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The eSports market in Japan was valued at about **** billion Japanese yen in 2023. While the growth was somewhat stunted in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the market grew more strongly in 2022 and was expected to reach a size of almost ** billion yen by 2025.

Makeup of the market

A breakdown of the revenue by category shows that event management, sponsorships, and media rights are the largest revenue streams for the Japanese eSports market. Other categories are streaming, tickets, merchandise, licensing, and prizes. The high revenue share of event management, sponsorships, and media rights indicates the importance eSports viewers have for the market. A majority of people in Japan are aware of eSports, and the eSports audience is expected to grow in the coming years.

Comparatively slow development of eSports in Japan

Although Japan is one of largest gaming markets in the world and home to many important video game companies, such as Sony, Nintendo, Bandai Namco, and Square Enix, the development of eSports has been slow compared to other countries in the region, such as South Korea and China. Next to legal hurdles that capped the prize money people could win at competitions, one big factor are the preferences of consumers in Japan, which tend to be more in favor of mobile gaming and console gaming. PC gaming, which is the focal point of the international eSports scene, enjoys a lower popularity in Japan.