Bertrand Amar, founder of French tournament organizer N.E.O. (NEW ESPORTS ORG.), has outlined the hefty financial challenges and costs involved in organizing esports competitions.
In a recent interview with French business magazine Challenges, Amar revealed that running an esports competition for a year typically costs between €200,000 and €300,000, with the largest events reaching an eyewatering €3 million.
The insights come from Amar’s experience launching N.E.O. three months ago alongside Matthieu Dallon, an entrepreneur who’s been involved with esports since 2000.
Amar’s company has quickly established itself as a major player in European esports, securing rights to organize several high-profile international tournaments including the international, BLAST-partnered Rocket League operations, the women’s League of Legends Game Changers (LGC): Rising and the EVA Pro League for VR esports..
According to Amar, the process of organizing an esports event begins with securing trust from game publishers or international rights holders to obtain the necessary licenses. Once licensing is secured, organizers must focus on attracting top teams, signing partnerships with sponsors, hiring skilled commentators and production crews, and developing high-quality broadcast packages and graphics.
The sponsorship challenge
Bertrand Amar (N.E.O) revient sur un point super important de notre écosystème esport (via un itw @Challenges)
— Varizan (@VarizanTom) May 26, 2026
Les sponsors sont une partie prenante de l'esport à part entière. Et leur présence est indispensable.
Car dans l'esport il n'y a pas de :
– Revenus billetterie
-… https://t.co/f9kzFj5efB pic.twitter.com/5Pi1BbuxsL
Amar emphasized that finding sponsors and partners capable of financially supporting the event is the final and most critical step – as well as esports’ biggest challenge compared to traditional sports.
The founder explained the fundamental difference in revenue streams, noting that football clubs in France’s Ligue 1 generate consistent income through stadium ticket sales and broadcasting rights.
“Most esports teams, however, do not have regular ticketing income because many competitions are played online,” Amar said. He added that media rights remain a relatively small revenue stream for esports, primarily because tournaments are traditionally broadcast for gratis on platforms such as Kick, YouTube Twitch.
Despite these challenges, Amar believes broadcasting rights will become increasingly important in the future. There are early signs of this shift, with entertainment and streaming platforms beginning to sign exclusive esports broadcast deals to attract younger audiences.
Broadcasting rights evolution
Recent developments support Amar’s optimistic outlook on broadcasting rights. Disney+ secured exclusive global rights to stream the League of Legends KeSPA Cup last year, marking the first time a major international streaming platform picked up the event.
More recently, Warner Bros. Games and Evo announced a partnership to stream the 2026 Evo circuit live on HBO Max and Warner Play in Latin America.
Amar revealed that N.E.O. is already in discussions with broadcasters interested in purchasing esports rights to reach younger demographics. Until these revenue streams mature, though, sponsorships remain the primary funding source for esports competitions.
The challenges outlined by Amar match broader industry concerns about the financial sustainability of major tournaments. BLAST executive producer Sebastian Grydholt recently spoke about similar high costs and complexity involved in organizing esports events, particularly in Dota 2, citing rising production costs, operational challenges, and the industry’s growing need for stronger long-term revenue sources.
Looking ahead
The esports industry faces a critical period as organizers work to develop sustainable business models while maintaining the high production values. And while no one would say that the industry has backed itself into a corner with the flawless production values so far, few can also deny that they’ve raised audience expectations.
The issue is that organizations need to maintain profits. It’s a balancing act, one which N.E.O’s rapid growth is apparently nailing, which gives the industry reasons to be optimistic about the future.
What’s more, ongoing broadcaster discussions suggest potential solutions are emerging. However, the fundamental challenge of building diverse revenue streams beyond sponsorships remains. Is audience monetization a viable option? Time will tell.
For now, as traditional media companies continue exploring esports partnerships, the industry may finally develop the broadcasting revenue foundation that has long supported traditional sports. It may, though, be a touchy subject with consumers for reasons beyond mere monetization.
After all, watching esports elicits far more online engagement from spectators than watching other sports. If broadcasters can offer more audience participation, there’s real potential for regular esports content on streaming platforms in the future.
Image source: Android Guys
