An Insight Into the Esports Industry in China

This paper examines the state of China's esports industry, arguing that China has become the world's largest esports consumer market and that government policy and new technology will shape its next phase of growth. Drawing on national and regional statistical databases, the authors estimate the industry's scale at 102.8 billion yuan in 2019, reflecting a reported annual compound growth rate of 132.2%, with roughly 450,000 jobs in total, 145,000 of them new entrants that year. The analysis notes that the industry is most visible in first-tier and new first-tier cities, and that by 2020 more than 400 million Chinese users were engaged with esports.

The paper's revenue breakdown shows that the sector is heavily concentrated: esports information services account for about 77% of industry GDP and 71% of employment, while live streaming contributes around 9% of revenue and competitive matches only a small fraction. Professional clubs are shown to generate little income, which the authors suggest may push players toward media careers and encourage practices such as match-related betting. Although the esports industry represents only about 0.10% of national output compared with 10.20% for the broader sports industry, its job creation is described as comparable in relative terms.

Policy support forms a central theme, with the authors cataloguing 98 normative documents issued at central and local levels between 2018 and 2019 and highlighting a shift from online to offline activity, including subsidized international events in Shanghai. The study also identifies several research priorities: establishing technical standards and a clear international definition of esports, assessing the implications of 5G and immersive technologies, studying the management of leagues and clubs, addressing injury prevention and player health, regulating youth gaming addiction, developing formal esports education, and ensuring sustainable development. The authors acknowledge that the underlying data are partly derived from government sources and confidential regional agreements, and that the field remains under-researched.