In a sense, esports have existed since the first time nerds gathered together to play video games competitively (or 1972 per Guinness World Records). Competitive video gaming has always existed, and especially good players could earn a few shekels here and there but the scene didn’t really become truly professional and a viable career until the last decade.
Today, professional organizations exist to promote and train high-caliber players who are winning hundreds of thousands up to millions of dollars for competing in global tournaments. The popular game League of Legends split $5,000,000 between 17 teams at the 2025 World Championships, with the winning team, T1, taking home $1,000,000 between 5 players.