is popular among young people. He has been engaged in the industry for many years and witnessed more and more young Thais becoming professional esports players and going to the world.
Industry insiders say that with the continued development of the market, the audience of esports in Southeast Asia has expanded from young male gamers at the beginning to a wider range of people, including women, middle-aged and elderly people, and more and more people have begun to pay attention to and participate in esports activities. “As a typical representative of the digital sports industry, esports has refreshed the boundaries of traditional competitive sports and shown vigorous vitality.” Qin Jian, head of the operation of the esports culture center in the China-ASEAN Digital Economy Industrial Park, said.
The popularity of esports is growing in Southeast Asia, with Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB), developed by MOONTON Games, being an official medal sport at the Southeast Asian Games.
The peak viewers of the 5th MLBB World Championship final held in the Philippines at the end of 2023 exceeded 5.06 million, making it the TOP1 most watched mobile esports tournament on overseas live streaming platforms that year.
Hu Xindi, Regional Esports Ecosystem Lead at MOONTON Games, said that esports are not only highly sought after among young people in Southeast Asia, but have gradually evolved into an important part of mass entertainment and digital economy, with far-reaching impacts in many fields such as culture, tourism, technology and consumption.
Jayf Soh, founder of RSG Club, who has been deeply engaged in Southeast Asian esports for 15 years, said that Southeast Asian esports is a still-developing field, “I believe that in the next 5 to 10 years, Southeast Asian esports will mature faster, and more excellent esports products and esports players will emerge.”
“In the past few years since esports was first introduced as an official sport at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games in Manila, everyone has worked together to promote and popularize the sport of esports, which has become a Southeast Asian Games sport for three consecutive times,” Kenneth Fok Kai-Kong, president of the Asian Electronic Sports Federation (AESF), said, adding this means esports will also be one of the constant events in the Southeast Asian Games, and that esports in Southeast Asia will definitely have a brighter and more prosperous future. ■