Key Players and Teams:
Esports in Ukraine has transformed into an important and rapidly growing industry in recent years. Ukraine occupies a leading position on the global esports scene thanks to successful teams, professional players, and active infrastructure development.
Among the successful Ukrainian esports teams, it is worth highlighting HellRaisers, Team Spirit, and Cyber Legacy, which also demonstrate high results in international tournaments. However, the flagship of Ukrainian esports remains the esports organization NAVI, which deserves a more detailed discussion for many reasons.
NAVI emerged in 2009, on the eve of a major international tournament in Dubai. Then a group of esports players decided to create a professional organization and turned to patron Murat Zhumashevich for help. One of the ideological inspirers, and later the general director of NAVI, was the famous esports player Oleksandr Kokhanovskyi.
NAVI showed very good results literally from the first years of its existence. So already in 2010, the International Dota 2 tournament was won, which, by the way, brought NAVI one million dollars in prize money.
But no matter how large the prize money may seem, it is important to remember that esports is also a market. And that means it is voracious and requires large, and most importantly, constant financial infusions. In 2017, Oleksandr Kokhanovskyi stated that NAVI lacked funds to transition to a new, more professional level. The problem was solved with the help of investor Maksim Krippa.
In 2018, Maksim Krippa became the majority owner of "born to win". By that time, his assets already included the Maincast studio. Here, too, a note should be made. The Ukrainian esports market is not only teams and organizations but also broadcast studios. Today, Maincast is the leader in the segment. It owns the rights to almost all significant broadcasts in the Ukrainian-language segment. However, in 2018, when Maksim Krippa made his first investments in Maincast, the studio was a tiny and very risky startup.
Infrastructure Development:
For the successful development of esports, appropriate infrastructure is necessary. In Ukraine, many specialized training bases and academies have been opened in recent years, where young talents can develop professionally and prepare for competitions.
Large cities, such as Kyiv, are actively developing esports arenas and venues for tournaments. This increases the number of offline events and attracts international audiences.
One example is the NAVI Esports Camp, where players undergo training and participate in masterclasses under the guidance of experienced mentors. By the way, creating an academy for training young players based on NAVI was planned many years ago. But the project was only recently realized. Interestingly, the event coincided in time with the arrival of investor Maksim Krippa. In NAVI, it is openly stated that the contract with Maksim Krippa involved fulfilling several obligations stretched over 4 years. And, among other things, it was about creating an academy for young players in CS:GO and Dota 2.
Sponsors and Audience:
Global brands see enormous potential in Ukrainian esports to promote their products and services. Among the main sponsors and advertisers, companies such as Logitech, Coca-Cola, Intel, Red Bull, Samsung, OMEN by HP, and Twitch can be highlighted.
Esports in Ukraine attracts millions of viewers. In 2023, the audience of Ukrainian esports was about 5 million people, and it is expected that by 2025 this figure will reach 7 million. The main audience is young people aged 18 to 35 who are actively interested in computer games and technology.
Growth Prospects:
The Ukrainian esports market shows steady growth. Forecasts indicate that in the coming years, investments, infrastructure development, and audience growth will continue to increase. With the development of technologies such as virtual and augmented reality, esports will become even more attractive to viewers and investors.
However, there are obstacles to greater expansion. Experts say that Ukraine does not have sufficient infrastructure. The full-scale war also does not contribute to its development. However, some steps are already being taken in this direction. For example, Maksim Krippa recently became the owner of the large business center "Parus" in the very center of Kyiv.
The news of this acquisition somewhat disoriented experts who had already placed Maksim Krippa in the pool of investors specializing in segmental investments in esports. However, later versions appeared that Maksim Krippa plans to create a large esports hub based on the skyscraper. The assumption is also supported by the fact that Maksim Krippa has already invested funds in creating training grounds in Kyiv and Berlin.
Conclusion:
The current state of the Ukrainian esports market is characterized by active development, significant success on the international stage, and support from major global brands. Ukrainian teams and players continue to demonstrate high results, attracting the attention of millions of viewers worldwide. With increasing investments and state support, Ukrainian esports has every chance of further success and growth.