Author: Ed Fussell, Junior Broker, CKRe Limited
Whatever sport you find yourself playing or spectating, nothing can compete with the thrill of a tournament. Testing your own abilities or perhaps watching the best in the world go head-to-head.
COVID-19 has been a challenge for the gaming and esports sector, but amidst the disruption, there have been some positives. User engagement has drastically increased, and revenues for gaming companies and platforms have increased. Traditional sports, unable to maintain their normality, have turned to esports to further enhance engagement. The likes of Formula 1 and NASCAR are examples, with NASCAR’s iRacing series proving hugely popular, with a peak viewing figure of 1.3 million!
But it hasn’t all been plain sailing. Like traditional sports, live fan events are also key to esports, and this was the first area of the industry to be impacted, with the majority of esports events being either postponed or cancelled. Many of these transitioned online and subsequently have become continually broadcasted to viewers. This was a major challenge, and clearly huge efforts have succeeded in recreating many aspects of the very special quality and experience of a live esports event. But can they really replace the atmosphere and excitement of the live experience?
Live Events:
We all hope to see the back of lockdowns soon so it is expected that we will see more leagues across all sports allowing reduced numbers of spectators to return to stadiums. Recent positive Vaccine news is welcome but even the greatest optimist would not believe yet that pre-COVID capacities are achievable, and even when they are, that things will ever fully go back to pre-pandemic “normality”.
But at least it is now possible to begin to plan again. What’s more, there are some new science-based tools available. Several have been developed to assist stadiums and venues begin to welcome substantial numbers of fans back to live sports as well as providing solutions to give owners and sporting bodies the peace of mind that financial implications of the “new normal” can be measured and planned for.
An example of the new technologies that have sprung up to help all sports including esports begin to stage viable live fan events is the OnePlan Socially Distanced Seating Bowl planner. This online tool enables an event to adjust their specific seating arrangements to the precise and evolving social distancing rules in place at a certain locations, at a certain date, making sure that an event can safely at as close to full capacity as possible and thus retain the greatest revenue possible. Currently working with several of the biggest clubs in world football and sports franchises in the US, and having already been appointed to the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024, the founder of One Plan, Paul Foster comments “ As a scientific and internationally verified approach to venues and stadia, we are working across many sports to ensure that fans can return to live events safely, and in a way that allows sport to scenario-plan most effectively to reduce its financial risks”.
Insurance is another way that you can offload some of your financial risk of course. Through the use of contingency covers, or protection against cancelation following a natural catastrophe, lower than expected attendance, non-appearance of key talent and additionally any liabilities you have to the public attending or the venue owners if your event were to cause damage.
Virtual Events:
Virtual events are not immune to risks, and specific considerations include:
- Failure of network equipment e.g. wifi
- Server malfunction
- Power outages
Any one of these risks could result in the transmission failure of your virtual event. Sponsors could and can refuse to pay out following this.
Global Sporting Risks (www.globalsportingrisks.com ), are experts in event insurance and, as proud UKIE members, are keen to provide solutions to these and other risk problems for the esports community.
Ed Fussell, Global Sporting Risks