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Millions of sports fans turn to eSports amid lockdown & self-isolation

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Research reveals that millions of sports fans are turning to eSports for entertainment during lockdown and self-isolation, highlighting what we’re watching the most and the games which have seen the highest increase in viewings.

OLBG saw a staggering increase of 943% in traffic to their eSports tips page last week, as the world went into lockdown, following a time of social distancing and have pulled together their first weekly eSports update, sharing insights into the sport during lockdown: https://www.olbg.com/us/insights/esports-update

The outbreak of COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on the world of sport, with an unprecedented level of events being canceled in the interest of public safety.

However, one sport has been largely unaffected during these uncertain times, with many sports fans turning their attention to the virtual world.

More people than ever before watching and playing video games at home; eSports, and the last 7 days has seen some crazy stats come out:
The Steam gaming platform hit its highest ever peak of users, with over 22 million concurrent users online at once, with 7 million of those in-game.

Many games have also seen their highest ever numbers of players, including Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, with a peak of over 1.1 million concurrent users on Sunday, March 22nd.

Many are tuning into streaming platforms such as Twitch to watch their favourite eSports stars compete, with the number of hours watched on the platform increasing by 22% over the last two weeks alone.
Most Streamed Games on Twitch Last Week (w/c 23rd March)

It’s League of Legends which we’re spending the most time watching; with just short of 30m combined hours watched in the last week alone, closely followed by Just Chatting (vlogging), and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Content Hours Watched
League of Legends 29.97M
Just Chatting 28.85M
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 26.57M
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 19.29M
Fortnite 17.76M
Animal Crossing: New Horizons 16.24M
Grand Theft Auto V 14.95M
Dota 2 10.13M
Hearthstone 6.09M
Minecraft 6.04M
 

The Online Games With The Highest Increases In Viewings

On the other hand, if we look at the games which have seen the highest increase in viewings last week:

Game 7 Day Viewership Increase
Teamfight Tactics 90.10%
FIFA 20 47.20%
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 33.40%
Grand Theft Auto V 28.20%
Dota 2 24.60%
Fortnite 19.60%
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege 18.50%
Apex Legends 13.80%
League of Legends 9.90%
Hearthstone 6.20%

You can view the full report with more statistics here: https://www.olbg.com/us/insights/esports-update 

It’s particularly interesting to see that FIFA 20 is one of the games which has experienced the largest viewership increase, with many football fans looking to watch virtual games play out, with the majority of real-world games canceled (although games in the Belarusian Premier League are still going ahead!).

In fact, more than 60,000 fans tuned in to watch Real Betis player Borja Iglesias face off against Sevilla’s Sergio Reguilón on the same weekend that the local rivals were due to play, with talks underway for players from all 20 La Liga clubs to take part in an online FIFA tournament!

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GRID Launches GRID Insights: Real-Time AI Context for Esports Tournaments

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GRID, an in-game data infrastructure platform trusted by the leading game publishers and sportsbooks, has unveiled GRID Insights — a new AI-driven product delivering real-time, predictive context to live esports broadcasts and betting experiences.

GRID Insights transforms raw gameplay data into dynamic, predictive insights in milliseconds — surfacing real-time narratives like player streaks, weapon stats and record chases, all tailored to the stream’s brand and audience.

“With GRID Insights, we’re building the storytelling engine of live esports, powered entirely by official data. We use official in-game data and real-time pipelines to generate predictions, contextual stats, and behavioral patterns that previously required an analyst team. Now it’s automated and scalable, enabling our partners to create more immersive, informative, and engaging experiences that today’s digital-native audiences expect,” said Moritz Maurer, CEO of GRID.

Thanks to GRID’s deep partnerships with top game publishers and tournament organisers, Insights is built on structured, official data, enhanced by large language models (LLMs) and available via plug-and-play SDKs or APIs. The product supports major esports titles including CS2, Dota 2, League of Legends and VALORANT, with full customisation across branding and output formats.

GRID Insights made its live debut during the Champion of Champions Tour Season 3 (CS2), with broader adoption already underway. Among early adopters is the European Pro League (EPL), now integrating GRID Insights into its tournament broadcasts.

“GRID Insights is a game-changer for how fans engage with the action. At EPL, we’re always looking for new ways to elevate the viewer experience—and with GRID Insights, the instant, story-driven context keeps fans both informed and immersed. Whether you’re a dedicated follower or a casual viewer, it makes every moment more exciting,” said Oleksii Krasnikov, CEO of EPL.

The post GRID Launches GRID Insights: Real-Time AI Context for Esports Tournaments appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Ana Carolina Luna Maçães

Esportes Gaming Brasil unveils Ana Carolina Luna Maçães as Compliance Manager to reinforce regulatory commitment

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Esportes Gaming Brasil, the owner of Onabet and Esportes da Sorte, has unveiled Ana Carolina Luna Maçães as its new Compliance Manager. The hire reinforces the company’s commitment to transparency, integrity, and good governance in Brazil’s evolving betting market.

Esportes Gaming Brasil’s new Head of Compliance, Ana Carolina Luna Maçães, commented: “Esportes Gaming Brasil has set a high standard in Brazil’s betting market with its total commitment to integrity, governance, and responsible gaming. It’s a privilege to join this exceptional team as Compliance Manager. My role is to reinforce our culture of compliance, navigating us through complex regulatory frameworks across multiple jurisdictions with as little friction as possible. Our mission is to deliver secure, transparent, and competitive services for our partners and clients.”  

A seasoned legal and compliance professional who has spent time at NSX Brasil, Maçães joins with expertise in financial crime prevention, responsible gambling, and corporate ethics. She has earned a CPC-A certification from LEC (Legal, Ethics & Compliance), and she significantly strengthens the group’s in-house compliance work.

Esportes Gaming Brasil CEO Darwin Filho, added: “It’s more than just complying with and supporting regulations. Esportes Gaming Brasil has been actively leading the process of maturing the betting sector in the country. Our commitment to governance has been an essential part of our business model since the beginning. The arrival of Ana Carolina represents a strategic reinforcement, further strengthening the culture of compliance that has always guided the company.”

Esportes Gaming Brasil is proud to be one of the Brazilian-licensed operators under the SPA/MF framework and is renowned for impactful responsible gambling measures, including self-exclusion tools, behaviour monitoring, and an addiction support network.

With deep relationships to national sport and culture through major football sponsorships and experiential collaborations, and a growing digital presence via Onabet, the group is committed to shaping a safe, sustainable, and responsible future for Brazil’s gaming sector.

The post Esportes Gaming Brasil unveils Ana Carolina Luna Maçães as Compliance Manager to reinforce regulatory commitment appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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Gamercraft Fully Adopts ESIC Integrity Codes and Joins Commission to Elevate Global Esports Standards

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The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) announced that Gamercraft has joined ESIC as a Platform Tournament Organiser Member, formally embedding ESIC’s Integrity Codes into its Terms & Conditions and Terms of Use.

As part of its membership, Gamercraft will:

• Integrate ESIC’s Anti-Corruption, Anti-Cheating and Player Conduct Codes directly into every user agreement.

• Work hand-in-hand with ESIC to manage integrity-related complaints and appeals, including reviews of platform bans, to ensure transparent and independent resolution.

As an esports tournaments platform, Gamercraft delivers skill-based competitive experiences powered by proprietary tournament formats and performance-driven systems. With its integration into ESIC, Gamercraft solidifies its commitment to competitive integrity by adopting the ESIC Integrity Programme across all its operations.

Gamercraft joins a growing list of distinguished international tournament organisers and stakeholders who rely on ESIC’s Integrity Programme to form the foundation for competitive integrity within their operations.

Stephen Hanna, CEO of ESIC, said: “We are pleased to welcome Gamercraft, Inc. into ESIC membership. As a tournament organiser operating in the fast-evolving space of platform-based esports competition, their adoption of the ESIC Integrity Program is a meaningful step toward upholding fairness and ethical conduct across online tournaments. We look forward to supporting Gamercraft as they continue to scale their efforts with integrity at the core.”

JJ Garcia-Rovira, CEO of Gamercraft, said: “At Gamercraft, integrity forms the foundation of fair competition. Joining ESIC formalizes our commitment to maintaining the highest standards across our tournament ecosystem. As we pioneer new formats in skill-based competition and esports, this partnership ensures our community can compete with complete confidence in the fairness and transparency of our platform. We’re excited to work alongside ESIC in elevating integrity standards throughout the competitive gaming ecosystem.”

The post Gamercraft Fully Adopts ESIC Integrity Codes and Joins Commission to Elevate Global Esports Standards appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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